Thanks to everyone who made our October 21st fundraiser a great success. Special thanks to Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who spoke with many of those present and gave a short, inspirational speech. President Preckwinkle is the type of public servant who makes us proud to be Democrats.

Thanks to the many elected officials who attended including Cook County Recorder Karen Yarborough, State Senator Laura Murphy, State Representative Elaine Nekritz, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District President Mariyana Spyropoulus, Justice Bernetta Lampkin, Judge Rossana Fernandez. and Judge Fredrick Bates. Thanks also to the many candidates who attended, including Josina Morita and Tom Greenhaw, candidates for Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Board; Jacob Meister, candidate for Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County; Dr. Robert Marshall, candidate for Congress in the 6th Congressional District; and Maureen O'Donoghue Hannon and Pat Heneghan, candidates for Circuit Court Judge.

 We are especially grateful to our sponsors:

• Platinum Sponsor: Alan Prochaska
• Gold Sponsors: Painters District Council #14, State Rep. Elaine Nekritz, and State Sen. Laura Murphy.
• Silver Sponsors:  Attorney General Lisa Madigan, Cook County Recorder Karen Yarbrough, State Sen. Julie Morrison, Patrick J. Heneghan, David Gurion, Laddi Singh, Elizabeth Marcin, Lyn and Frank Huckin, and Friends of Flamm.

We awarded our annual Jim Hightower Community Organizing Award to Northwest Suburbs Organizing for Action (NWSOFA) for its continuing actions to organize local progressives around health care reform, gun violence prevention, immigration reform, diversity, and economic and fiscal issues. Bil Davis, Renee Gladstone, Patrick Watson, and Harold Whyte accepted the award on behalf of NWSOFA.

If you were meaning to make a contribution but didn't get around to it before the fundraiser, there's still time. You can mail your check to GPAD, P.O. Box 2120, Palatine, IL 60078 or go to www.gpadems.org/fundraiser to contribute online.

This event will allow us to continue to maintain our year-round office, which is available for use by all Democrats and progressives, and to continue our efforts to identify and reach out to Democrats in the Palatine area.

Finally, thanks to Susan MacDonald, Beth Marcin, Renee Shapiro, Harold Whyte, and Patrick Watson, who helped make this event go smoothly. An organization is only as good as its volunteers, and we are grateful to have some of the best.