Eleven great chefs and a local independent grocer teamed up with The Rosecrance Foundation Chicago Board for a chef’s tasting Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, that raised more than $100,000 to serve area college students in recovery.
About 240 people attended the event at the Naperville Country Club. Proceeds from Cooking Up Hope will help establish a recovery residence for students who attend colleges and universities in Chicago. The home will be the first of its kind in the city. Rosecrance is one of Illinois’ leading providers of substance abuse treatment for teens and adults, offering the state’s largest residential program for adolescents.
Sunday’s event was the fifth Cooking Up Hope fundraiser to be held in Naperville. Proceeds from the event always support services for suburban youth who seek treatment for substance abuse. Each year, The Rosecrance Foundation provides more than $500,000 in charity care to families who do not have insurance or personal resources to pay for treatment.
Restaurants and businesses that participated in Cooking Up Hope were, in alphabetical order: Alchemy, Casey’s Foods, Francesca’s Restaurants, Heaven on Seven, Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s Campus, Hyatt Regency Chicago, Kuma’s Asian Bistro, Naperville Country Club, Nothing Bundt Cakes Naperville, Stan’s Donuts & Coffee, Uncle Bub’s BBQ and Yerbabuena Mexican Cuisine.
Cooking Up Hope was established in 2010 by the Rosecrance Foundation’s Chicago Board, whose members live in the city and the suburbs.
Chefs with Francesca’s Restaurants, which has 20 eateries in Chicago and the suburbs, and Lisle-based Yerbabuena emphasized the importance of being involved with Cooking Up Hope. Both restaurants have participated in the event since it started.
“It’s nice to give back to the community that has been supporting us from the beginning,” Francesca’s Corporate Chef Massimo Salatino said.
Diners sampled food such as roasted corn chowder, tacos, pulled pork, artisanal breads and cheeses, gumbo, cakes, donuts and other goodies during the event.
Chef Kuma Kim, co-owner of Kuma’s Asian Bistro, also has participated in the event since it started. Kuma’s has restaurants in Rockford and Naperville.
“Being involved with this event means a lot,” Kim said. “Rosecrance’s programs are needed. There are so many kids who struggle with addiction, and this event is just a wonderful thing to help out.”
Rosecrance has residential treatment campuses in Rockford for adolescents and adults. The organization offers services and free, confidential consultations at five satellite offices in the Chicago area. Those sites are in Naperville, Lincoln Park, Northbrook, Frankfort and Oak Park.
In addition Rosecrance has two offices in McHenry County providing a full range of outpatient services for individuals with substance use and mental health disorders.
Rosecrance frequently sponsors workshops and prevention and early intervention classes in the Chicago area. The majority of Rosecrance patients in residential programs in Rockford (more than 60 percent of adults and adolescents) come from DuPage, Will, Kankakee, McHenry, Lake, Kane and Cook counties.
To see photos of the event, visit our Facebook page.