Blast from the Past

How did you learn or become involved in CDEL?

I was first exposed to CDEL in 2000 as a first-year associate. Peter Mone a CDEL Board member, pro bono volunteer, and partner in my practice group asked me to help him represent a student with a disability who was seeking transportation to his school that accommodated his disability. After some initial litigation, we negotiated a favorable outcome that ensured this student would be able to get the education to which he is entitled. I found the experience incredibly rewarding and I picked up more CDEL cases soon after.

Two years after taking my first CDEL case, I was so drawn to CDEL’s mission that I jumped at the chance to join the Governing Board when an opening arose.

 Describe how you have supported CDEL over the years? 

My most important contribution to CDEL is as a pro bono volunteer. I’ve represented students and their families in special education and disability rights matters and with seniors facing predatory lending or property disputes. I volunteered at CDEL’s Guardianship Help Desk at the Daley Center and have worked with many CDEL clients at CDEL’s Power of Attorney, Guardianship, and Transfer on Death Instruments (TODI) community workshops.

I also supported CDEL by serving on CDEL’s Governing Board for 20 years. During my time as Governing Board President, I saw CDEL through a comprehensive strategic planning process that resulted in significant structural and organizational changes that helped drive CDEL’s growth today. That strategic planning process also helped CDEL develop a community-based service model that was aimed at arming CDEL clients with the legal tools necessary to avoid the most common legal issues bringing them through CDEL’s doors.

The number of and legal issues addressed at these community-based workshops has grown significantly since this initial strategic planning process. Today, CDEL prides itself on having a model of community-focused and culturally competent lawyering. CDEL has learned that having dedicated clinics located in the communities where CDEL clients live and work is important to achieving quality legal outcomes for CDEL clients. The community clinic model also allows CDEL to assist significantly more people in very meaningful ways.

In recognition of my board service, CDEL recognized me as a Life Director of CDEL’s Board of Directors, an honorary title I hold with much pride. To this day I am inspired by CDEL’ s mission and am proud to see how far CDEL has come. Each case I work on or workshop I participate in reminds me just how critical CDEL’s services are to the thousands of Chicagoans assisted by CDEL and its volunteers each year. CDEL has expanded access to its services in ways that we could not have imagined when we first did our strategic plan. It is really thrilling to see.

There are so many non-profits, why do you support CDEL?

CDEL is a legal services organization with its finger on the pulse of what its clients need. It is a small but mighty organization that has an enormous impact on the population of people it serves. CDEL continues to identify systemic issues that have a materially negative impact on CDEL clients. CDEL then asks questions like: What are the most drastic consequences that we find our clients facing and how can we work with our clients to avoid them? How can we engage with clients to give them the tools they need to protect themselves from such legal issues?

I have worked on some unfortunate cases where the legal consequences are drastic. For example, I have seen adult children take advantage of their elderly parents in ways that put them at risk of losing their life savings or being evicted from their own home. I admire CDEL for always thinking about how to proactively address those issues so that such drastic consequences can be avoided.

 What is it about CDEL that inspires you to continue to show your support?

CDEL is a very thoughtful organization that remains true to its mission. It is always looking for ways to improve and maximize the services it provides. CDEL anticipates new legal issues affecting CDEL clients and remains nimble enough to react to changing circumstances, like shifting its service model during the pandemic. Ultimately, I know that supporting CDEL – whether as a pro bono volunteer, board member, or financial supporter – translates into the provision of direct and impactful legal assistance to some of the most vulnerable people in our communities.