Past Events

YLD held its Annual Campaign event, WYLD Party in the Park, on Thursday, August 20 at The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. Over 350 YLD participants attended the event and guests enjoyed a wonderful evening under the stars.

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37 young professionals from Chicago participated in the 2009 United Jewish Communities (UJC) Mission to Israel, along with hundreds of young leaders from across the country.  The group spent 8 days traveling and experiencing the country.  Time was spent in Tel Aviv, Tiberius, Jerusalem, Caesarea, Tzfat, Masada and the Dead Sea.  Highlights included ATV rides in the Golan, rafting on the Jordan River, sunset dinners on the beach, visits to Kibbutzim, Yad Vashem, Shabbat at the Kotel, a boat cruise, "Shuk Ha'Carmel" (Tel Aviv’s biggest marketplace) and so much more.  This unique trip also included visits to incredible organizations that receive funding from JUF, including Schneider Children’s Hospital in Petach Tikvah (where the group made kites with children) and an Ethiopian Absorption Center. 

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The Business Professionals Network (BPN) of the Young Leadership Division held a networking happy hour on Thursday, July 9 at District Bar.  The evening was a great success with over 200 young professionals in attendance.

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Some 300 job seekers connected with 40 prospective employers June 24th at a JUF Job Fair organized to assist beginning to mid-level professionals.  A project of the J-HELP: “A Boost in Tough Times” initiative, the fair, held at Federation headquarters, was presented by JUF’s Young Leadership Division and Trades, Industries & Professions Division, in conjunction with Jewish Vocational Service (JVS) and Hillels of Illinois.

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This year’s Blue and White Bar Night was held on June 18th, at Enclave.  14 Jewish young leadership groups co-sponsored the event which featured a fashion show of the most talented and innovative Israeli designers. The evening was a huge success with over 400 people in attendance! 

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Around 9,000 people throughout the Chicago metropolitan area participated in the annual Israel Solidarity Day, featuring the Walk with Israel on May 3rd. The Solidarity Walks were held at seven locations, and highlighted Chicago’s support for Israel and its citizens while celebrating the 61st anniversary of Israel’s founding.

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In Spring 2009, YLD kicked off the 1st ever YLD Israel Series celebrating Israeli accomplishments in a global society.  Entitled “Israel Beyond the Headlines:  In Celebration of 60 Years of Achievement,” this series exposed Israel and all her greatness to over 60 YLD participants.  Through 4 sessions the group learned about Israel’s positive influence in our everyday lives.  This series instilled a sense of pride and empowerment in participants to defend, celebrate and advocate for Israel effectively. 

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On Saturday, March 28th at Anshe Emet Synagogue, YLD and the Young Adult Division of Anshe Emet Synagogue (YAD) hosted a Comedy Night.  The evening began with a Havdalah service, followed by our featured guest, Yisroel Campbell.  Raised Catholic, Yisroel has undergone three conversions to Judaism: from Catholic to reform, from reform to conservative, and from conservative to orthodox. His unique story has attracted considerable media attention, including television appearances on CNN and ABC World News Tonight, and interviews by Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert and Rolling Stone Magazine. 

Read an Interview with Yisroel Campbell

The first ever YLD Volunteer Day was held on Sunday, March 22 at Agudas Achim North Shore Synagogue and it was a huge success!  With 45 helping hands, we were able to sweep and mop the floors, oil/shine the benches of the sanctuary and clean several rooms of the Synagogue. We are very proud of the great work we accomplished for the synagogue.

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YLD hosted a “March Madness” Happy Hour on March 19, 2009.  College basketball teams played, while YLDers enjoyed the games at Rockit with friends.

27 young Jewish professionals from Chicago participated in the UJC National Young Leadership Conference in New Orleans, which was comprised of over 550 participants from across the country.  Conference attendees learned about the concept of Tikkun Olam (repairing the world) while participating in a hands-on service project, restoring Archbishop Hannan High School in St. Bernard Parish, which was badly damaged by hurricane Katrina.  Conference participants also visited disaster areas and heard from several prominent local speakers.

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YLD held its first-ever "Big Event" on Saturday, December 13th, 2008 to kickoff the 2009 Campaign.  In its first year in existence, the event was a tremendous success, exceeding all expectations with over 700 attendees, making this the largest YLD Campaign event in our 60 year history.  The evening included dinner, drinks, dessert reception, after-party and exclusive program featuring Matisyahu, internationally acclaimed music sensation and Billboard’s top Reggae artist of 2006.  The event brought in a total of over $240,000 for the 2009 JUF Annual Campaign.  A special thank you to our table hosts, and to our Title Sponsor of the evening, US Bank. 

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