Chicago's NLEN Hosts Philanthropic Tea Fundraiser
The North Lawndale Employment Network (NLEN) is hosting its annual Sweet Beginnings Tea fundraiser today, February 27, at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place. The event, which supports workforce development in Chicago, features PolicyLink CEO Dr. Michael McAfee as the keynote speaker and gathers local business and philanthropic leaders.
The fundraiser supports NLEN's social enterprise, Sweet Beginnings, which was founded in 2004 to provide transitional jobs for individuals with criminal records. This initiative produces the beelove® line of honey and natural skincare products, and since its inception, has hired over 1,000 formerly incarcerated individuals. The program has a recidivism rate of less than 10% within three years. The event itself is NLEN's largest annual fundraiser, originating in 2005 to celebrate the launch of the Sweet Beginnings enterprise. This year marks the 21st annual tea, with a fundraising goal of $500,000 to support NLEN's broader workforce development programs and reentry services. The tea will feature honey-infused pastries created by the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place Executive Chef team. Keynote speaker Dr. Michael McAfee is the President and CEO of PolicyLink, a national research and action institute focused on advancing racial and economic equity. Before joining PolicyLink, he served in the Chicago Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), managing a $450 million portfolio that created over 3,000 affordable housing units and 5,000 jobs. He is also a board member for both NLEN and Sweet Beginnings, LLC. NLEN has been a workforce development leader in the community since 1999, focusing on residents with significant barriers to employment. In August 2021, the organization opened a new 20,000-square-foot campus in a former bank building on S. Homan Avenue, doubling its capacity to serve up to 5,000 individuals annually. The facility includes a production space for beelove® products, a rooftop apiary, a community café, and a Wintrust Bank branch. The North Lawndale community faces significant economic challenges, with a poverty rate three times higher than Chicago's average and a history of disinvestment. NLEN aims to directly combat this by partnering with local employers and has a strategic goal of reducing the community's unemployment rate by 10% by 2027. The organization is also a key partner with the Obama Foundation to recruit local candidates for 150 full-time jobs at the forthcoming Obama Presidential Center.
