Common Ground Foundation celebrated 25 years of supporting area youth with their “Chicago Nights, Brighter Futures“ affair at the beautiful Geraghty event space, on the city’s Pilsen neighborhood. The evening brought out lots of big name stars, including Anthony Anderson, Cedric the Entertainer, and Boris Kodjoe, who all shared their admiration for the work the CGF team have accomplished, led by artist, actor and author Common and his mother, educator and thought leader Dr. Mahalia Hines.
COMMON
MAHALIA HINES
ANTHONY ANDERSON, CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER, BORIS KODJOE
As celebs walked the fun and festive “blue carpet,” we asked for some behind the scenes scoop on their friend Common. They all lauded what a great guy he is, and celebrated his commitment to Chicago youth. But they had some notes for him, when it comes to basketball.
KARL KEMP
CGF Executive Director Karl Kemp brings decades of experience in education to his servant leadership. He told us he’s looking forward the next 25 years of empowering and elevating Chicago youth.
KHALIL EVERAGE & MATTHEW WILLIAMS
Common Ground Foundation boasts a 100% high school graduation rate, with nearly 90% of those students continuing to college. CGF alums Khalil Everage and Matthew Williams shared their success stories.
DEBRA HAND
Sculptor Debra Hand has been creating one of a kind awards celebrating Common Ground Foundation’s partner and honorees for 25 years. This year, she marked the organization’s silver anniversary with a piece of artwork steeped in meaning.
MELODY SPANN COOPER
Melody Spann Cooper, Chair & Chief Executive Officer of Midway Broadcasting Corporation shared her congratulations and commitment as a legacy media partner.
INGRID LAVON
Corporate partner Ingrid Lavon, founder of Geneba Tequilla shared her Chicago pride and support for CGF.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com ’
