We are excited to announce our latest partnership with John’s Food & Wine! Please check out our video here (credit: Lakefront Creative Group), which shares more about this special collaboration and our current beneficiary Gateway to Learning.
The Susan Schnitzler Happy Faces Fund
Our 501c3 nonprofit created The Susan Schnitzler Happy Faces Fund as a way of honoring our family’s beloved mother Susan, a nurse and advocate who dedicated her life to the service and well-being of others.
By donating to this fund, you are directly supporting the dental care of the developmentally disabled community, who often lack funding for these essential needs.
Doors Open Dishes is committed to keeping the doors open to the group homes and workshops of individuals with special needs. The budget crisis in Illinois has led to severe cuts in services for these individuals, thereby jeopardizing the residential and training programs throughout the state. We partner with chefs across the city to create dishes inspired by an individual at one of these programs.
We partner with chefs across the city to create dishes inspired by an individual at one of these programs.
Favorite dishes might get dressed up, dressed down, or simply reinterpreted through the lens of a chef. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich might morph into a peanut butter sundae with raspberry sauce, fried chicken could undergo a sweetbread transformation, and frozen mixed vegetables with Kraft Parmesan Cheese will likely get a farm fresh makeover, topped off with real deal parmigiano. What starts in the mind of the client lands in the hands of the chef, creating one cohesive story by the time it’s placed in front of you.
HOW IT WORKS
1
Each month we’ll be linking up a Chicago-based chef with a client in a local workshop or group home supporting those with special needs.
2
After meeting the client and learning a couple of their favorite dishes, the chef gets to work, spinning out one interpretation of a dish inspired by the conversation had with the client.
3
That dish is showcased at their restaurant and directly supports the client’s organization.
PROCEEDS
A certain amount of proceeds raised from each Doors Open Dishes plate will go directly to the organization or home that restaurant has partnered with, thereby helping to keep these critically needed programs up and running for the individuals who need them most.
