Charity Holding Fundraiser To Make Chicago Greener
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A charity that has been working for 25 years to beautify Chicago holds one of the city's biggest fundraisers this weekend.
As WBBM Newsrasdio's Regine Schlesinger reports, the event has been dubbed the Green Tie Ball.
LISTEN: WBBM Newsradio's Regine Schlesinger reports
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25 years ago, the late Don DePorter, who was an executive of the Hyatt Hotels, was driving with his son, Grant, from the airport.
"Coming up from O'Hare, we looked around the expressway and saw mud, graffiti, litter -- nothing green," Grant DePorter said. "It was just really ugly."
Determined to do something about it, Don DePorter established Chicago Gateway Green to beautify the city.
Grant DePorter says the organization has outlived his father who died 15 years ago. It became one of retired Mayor Richard M. Daley's favorite non-profits and has led to the greening of Chicago.
In one of its most recent projects, DePorter said: "If you drive on the Kennedy and you get off at Ohio, Garrett Popcorn sponsored a site and we're actually growing corn right behind their sign. So it will be probably the first crop of food ever harvested on the Kennedy."
The Green Tie Ball, the organization's biggest annual fundraiser, take place this Saturday night at the A Finkl & Sons factory on Southport Avenue just south of Armitage Avenue.
