CDEL Assists Clients at a Multilingual Power of Attorney (POA) Workshop Thank You for Celebrating National Volunteer Month! CDEL Holds 2025 Strategic Plan Summit at Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP - CDEL Honored at North Suburban Bar Association Gary Wild Memorial Dinner
- Thank You to our April Pro Bono and Community Partners!
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CDEL Assists Clients at a Multilingual Power of Attorney Workshop |
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CDEL held another Power of Attorney Workshop last week at the J. Michael Fitzgerald Apartments, an affordable senior housing community apart of the Elderly Housing Development & Operations Corporation in the North Park Village neighborhood of Chicago. Volunteer attorneys and interpreters including some from Kirkland & Ellis LLP, were able to assist 10 clients whose primary languages were Korean, Spanish and English in completing 26 documents.
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Thank you for Celebrating National Volunteer Month! |
April is National Volunteer Month and CDEL is proud to celebrate! In 2024 alone, over 200 volunteers donated their time and expertise to serving our clients and our mission. CDEL could not do the work it does without our many dedicated and talented volunteers! Please read on to learn about why some of our volunteers work with CDEL! |
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| Liz Oplawski
"The guardianship work seems to have brought my career full circle, since I assisted pro se litigants prepare small claims pleadings when I was in law school. The clients are so appreciative of the help, and it is very rewarding knowing that I played some small part in helping them navigate an essential legal need." |
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Jared Boone "Local communities will truly improve only when regular people, especially lawyers, act (rather than merely speak). CDEL helps me act."
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| Gina Oderda
"Volunteering for CDEL has been such an amazing opportunity. I have a guardianship help desk call every Friday and it's a really positive way to end the week. Every guardianship situation is unique, so I never know what to expect when I take a help desk call. However, every client I have worked with has been wonderful and it's very rewarding knowing that I have helped make a difficult and confusing process a little easier for them."
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Morgan Carr
"Volunteering with CDEL is deeply meaningful to me. It provides the opportunity to directly assist low-income seniors and individuals with disabilities in Cook County, who often face significant barriers to accessing legal help. CDEL's work makes a profound difference in their lives by ensuring their rights are protected and essential needs are met. This aligns with my strong belief that everyone deserves legal representation, regardless of income or circumstances. For me, volunteering is a tangible way to help combat systemic inequality within the legal system, and I am extremely grateful for this opportunity."
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| Tim Divis
"Having been the executor of my mother's estate, I can appreciate out clients' need to have the documents we prepare in order. Their appreciation for our work is gratifying. But I also tell them they are really doing this for their family or friends who will need to help them in the future, making it much easier. I also have the benefit of working with a community of volunteers with the same goals. It is a true pleasure." |
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Patricia Donahue "I feel like we are making a real difference in people's lives by preparing their wills, POAs and TODIs; these clients could never afford to hire an attorney to prepare these documents for them. They say it gives them pace of mind to know they have gotten this done, and they are incredibly grateful to us for doing this." |
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CDEL Holds 2025 Strategic Plan Summit |
On Friday, April 11th, members of CDEL’s staff, Governing Board, Young Professionals Board, funders, volunteers, and community partners all came together for a strategic plan summit to reflect on the last few years of CDEL and explore ideas for CDEL’s future. Thank you to all the extraordinary CDEL stakeholders who participated in this inspiring and joyful day!
A very special thanks to CDEL Governing Board member Andrew Lillis and Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP for hosting us, and to Linda Beitz at Solutions Through Dialogue for guiding this group through strategic planning! |
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CDEL Honored at North Suburban Bar Association Gary Wild Memorial Dinner |
Image Description (left to right): Judge Corrine C. Heggie, CDEL Governing Board Member Kristine Iida, CDEL Governing Board Member Matthew Jenkins, CDEL Executive Director Caroline Manley, CDEL Governing Board Member Doug Graham, CDEL Governing Board Member Helen Lucaitis, and CDEL Development Director Jeanette Ruby. |
CDEL was honored to receive an award from the North Suburban Bar Association (NSBA) at its annual Gary Wild Memorial Dinner. This dinner is in honor of NSBA Past President Gary Wild who as a lawyer, was zealous in protecting the rights of the less fortunate. CDEL Executive Director and Director of Development Caroline Manley and Jeanette Ruby were joined by CDEL Governing Board members Kristine Iida, Matthew Jenkins, Doug Graham, and Helen Lucaitis.
Thank you to the North Suburban Bar Association for this award! |
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Thank you to all of our pro bono and community partners who have volunteered with us in April! Because of you, we are able to reach and serve more of our clients in the communities they live.
Thank you to our Pro Bono Partners who have volunteered with us in April: Accenture
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Pro Bono Network
Venable LLP |
Thank you to our community partners listed below, for allowing us to continue to conveniently and accessibly serve our clients in the communities in which they live. |
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Bloom Township Senior Services
BUILD, Inc.
Center on Addison
Chicago Methodist Senior Services
Dolton Park District
ECHO Joint Agreement
EZRA Multi-Service Center Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corporation |
| J. Michael Fitzgerald Apartments
Pathlights
Salvation Army Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center
Solutions for Care
Southside Occupational Academy High School
University of Chicago Law School |
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