This Annual Report is dedicated to the staff of the Fry Foundation's grantees and nonprofit organizations throughout the city of Chicago. These individuals are dedicating their lives in service to others and addressing some of society's most critical issues. Their jobs are always demanding, but this past year has been amongst the most difficult. Chicago's school district is grappling with a $1 billion deficit and nonprofits which provide services to schools (such as arts programs, tutoring and health services) are finding their contracts cut back or eliminated. The State of Illinois owes more than $4 billion in past due bills and some are more than eight months late. A large portion of this is owed to health clinics, job training centers and other nonprofits which provided services under state contracts. The nonprofits met their obligations, but the state has not. Though the needs are rising, organizations are being forced to reduce staff and salaries, and eliminate much-needed programs. There have been heroic efforts to save essential services for the most vulnerable populations. One of our grantees needed to lay off staff due to funding cuts to a summer program. Rather than see the program shut down altogether, the staff volunteered to run the program without pay.

In this time of scarce resources, some organizations are hunkering down and putting all future plans on hold. Many of our grantees, on the other hand, are looking upward, beyond the horizon, and reaching out more openly than ever. For them, creativity and innovation have not come to a standstill. On the contrary, they are flourishing with the development of imaginative collaborations, new ways of sharing resources, and program improvements.

Mental health service providers for children who have been sexually abused are working on new ways to coordinate services in order to reduce waitlists for the children and their families. Employment organizations are working harder than ever to help people develop the skills required to be successful in today's job market—the most challenging market in thirty years. And Chicago's arts education community is engaging in a citywide collaborative to develop a new web of partnerships and information databases that will make it easier for schools to identify the best arts education programs to fill their needs. This new infrastructure will promote stronger and more equitable distribution of arts education in Chicago public schools.

Our grantees are coming together to share information and resources, assess strengths and challenges, and coordinate and leverage services in an effort to work better and more efficiently. These scenarios have played out throughout the city. As you review the stories and pictures in our Annual Report, recognize and admire the tenacity, creativity, and dedication to service that is reflected here and across all of our grantees. More than ever, this year we call out and thank all of you who are stepping up, looking out and moving forward to help our brothers and sisters, neighbors and friends in greatest need.

Unmi Song, Executive Director