Throw a Roof-Raiser!

We'd like to enlist you to throw a party to raise funds to fight homelessness if you:

• Love to entertain
• Have lots of friends who haven't heard about Connections before
• Would normally fill a table at our gala
• Feel like doing something different to take a stand

To sign up to throw a “Roof-Raiser,” call Connections’ Development Department at 847-475-7070, x106.

You provide the people and the food, and we provide the materials, including:

• Invitations
• A program booklet
• A video
• A speaker (if you like)

This is a great way to extend the reach of your work to end homelessness. We can help you celebrate your success as well by posting news about your event on our website and Facebook page, as well as photos, before and after your party.

We want you to feel comfortable making plans that suit your style and your budget. Therefore, we have listed some party ideas below and would be delighted to work with you on developing other ideas as well.

At Your Home
Use your Roof-Raiser as an excuse to have people over. Make it formal or casual, big or small. You can make Connections the main focus, or keep it low-key. Whatever suits your style.

At a Restaraunt
If you have a favorite restaurant, you can pay them to be the venue for your party or make a deal to have them donate a portion or all of the food.

At Hilda's Place
One of our Board members threw herself a very successful birthday party at Hilda's Place last year that not only raised one-time funds for Connections but also brought us some new long-term supporters. As long as you're willing to work with us on the logistics, this is a great way to have a fun, informal (or formal) party that also gives us a chance to show off our work.

• The kitchen and dining room at Hilda's Place could be made available for the following types of  parties (subject to approval from the Lake Street Church):
  • Weekday or Saturday breakfast or brunch (the Church uses the kitchen on Sundays)
  • Lunch any day
  • High tea (or other late afternoon gathering)
  • Late dinner (clients eat at 7:00pm, so your party would need to start at 8:00pm or later)

If you provide the food, we have several offers from chefs who are Connections supporters to do or help with the cooking.
Depending on the timing of your event, we could provide a tour of Hilda's Place as part of your gathering. If you would like your group to have an activity, we could potentially arrange a volunteer project as well.