Jahmal Cole: Founder & CEO of My Block My Hood My City

Providing Ripples of Hope in Chicago

In 2013, Jahmal Cole began volunteering at the Cook County Jail and realized many of its youngest occupants had never once been out of their neighborhoods. Jahmal Cole and his team began providing opportunities for teens to step outside their comfort zone and explore new communities, cultures, and cuisines and gain a greater understanding of the world. These experiences would also show communities how service, empathy, and collaboration can make a difference not only on their own block but in the city of Chicago.

To learn more about My Block, My Hood, My City and how you can help, CLICK HERE

Lester Munson: The Menace of Sports Gambling

Lester Munson, retired sports journalist & legal analyst for Sports Illustrated and ESPN, will explore the long term effects on collegiate and professional sports

Gambling isn't new, in fact it was around before Christ and actually played a role in financing the American Revolution. The challenge of the game and the promise of a quick dollar continues to attract a variety of players, especially with an increased presence of online platforms. But with today's targeted advertising and the ease of placing bets online for collegiate and professional sports, what are the real long term costs of gambling?

Jack Shea: Theologian and Storyteller

The Challenge of Christmas: Unwrapping our Spiritual Gifts

Beyond the socks or sweaters found wrapped under the tree are the real gifts of Christmas: spiritual stories and practices which exemplify the many gifts of our spirits and the depth of their involvement. Gifts which are there for the taking, whether we realize it or not. But how do we understand, how do we embrace, how do we listen to these spirits during the busy holidays, or when daily struggles with personal, work,or social situations become overwhelming? How do we open this spirit-filled box?

Join us as Jack Shea engages our imagination, our intellect and our Spirit.

Mary Ann Ahern and Carol Marin: What Happens Next?

Two of Chicago's most prominent journalists will look at what we know about the outcome of the November election, and what it means not only for Illinois, but for our country. The pair have joined the First Friday Club in prior post-election roundups--a treat not to be missed. Along with the Presidency, the House and Senate have been labeled as tossups, with big ramifications for both parties and for America.

Father Jack Wall: President of Catholic Extension

Hope at the border: what the Church looks like when she is at her best!

Join us to hear about those ministering to migrant families at the U.S. - Mexico border. Father Jack Wall, president of Catholic Extension will share some of his experiences at the border and reflect on the heroic work the Catholic Church is doing with those making the journey to the United States.

The History and Mission of Catholic Extension

In 1905, many Catholics were isolated in rural towns across America with little to no access to Catholic fellowship. Father Francis Clement Kelley from Lapeer, Michigan, heard these stories and got to work. He established the Catholic Church Extension Society—now Catholic Extension Society—to bring the sacraments to remote faith communities across the country.

This mission with the support of the Catholic Extensions's earliest donors, allowed priests to ride into tiny frontier towns to celebrate Mass from the back of rail cars or motor chapels where there were no train stops. Two years later, Father Kelley began publishing Extension magazine to tell the stories of the resilient, faith-filled Catholics he had met across the United States.

Today, Catholic Extension Society, through the generosity of many donors, reaches over 15 million American Catholics, many of whom live in faith communities which are located in poor Extension dioceses. Grants are provided to build churches, fix facilities and award scholarships for emerging leaders to empower diverse ministries. Catholic Extension is investing in the future of the faith through efforts to engage young people.

While methods continuously evolve to meet the demands of the times, the Catholic Extension mission remains as alive and important as ever!

More on Father Jack Wall

Reverend John J. Wall was ordained for the Archdiocese of Chicago after graduating from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in 1968. He has served as a faculty member of Niles College and Vocations Director for the Archdiocese of Chicago. For 24 years Father Wall served as Pastor of Chicago's historic Old St. Patrick's Church and is the co-founder of the popular Theology on Tap program for young adult Catholics. He was appointed president of Catholic Extension Society by the Vatican in 2007.

Father Wall has served on several boards and advisory councils, including the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary, the National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management, and the Illinois Patrons of the Arts-Vatican Museums.

Dr. Ngozi Ezike: President & CEO of Sinai Chicago

Give it to me straight, Doc!

She got us through the pandemic. Now, with her trademark passion and professionalism, Dr. Ngozi Ezike takes aim at the biggest health care challenges facing Chicago.

A confident, reassuring presence during Gov. Pritzker’s daily covid briefings, Dr. Ngozi Ezike in 2022 left the Illinois Department of Public Health to lead Sinai Chicago. And, while steering this major, 105-year-old Chicago healthcare institution, she’s keeping her eye on the broader picture.

“Understanding health care is more than what happens with doctors and nurses,” she says. “We have to see the related other pieces: having insurance, having a safe space to exercise, having a grocery store nearby so you can buy healthy food. We’re in the minority among developed nations in how we don’t see health care as a right. Instead there are haves and have nots.”

Located on Chicago’s West Side, Sinai Hospital offers a case in point: 70% of its patients are on Medicaid. West Siders’ life expectancy is 16 years shorter than that of folks who live just a few miles away in the Loop. Ezike insists that this status quo is simply not acceptable. “More people need to be thinking about this,” she says. “Our words and our actions really have to match.”

As a healthcare leader who has dedicated her career to serving disadvantaged communities and fighting health care disparities, Ezike will point to the bigger picture of how we can work together to ensure decent healthcare for all Chicagoans.

Mary Meg McCarthy: Executive Director of National Immigrant Justice Center

The Border Has Moved to Chicago. Now What?

Attorney Mary Meg McCarthy, executive director of Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center, will discuss the new realities of immigration for Chicago and for our nation. The busing of tens of thousands of migrants to our city has strained our resources, caused some to reconsider their positions, and also called out the best in our communities.

McCarthy will touch on how the federal and local governments are responding to the crisis and how "immigration fatigue" is taking its toll. She will also address how people of faith have been and can continue responding to this crisis. "We need to recognize these new arrivals as fellow human beings," she says, "and welcome them with compassion and mercy."

Mary Meg is the executive director of Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), one of the nation’s foremost immigrant and human rights advocacy organizations. Under Mary Meg’s leadership, NIJC has become a leading organization dedicated to advancing justice for immigrants. Working with a pro bono network of 1,500 attorneys, NIJC provides counsel and representation to approximately 10,000 low income immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers each year. NIJC’s legal services inform its advocacy, litigation and educational initiatives to promote human rights locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.

An expert in immigration law, Mary Meg has testified before Congress and is often quoted in major news outlets such as MSNBC, The New York Times, and the Chicago Tribune. As an active member of the American Bar Association, Mary Meg chairs its Commission on Immigration. She is also a member of The Chicago Network, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and the Chicago Bar Association, among others.

Prior to joining NIJC, Mary Meg practiced civil litigation and was an NIJC pro bono attorney. Earlier in her career, Mary Meg’s worked in communities throughout Chile as a Holy Cross Associate to help safeguard the rights of individuals under a dictatorship. She received her bachelor of business administration in finance from the University of Notre Dame and her doctor of law from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

Rev. Otis Moss III, Sr. Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ

Dancing in the Darkness: Spiritual Lessons for Thriving in Turbulent Times.

Through the power of stories that speak to the heart, Otis Moss III tackles the theme of democracy—and what we can do in this moment, when we fear that ours is coming apart at the seams.

This father of two calls us to consider our responsibility for the future: “Every generation has a call it must accept, to lay a brick in the cathedral that we’re attempting to build for our children’s children.”  A believer in the sacredness of history, Moss will tell stories of people who, despite having fewer resources than many of us, made an incredible difference in our world.

Moss has been named one of the “twelve most effective preachers in the English-speaking world.” He has been cited by Chicago Magazine as one o the city’s thirty most influential people. 

Shermann ‘Dilla’ Thomas, Chicago Urban Historian & American TikToker

Everything Dope About America Comes From Chicago”: Chicago’s urban historian shares his passion for teaching people about the city he loves.

Join us as Sherman “Dilla” Thomas, proud South Sider, founder of Mahogany Tours, son of a Chicago police officer, and TikTok dad, explains how the power of storytelling can change the narrative about Chicago. “My gift is that I understand history--that helps me to order my steps in the now,” he says. “We all have to do our part to make Chicago better.” 

Featured across Chicago media and nationally on both the Today and Kelly Clarkson shows, Thomas soared to fame with his 60-second TikTok videos on Chicago history, which have gathered more than 20 million views. His company, Mahogany Tours, visits neighborhoods such as Bronzeville, Englewood, and North Lawndale. “I wanted to have an asset-based tour,” says Thomas, as opposed to a lineup of notorious mob sites or the like--“not pointing out the site of the St. Valentine’s Day massacre, but instead showing people where Pope John Paul II spoke, where Nat King Cole lived.”

Thomas, an employee of Commonwealth Edison, has been named the 2022 Chicago Tourism Ambassador of the Year by Choose Chicago, the city’s tourism agency. He has also received the prestigious Chicago Public Library Foundation's 21st Century Award, as well as the Studs Terkel Uplifting Voices Award.

Kwame Raoul, Illinois Attorney General

“...Rouse up defenders to plead the cause of the oppressed so that justice may be done in love.” --Prayer of St. Yves, patron saint of lawyers

Join us on this podcast as Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul traces his commitment to social justice back to his Haitian immigrant parents and his childhood on Chicago’s South Side.

Kwame Raoul was born in Chicago to Haitian-born immigrants. A lifelong resident of the Hyde Park/Kenwood area, he completed his undergraduate education at DePaul University and went on to earn a law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. Kwame started his legal career nearly 25 years ago as a prosecutor in the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office and continued to practice as a labor and employment attorney for the City Colleges of Chicago.

In 2004, Kwame was appointed to fill the vacancy left in the 13th Legislative District by former state Senator Barack Obama’s election to the U.S. Senate. At the state Capitol, he quickly gained the confidence of leaders to handle difficult negotiations and landmark legislation, including the abolition of the death penalty, background checks on private transfers of guns and the strongest voting rights protection in the country.

An attorney concerned with both crime victims and the rights of the accused, Kwame has consistently introduced and supported criminal justice reform legislation that makes Illinois not just tough on crime, but smart on crime. He sponsored diversion and second-chance programs, made it easier for juveniles to have their records expunged and pushed through landmark law enforcement reform, including body camera and police training standards. Most recently, he passed a criminal justice reform package aimed at reducing gun violence by cracking down on repeat offenders while making sentences for nonviolent offenders more reasonable. He has also passed bills aimed at fighting the heroin/opioid crisis. Kwame has been recognized for his work to protect victims of sexual assault and domestic violence.

Howard Reich: Emmy Award-winning author, journalist and filmmaker

The Light of Elie Wiesel During the Darkest of Times

Howard Reich explores vignettes of wisdom and seeds of hope shared by Holocaust survivor and author Elie Wiesel. Timeless insight which continues to resonate with current struggles around the world.

Howard Reich, journalist for the Chicago Tribune and son of Holocaust survivors, was handed a simple assignment to interview Elie Wiesel, best known for his famous Holocaust memoir Night and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. Daily phone calls and multiple in-person meetings with Wiesel would eventually turn Reich’s “simple” assignment into four years of intimate conversations which ended shortly before Elie died. The time spent together grew into a friendship through shared stories and a common bond between Howard’s father and Elie; both men were liberated from the Buchenwald death camp on April 11, 1945.

A generation apart yet both scarred by the Holocaust, Howard Reich pulls shards of hope from Elie’s stories, fragments to be shared with children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors and anyone struggling to find light in times of darkness.

Join us on this podcast as Mr. Reich illuminates this remarkable journey full of friendship, love and hope.

Barbara Gaines, Theater Pioneer and Rick Kogan, Author and Radio Personality

A conversation between two good friends

Barbara Gaines, Chicago theater pioneer and Rick Kogan, author and radio personality will discuss post-covid challenges facing the arts in Chicago and why institutions like Chicago Shakespeare Theater must remain relevant for all ages.

Barbara Gaines, founder and recently retired Artistic Director of Chicago Shakespeare Theater, has been instrumental in bringing outstanding stage productions to Chicago for 37 years. Beginning in 1986, with an inaugural performance on a pub’s roof top in Lincoln Park, Barbara's creativity, intelligence and hard work provided the catalyst needed to showcase Chicago Shakespeare’s talented organization which in turn, brought high praise and recognition from the Chicago arts community and the global stage as well.

Rick Kogan, Born and raised in Chicago, a Tribune columnist, author, WGN radio show host, and past contributor to Chicago Daily News and the Sun-Times, Mr. Kogan is often referred to as one of the great voices of Chicago radio and the last in a great tradition of classic newspaper men. He’s one of the true chroniclers of our city.

Together, Barbara Gaines and Rick Kogan will join ranks on stage at the Union League Club to discuss highlights and challenges facing the Chicago arts community along with a grab bag of other topics. And as old friends go, the two of them will most likely share a few “inside” Chicago stories never to be found in the tribune or heard on the radio.

More on Chicago Shakespeare Theater & Barbara Gaines

Transitioning from the Red Lion Pub's roof top to residency at the Ruth Page Dance Center, where budget constraints initially allowed only one show a year, Chicago Shakespeare Theater would eventually enter into a period of rapid growth with Gaines joining forces with Executive Director Criss Henderson in 1990. The Theater would need to expand, with a move to its flagship campus on Navy Pier in 1999 and where the company’s offerings grew from exclusively Shakespearean productions to include musicals, world premieres, and hosted artists from all around the world.

Chicago Shakespeare Theater has also served more than two million students and teachers through its nationally recognized arts-in-education programs and has engaged with Chicagoans citywide through creative community programs like the free Chicago Shakespeare in the Parks tour.

With 60 productions under her belt which includes 33 Shakespearean titles and six world premieres, Barbara Gaines is shifting gears away from decades of leadership, and is looking to spend more time on personal projects and reading a book from cover to cover. But theater is in her blood and regardless of retirement, Barbara will continue to be that beacon of light for the arts community and the city of Chicago.

Fr. Michael Pfleger: Social Activist and Parish Priest

“Violence in Chicago: Do we want a solution or a bandaid?”

Father Michael Pfleger of St. Sabina parish has long been an impassioned voice against injustice in its many forms in our city and our nation.  He will address what Chicago must do to stem the tide of gun violence that so stubbornly afflicts our city.  

Father Pfleger has consistently spoken out against gun violence during his decades at St. Sabina. He has organized not only an annual Peace Rally and Stop the Violence March at the parish, but also weekly Friday night peace marches in the community every summer. He sponsors gun buy-backs. He recently proposed that all city churches, mosques, and synagogues forfeit their tax exempt status unless they provide a full slate of activities for young people, especially on weekends.  

“Children are our best investment; they could be our peacemakers; and they are getting killed, burying our future,” he said. “Now everybody has to step up because we no longer have a choice.”Having lost a foster son to gang crossfire in 1998, he also speaks eloquently on behalf of those who have lost loved ones to senseless shootings. 

Father Pfleger's activism at St. Sabina, where he has served since 1981, also includes food giveaway programs, employment services, and homeless support to name a few. His involvement at all levels helps foster a community living out Jesus' command to love one another.  His decades-long work against gun violence is just one more example of this commitment.

Mike Mulligan

“Sports in our changing culture: Why we still lavish faith, hope, and love on America’s second religion”

Certain questions in sports have more serious ramifications than the ever-popular “How ‘bout dem Bears?” Consider the meteoric rise of sports gambling, or the now acknowledged risk of severe brain injuries in football. Not to mention the middle class being priced out of most tickets—and now out of watching games on TV as well.

Join Mike Mulligan, co-host of the Mully and Haugh show on WSCR 670-AM, as he takes a swing at top issues in sports today, including how sports interact with our faith and our values.

Mr. Mulligan is a native Chicagoan who grew up on the South Side and graduated from Loyola University. Before switching to radio, Mike spent 27 years with the Chicago Sun times as an award winning journalist. Mike is a huge White Sox fan and he and his wife, Christina, have three children.

Scott Turow

“A lawyer first, an author second: A reflection on the development of the law in his lifetime and its impact on society and his books.”

For more than 30 years, Scott Turow has been fortunate to be a bestselling author.. Beginning with Presumed Innocent published in 1987 to his to his current legal thriller, Suspect, he has written 14 novels, all New York Times bestsellers, which have been translated into dozens of languages abroad and read by millions worldwide.

But hand in hand with his writing, Turow has remained a practicing lawyer. He retired as a partner at the Dentons firm in August 2020, but continues to work on a limited number of pro bono matters. He has always defined himself as a lawyer, as well as a writer, and an appreciation of the law animates all of his novels.

Sister Barbara Reid, OP

“Sometimes it causes me to tremble: Let Lent lead us through our fears for the future of the church.”

The Catholic Church in the US faces some daunting realities: falling attendance, suspicion of the institution, and young people who are opting out of religion altogether.

How does Sister Barbara Reid, who heads up a school that trains seminarians and lay religious leaders, prepare these students to serve the church of today and of the future? How will they address the rampant spiritual hunger of young people, for example, who are so committed to social justice, community, and service, but who seldom see the church as meeting their deepest needs?

Sister Reid and CTU are navigating these rough waters, and believes the church will thrive in the future--provided it looks different from the church of today. Reid finds great hope in one of the Gospel stories of Holy Week, which invites all of us, especially our leaders, to a different model of church. What might Jesus, who always stands at the center of our faith, be asking of us and our church this Lent?

More Background on Sr. Reid ...

Sister Barbara Reid was elected president of Catholic Theological Union in 2020, and has served on the CTU faculty since 1988. A renowned New Testament scholar who has served as president of the Catholic Biblical Association, she has received numerous awards for her contributions to the field. Reid has led many of CTU’s travel and retreat programs in the Holy Land, as well as lecturing in South and Central America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. She is a Dominican Sister of Grand Rapids, and a former Spanish teacher.

Catholic Theological Union in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood is one of the largest Catholic graduate schools of theology in the English speaking world; it trains women and men for lay and ordained ministry within the Catholic Church. Its more than 4,000 vowed religious women and men and lay graduates are serving in 60 countries worldwide.

Pastor Corey B. Brooks

“Breaking the cycle of violence, poverty and racism in Woodlawn”

Learn how the Rooftop Pastor is leading the Woodlawn neighborhood as they create a safer place and give their children the tools to reach for a brighter future.

Spending nearly a year on a Woodlawn rooftop, raising awareness of critical deficits in his own backyard, pastor Brooks raised $20 million dollars; enough money to break ground for the Leadership & Economic Opportunity Center at 66th and King Drive.

In addition, Pastor Brooks and his wife Delilah have fully invested in the community of Woodlawn by spearheading a community initiative called Project H.O.O.D. to revitalize the neighborhood. Through it, they are raising up a new generation of peacemakers, problem solvers, and entrepreneurs.

Current Project H.O.O.D. programming includes a Core and Carpentry Level I course, which places participants in entry-level construction jobs post-program, an entrepreneurship course, and separate business workshops for aspiring and new business owners, a co-working office space for business owners, job placement programs, and community-wide events including The World’s Largest Baby Shower.

Pastor Brooks attended Ball State University, Dallas Theological Seminary, and Grace Theological Seminary. He has been pastoring since 1990 and established New Beginnings Church of Chicago in November 2000 in the heart of Chicago's South Side.

Sally Blount

“A Wild Ride: How the Holy Spirit Propelled Ms. Blount from Business School to the Boardroom to Battling Poverty”

Heralded by her peers as a “natural change agent,” Sally Blount has made her mark not only in the corporate world but in the field of academia—she served as dean at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management for eight years. Her ability to pivot, helping organizations do more and better, has also served as a catalyst for her own faith journey, leading her to take on a new role as Executive Director and CEO of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago in 2020.

Ms. Blount is the first layperson to lead Catholic Charities, which began more than a century ago amidst a global flu pandemic. Today she is leading this institution out of another pandemic, challenged by soaring budgets, poverty, and social justice issues that seem to change daily.

In addition to Catholic Charities, Sally Blount holds the Michael L. Nemmers chair in Strategy at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where she is a proud alumna and served as dean from 2010-2018.

Blount is an expert on organizational transformation and leadership. A record-setting fundraiser, organizational change agent, and highly sought-after speaker — she has been regularly featured in top news outlets including The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Forbes, The Economist, Businessweek, Fortune, and MSNBC. She has been a featured speaker at WEF Davos and the Vatican.

Blount sits on numerous boards including the advisory board for the Aspen Institute Business and Society program and the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Finance Council. She also served as dean at NYU Stern College of Business for six years and on faculty at NYU and the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago for nearly two decades. She holds MS and Ph.D. degrees from Northwestern University and a B.S.E. from Princeton University. Blount began her career at the Boston Consulting Group.

Please tune in as Sally Blount discusses the challenges that lie ahead for Catholic Charities in 2023 and how the complexities of her own faith journey and career accomplishments have intertwined to bring her to this next chapter in her life. 

Fr. John Kartje

“Rediscovering Awe and Mystery: What Science and Faith Can Tell Us This Advent”

Long before he became a priest, Chicago’s Father John Kartje was a scientist, getting a Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of Chicago. What’s the one constant between these two vocations? “Both the scientist and the person of faith are always engaging with mystery,” he says. 

Kartje describes Advent as that pregnant pause in each year when we once more engage the mystery, bringing along our new hopes and anxieties, seeing the story through fresh eyes whether we’re 30 or 70.

Currently the rector/president of the University of Saint Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary, Fr. Kartje takes issue with the supposed disconnect between faith and science. The way science looks at the world should absolutely inform the way people of faith do so, he says. That’s why the Vatican convenes groups of scientists, of any faith or of none, to report on conditions such as climate change. Good scientists, he says, can help people of faith to stay honest. 

Dr. John Duffy

“It's a Whole New Ballgame: Guiding Our Next Generation Through Anxious Times”

As depression rates increase dramatically, especially among teens and young adults, learn why it's important for everyone to understand what's happening

What young people face today looks nothing like what most of us experienced during adolescence, says Dr. John Duffy. The combined pressure of ever-present drama on social media, isolation due to covid, unreasonable expectations of perfection, and worries about climate change and war create a difficult challenge. We can't simply hand this concern off to parents and grandparents, says Dr. Duffy. The problem involves the whole community, and the solutions lie with all of us as well. 

A nationally recognized parenting and relationship expert, Dr. John Duffy has worked in his clinical practice with individuals, couples, teens, and families for nearly 25 years. He is the author of the # 1 best-sellers Parenting the New Teen in the Age of Anxiety: A Complete Guide to Your Child's Stressed, Depressed, Expanded, Amazing Adolescence (2019) and The Available Parent (2014). Dr. Duffy has been a parenting and relationship expert on hundreds of national television programs, including CNN, Today, various NewsNation shows and Steve Harvey. He is part of the CNN Wellness team, and appears often on WGN and WLS radio as well as on other television, radio, and print outlets, including the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, NPR and the Wall Street Journal.