Dream Gala 2013: Honoring our Struggle, Unveiling our Future

I’ve learned that it’s enough to indulge and be selfish but true gratification comes when you start giving back to your community. Hey Windy City! My name is Christine Chiu and I’m new to Billy Dec’s intern team! As you all know April is full of amazing events, much like the Start Early 5k-10k Walk/Run and the Chicago Improv Festival, but one in particular has reached out and grabbed my attention and I would love to share it with you all– The Dream Gala 2013!

On April 26th be prepared to join me in support of one of the largest fundraising events of the year, the 4th Annual Dream Gala! The theme for the night is Honoring Our Struggles, Unveiling Our Future. The event’s objectives are not only to expand the Dream Scholarship Fund, but to also shed light on the struggles faced by undocumented youth in the hopes of reducing the high college dropout rate. The evening’s program will include hors d’oeuvres, three hours of open bar, live performances, a silent auction and will conclude with the announcement of five Dream Scholarship recipients. Proceeds from this event will help support the Dream Scholarship Fund and the mission of The Anhelo Project.

It’s a “work hard, play hard” kind of event! Come out and support our Chicago youth! Dress your best and get your dancing shoes on, I guarantee you’ll have an amazing night! For more information visit here.

-Christine Chiu

Tags: April events, Chicago Inprov Festival, Chicago local artists, college, community, dance, DePaul, Dream Gala, Dream Gala 2013, Dream Scholarship Fund, Family, fundraiser, Las Palmas, Latinos Progressando, Local, Saucedo Press, silent auction, Start Early 5K-10K Walk/Run, Students, The Anhelo Project

Billy Dec Discusses State of Restaurant Industry on WBBM FM Radio Business Hour

Andy Giersher of WBBM’s Noon Business Hour discusses today’s Restaurant Industry with Rockit Ranch Productions’ CEO/Founder, Billy Dec! Click this link to listen: WBBM FM Radio Noon Biz Hour

Billy and Andy cover various elements of dining and nightlife experiences including ::

1.) Visiting restaurants for an “elevated entertainment experience” …to be part of a community

2.) Why are restaurants so noisy

3.) Changing restaurant trends due to the recession

4.) Where Chicago stands in the US and the World as a “restaurant city”

5.) Can people really work their way up from the bottom to the top in a restaurant career

6.) The restaurant industry’s affect on local jobs

Tags: 105.9FM, 780AM, andy giersher, billy dec, CBS Radio, chicago, community, culinary, Employment, Entertainment Industry, Fine Dining, foodie, Lunch Money Friday, News Radio, Noon Business Hour, Radio, reality tv, Recession, Restaurant Industry, restaurants, rockit ranch productions, talent, trends, WBBM

Pitch in for PAWS

The holidays are always a time for giving back to those in need. Food pantries receive some of their highest donations of the year, toy & coat drives are abundant and bell ringers for the Salvation Army are outside of almost every store. But there’s one important group that tends to be left out of the conversation and they’re some of our best friends…our pets! If people are in need, chances are their pets need some help too.

PAWS Chicago, a state-of-the-art no-kill shelter, is dedicated to ensuring those in need are able to keep their pets in tough times. This is a cause close to my heart since I’m a huge animal lover, occasional PAWS Chicago volunteer and owner of two adopted cats. One of my cats, Jacques, became part of my family for this exact reason. In 2008 at the height of the economic crisis, his previous owners could no longer care for him and they had no choice but to put him up for adoption.  For them, I’m sure it was the toughest decision they had to make and it’s something I hope I never have to face.

If you know someone who is facing foreclosure, unemployment or other financial crises and they have a beloved furry friend at home, they can receive help to keep their pet. Enter the PAWS Chicago Pet Food Bank. Providing pet food & supplies such as cat carriers, dog collars & leashes, cat boxes & litter, as well as vouchers so their pets can receive free spay/neuter surgeries. The Pet Food Bank is meant to provide temporary support for 3-6 months to those in need. Everything at the Pet Food Bank is provided through generous donations from the community & supporters.

How can you help? Well I’m glad you asked! The Pet Food Bank accepts donations of pet food (canned and dry) & supplies every day at the PAWS Chicago Adoption Center!

-Alex Chwastek

Tags: charity, coat drive, community, donations, financial crisis, foreclosure, help out, holidays, paws Chicago, pet food, Pet Food Bank, pet supplies, pets, salvation army, supporters, toy drive, unemployment

Chicago’s 43rd Annual Gay Pride Parade and More Fests and Fetes

Wigs, gaudy makeup, beads, crazy costumes and…don’t forget the rainbows. Chicago’s 43rd annual Gay Pride Parade is this Sunday at 12 pm!

Show your support for our city’s vibrant LGBT community by lining the streets for one of the most popular parades in the city (and country!). It’s always a crazy event with people cheering the procession and enjoying the show, culture, and reveling in our city’s dazzling diversity!

You know the routine by now- on Friday and Saturday thousands will gather along Halsted for the two day festival and then the weekend culminates with the world-famous Gay Pride Parade which brings out around 750,000 people!

Watch out! The parade is shaking things up this year with a new route that starts at Montrose Avenue and Broadway in Uptown and ends near the intersection of Diversey Parkway and Sheridan Road in Lincoln Park.

The parade will feature 200 entries including floats, decorated vehicles, performance groups, a marching band and walking contingents. The parade is flamboyant and expressive- everyone’s just there to cut loose, celebrate, and have a crazy-good time.

Whoever you are, this event is a chance to celebrate your own freedoms- it’s something all Americans can be proud of!

When the parade ends, that doesn’t mean the festivities will! Head to Boystown or Andersonville (actually anywhere near the parade you’ll find a house-party or bar) and play into the wee hours of the night!

Some of the Best Fetes and Fests for the Weekend:

Back Lot Bash

An outdoor live music and entertainment festival, highly anticipated for lesbians around the country

Berlin Nightclub

This bar is a must-see during Pride weekend. Friday features a live performance by Shuteye, Saturday hosts DJ Chester, Sunday is ‘90s night!

Minibar Brunch

Have brunch and drinks at Minibar on Halsted with prime viewing for the Pride Parade.

Charlie’s Chicago

Great for an after after-party. Weekend events include Cool Country on Saturday and Hot Dance Party on Sunday, drink specials available all weekend.

Roscoe’s Tavern

You can find live band karaoke, wet boxer contests, drag races, and Male Call on Sunday- perfect venue for Pride activities.

By: Lauren Neuschel

Tags: andersonville, Back Lot Bash, bars, Berlin Nightclub, bisexual, Boystown, Charlie’s Chicago, chicago, Chicago Pride Calendar, community, culture, Diversey Parkway, diversity, DJ Chester, events, festivals, floats, gay, Gay Pride Parade, Halsted, lesbian, LGBT, lincoln park, marching band, Minibar Brunch, parade, pride, Roscoe’s Tavern, route, Sheridan Road, transgender, uptown, Weekend, ‘90s

Artists Central Exchange: Chicago’s Local Artist Co-Op & Community Center

Hey everyone! This is Feeny Fernandez here from Billy’s office. I want to tell you guys about this awesome organization and space in Chicago that we had the opportunity to visit a few days ago!

Whether you’re in downtown or Uptown, you can see that part of what makes up Chicago is its amazing art and artists. One organization in Chicago is helping give local artists a place to come together: the Artist Central Exchange (A.C.E.). We got to meet with John Burks, the A.C.E.’s creative director, and check out the space. The first time we met John was actually back in January when we were filming Billy’s 2 Year Anniversary for aChicagoThing.com party invite video. He didn’t make the cut in the video (sorry, John!), but we did him one even better: sharing with you all about the A.C.E.!

The Artist Central Exchange an artists co-op and community events center, John let us check out the space they have in Uptown/Andersonville for artists to showcase their work — even the floor is artwork! Check out the video above to see pictures of their hand-painted purple brick floor!

The A.C.E.’s mission is to “provide the community with a forum to express their minds and creativity in an open and free manner” by providing gallery space for local artists to showcase and sell their art and a space for performance art and art classes. Classes aren’t only for adults either; the A.C.E. hosts two youth classes as well (youth classes start April 30th and you can register here).

They also have two upcoming monthly events that start this April. Detroit Nation starts Saturday, April 9th and will line the walls of the A.C.E. with art and energy from Detroit and Michigan expats who are dedicated to improving the flow of funds, ideas, and energy between native Detroiters living all over the country. The Prop-IGVP Event starts Friday, April 15th, and will showcase that we CAN use and interact with media responsibly and in a way that reflects the better parts of humanity.

If you’re interested in working with the A.C.E. or know someone who is, you can contact John at john@artcx.com or check out their website www.artcx.com or on Twitter @ACEChicago.

Check out Amy’s interview with John about how the A.C.E. came about, his thoughts on the art among Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles, and even get a peek at some of the A.C.E. artists’ work!

Tags: Amy Shah, andersonville, artists, artists central exchange, behind the scenes, chicago, classes, co-op, community, creative, detroit nation, john burks, prop-igvp, uptown

chicago 2016 olympics w/ e!'s "the soup" joel mchale

most know joel from e!’s “the soup” (at least when tweeting from our hangout his e! fans lit my phone up!), but i have a strange feeling once his new show “community” premieres on nbc with chevy chase and cast, he is going to be known for a lot more! as you can tell, he is crazy funny to hang out with…i couldn’t keep a straight face myself…. 

remember all, if you want to help bring the olympic games home to chicago (and usa in general) share these celebrity videos i post each day for all through facebook, email, twitter….as fast as you can, where ever you can! will help spread the word far and fast – only 14 days to go until i land in copenhagen for the official decision on oct 2nd as to whether america wins or not!

Tags: 2016, chevy chase, chicago, chicago 2016, chicago 2016 olympics, community, e!, joel mchale, NBC, olympics, the soup