Gala Season in Chicago
The Forever Ready Productions Chicago office was extremely busy this Spring with a string of galas for new and long-time clients. We had such an amazing couple of months crafting impactful videos that were unique to each organization. Here’s a recap of everything we did!
The Dragonfly Foundation - Chicago
New to us, we were so thrilled to work with this organization for the first time this year. Dragonfly’s mission is to support patients and families impacted by pediatric cancer. We had the privilege of meeting one of their Dragonfly kids, Vivianna Gonzalez, and her amazing family. We spent time filming interviews and b-roll at a family member’s home and went to one of Vivianna’s appointments at Lurie Children’s Hospital. The final video was a moving piece about Vivianna’s journey and the difference Dragonfly has made in her life. It captivated the audience as it played at the Derby-themed event, which raised close to $250,000! Forever Ready were also proud sponsors of the gala! Check out the video below.
The Nora Project
Another first time client, our work with The Nora Project was so fulfilling! The Nora Project’s mission is to promote disability inclusion by empowering educators and engaging students and communities. We created two videos for TNP’s gala, Thrive Together: a brand story video and an honoree video. The brand story explained TNP’s mission and featured a teacher and her classroom of fourth grade students. The honoree video featured Felice and Craig Boyer, who were being recognized by TNP for their ongoing support and commitment to community and inclusion. Both videos were received very well and TNP had an incredibly successful night. We were proud to be sponsors of this event as well. Watch both stories below!
One Million Degrees
We’ve been working with One Million Degrees since 2022 and we absolutely love sharing their stories. This year, we attended the Degrees of Impact Gala to shoot and edit an event recap! This event historically raises more than $500,000 for the nonprofit! The event was at a stunning location, Rockwell on the River, and had delicious food and drinks. A video clip from Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker kicked off the program, followed by OMD Scholars processing into the venue. The dinner included three courses with wine pairings and delicious desserts passed at the end. OMD plans to share the event recap video with its supporters and can use it to help promote next year’s ticket sale. Take a look at the exciting recap video below! (And stay tuned for a special graduation video we’re working on!)
Center for Enriched Living
If you’ve been around for a while, you know that Center for Enriched Living is one of our first clients in Chicago! We enjoy working with them each year to make a video for Chefs’ Night, a great fundraising event that features food and drinks from restaurants around the Chicago area. CEL’s mission is to enrich the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities by maximizing their opportunities for personal success, fun and friendship, employment and community involvement. This year’s video tackled the subject of individuals with disabilities aging out of the school system at 22, how there is little to no support when that happens, and how CEL is there to fill in gaps. Take a look at the video below. And congrats to the CEL team for raising an impressive total of $624,760.38! That money will help fund CEL programs where people with developmental disabilities can experience all of life’s possibilities.
We’re so thankful to our nonprofit partners for trusting us with these videos for their very important events. Each one is a testament to our commitment to telling authentic, impactful and personal stories!