Jennifer Steele is an east coast girl at heart, but equally shares her heart with Chicago and its young people. She’s dedicated her time in the Windy City to creating opportunities for youth to meet and follow their dreams and passions. Given that she stands with conviction that Chicago is thee best food city in the country, she can often be found tasting her way through different neighborhoods with friends and family. To this end, she also loves the challenge of finding recipes for curious ingredients and considers herself an emerging board game geek. Who doesn’t love nerding out over storylines and strategies, and the inevitable laughter that ensues? A good book and Promontory Point or South Shore beach and she’s a pretty happy Chicagoan (although she will always say “soda” over “pop”). She’s a proud mama and writer and poet, and hasn’t been to one 826CHI event where our students’ words haven’t made her cry.