2024 40th Anniversary Awards Breakfast
Friday, September 27 | 8:00-10:00 AM
Continental Ballroom | Hilton Chicago | 720 South Michigan Avenue
2024 Honorees
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Founders
Award The Obama Foundation 
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Community Excellence Award
Mr. Jerry Reinsdorf 
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Excellence in Media Award
Mr. Ravindra Gururaj Baichwal 
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President Barack Obama launched the My Brother’s Keeper program in February 2014, in response to
the death of Trayvon Martin. The program sought to address the persistent opportunity gaps boys and young men of color face and to ensure all young people can reach their full potential. My Brother’s Keeper Alliance (MBK) is a program of the Obama Foundation and continues to drive that mission through its national network of nearly 100 communities dedicated to sparking joy and increasing access and opportunity in the lives of our young brothers. The work of My Brother's Keepr is rooted in six key life milestones that research shows are especially predictive of later success, and where interventions can have the greatest impact. They are: entering school ready to learn, reading at grade level by third grade, graduating from high school, completing post-secondary education or training, attaining employment, and remaining safe from violent crime. Through the MBK Model Communities initiative, the Foundation has named four communities that represent a tangible example of the population-level impact communities can have when working to achieve the MBK Milestones. They are Newark, New Jersey, which saw a 55% reduction in homicides in 2022 as compared to 2013; Omaha, Nebraska, which reduced homicides by 30% from 2011-2022; Tulsa, Oklahoma, which ensured all elementary schools have early learning pre-K and increased attendance for students of color by 33%; and Yonkers, New York, which, at 91%, holds the highest graduation rate for students of color in the State of New York. The vision for My Brother's Keeper is to make safe and supportive communities a reality for all of our nation’s boys and young men of color, each and every one of whom is critical to our collective success. By realizing this vision, we are creating a brighter, more promising future, not just for our boys and young men of color, but for our country. |
Jerry Reinsdorf is Chairman of the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Bulls. He began his 44th season as chairman of the Chicago White Sox in 2024, only the seventh individual in Major League Baseball history to surpass the 40-year milestone as a club owner. During his time as chairman, Reinsdorf’s two professional sports teams have delivered seven World Championship titles to the City of Chicago and its fans. Reinsdorf accepted the Commissioner’s Trophy from Bud Selig on October 26, 2005, after the White Sox swept their way to the team’s first World Series Championship since 1917.
Reinsdorf and the White Sox have received five prestigious honors in recognition of the franchise’s ongoing commitment to giving back to the community. In December 2022, Reinsdorf and the White Sox received MLB’s Allan H. Selig Award for Philanthropic Excellence, recognizing the team’s Amateur City Elite (ACE) program, which provides baseball and educational opportunities for underserved Chicago youth. The White Sox are just the third franchise to be honored with the Selig Award twice, also being recognized in 2011 for the club’s Volunteer Corps program, an initiative that activates staff, players, resources and over 5,000 fan volunteers for various projects improving the Chicagoland community. Both of Reinsdorf’s sports franchises have donated millions of dollars to causes in the Chicago community through a variety of efforts, including Chicago White Sox Charities and Chicago Bulls Charities. Chicago White Sox Charities has donated more than $47 million to worthy nonprofit organizations in cumulative giving. Reinsdorf expanded his involvement in professional sports in March 1985 by purchasing controlling interest in the Chicago Bulls. During his tenure as chairman of the Bulls – the third-longest in the NBA – the team has captured six World Championships (1991-93, 1996-98). Reinsdorf was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2016 in Springfield, Mass., becoming the 10th NBA owner to be honored. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Reinsdorf graduated from George Washington University and earned a law degree from Northwestern University after moving to Chicago in 1957. He and his late wife, Martyl, have three surviving children, nine grandchildren and one great grandchild. |
Barbara J. Abrajano is the Immediate Past President of the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago. She was the first woman to hold the office and the first president to serve two terms since the Council’s founding in 1984. She continues to serve on the Council on its Executive Committee, Governance Committee and is Chair of the Development Committee. She has served on the Council for 17 years.
Abrajano has many years of experience in the not-for-profit, ecumenical and interfaith, education, and government arenas in Illinois. She serves on the Board of Directors for Partners for Sacred Places which is a national, non-profit organization based in Philadelphia which builds the capacity to preserve and maintain religious institutions through technical assistance, training, fundraising strategies and grants. She also serves on Partners’ National Fund Advisory Committee. Abrajano is the Director of Development, Board Relations and Community Engagement for East-West University in Chicago. She has also worked as Director and Program Director for NCCJ founded as the National Conference of Christians and Jews, a human relations organization. The organization promoted understanding and respect among all races, religions and cultures through education, promoting common ground, advocacy and training. She set the stage for creating opportunities for people in the areas of ecumenical and interfaith initiatives, educational workshops and publications, educator and community training, curriculum development and the organization's nationally acclaimed youth program. Abrajano has served as Chair of the Illinois Advisory Committee for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and as a Board Member of the Hispanic Heritage Organization. In addition, she was the founder and Chair of Windows of Opportunity, Inc., which developed programs and services in working with and for Chicago public housing residents. Abrajano has received the Education Trailblazer Award from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition; the Chicago Public Schools Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Commitment to Children and Parents of CPS; the Outstanding Chairperson Award from Windows of Opportunity, Inc.; and the Leadership Excellence Award from Loyola University. |
Ravi Baichwal co-anchors ABC7 Chicago's top-rated weekday afternoon and evening newscasts at 5 and 6 p.m. He is also a senior member of ABC7 Eyewitness News' team of reporters, covering the big stories throughout the Chicago area. Baichwal joined ABC7 Chicago in November 2006. In 2008 he won the Emmy award for best anchor in the Chicago/Midwest region of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Since then, he has won numerous awards for his reportage, most recently being nominated for regional Emmys on his coverage of the mass shooting in Highland Park.
Prior to arriving in Chicago, Baichwal was an integral part of CTV News, Canada's No. 1 news organization. He hosted "CTV Newsnet Morning with Ravi Baichwal" and reported for CTV National News. He also anchored and hosted marquee network shows, including Canada's No. 1 newscast, "CTV National News." During his tenure, Baichwal gained a national reputation for seamless coverage of live, breaking news. He covered the fast changing world of politics and served as host of two award-winning election night specials. Other historically significant stories he has covered include terrorist attacks on the London Underground system, the discovery of fugitive former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein by U.S. soldiers, the death of Pope John Paul II, and the Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy. Baichwal also guest-hosted on some of Canada's premier radio stations, and appeared regularly on the country's most irreverent sports talk show. As well, he sat in as a host on Canada's pre-eminent business news channel. Prior to joining CTV's national news division in 2002, Baichwal was a principal anchor/reporter for CTV's local station in Vancouver. Baichwal began his journalism career with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, starting out as a researcher in Calgary in 1996. He moved up successively to associate producer, reporter and anchor positions with business programs on CBC Newsworld. In Chicago, Baichwal volunteers with various charities dedicated to children, health and diversity issues. Baichwal is married to award-winning broadcaster and Northwestern journalism professor Sonja Nordahl. They have two children. |
