2023 Awards Breakfast| October 13, 2023| 8:00-10:00 AM
Waldorf Room | Hilton Chicago | 720 South Michigan Avenue
Community Excellence Award Honorees
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Rabbi Michael Balinsky
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Reverend Vance T. Henry
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Rabbi Michael Balinsky is a Past President of the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago. He served as Executive Vice President of the Chicago Board of Rabbis, an organization representing one hundred and eighty rabbis of all denominations. He is currently a trustee of the Council of the Parliament of the World’s Religions. He has been an active participant in a number of Jewish, Christian and Moslem interreligious dialogues. Previously he served as Director of the Louis and Saerree Fiedler Hillel Center at Northwestern University and is the former Director of Faculty Development for the Melton Adult School. While very satisfied with his years in the rabbinate, Michael’s greatest joy is teaching Torah in numerous settings.
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Imam Kareem M. Irfan is a Past President of the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago. A computer engineer, IP/IT lawyer, and Business/M&A Strategist with 35+ years of executive leadership experience, he guides a group of MNCs providing IT, Big-Data Analytics, Business Intelligence & Hi-Tech-Ed services across the US, Europe, Asia & GCC. He is currently the Vice President of the Islamic Society of North America. He has served as Chairman of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago; on the US National Catholic-Muslim Dialog; on the Council on Foreign Relations Immigration Initiative; and as Chair of the Illinois Governor’s Muslim-American Advisory Council. He serves as Imam for Friday/Eid sermons & lectures on contemporary topics in the US & abroad.
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The Reverend Vance T. Henry is a dedicated leader and community stakeholder who has served nearly 30 years in city government. Born and raised on the Westside of Chicago, he has used his beloved North Lawndale neighborhood as the inspiration for enacting change. He joined the administration of Mayor Richard M. Daley as Executive Director of the Office of Community Policing and Implementation and also served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Faith and Neighborhood Partnerships under Mayor Rahm Emmanuel, Chief Faith Engagement Officer under Mayor Lori Lightfoot, and Chief of Faith Engagement under Mayor Brandon Johnson before retiring in June 2023. Currently, he serves on the ministerial staff at Mt. Vernon Baptist Church.
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