ABOUT US

CHICAGO GATEWAY GREEN

All proceeds from Green Tie Ball support the efforts of Chicago Gateway Green. Solely dedicated to greening and beautifying the region’s expressways, gateways and communities, Chicago Gateway Green was founded in 1986 to benefit the environment and improve the quality of life for millions of Chicagoland residents and annual visitors. Currently maintaining over 300 acres of land along local expressways through its Expressway Partnership, the non-profit organization has set the standard for comprehensive urban landscape design and environmental stewardship. With broad support across the region’s business and civic community, Chicago Gateway Green hosts its trademark fundraising event – the Green Tie Ball – each September. A new tree-planting initiative, TREEcago, was recently launched on the website. For more information, visit www.gatewaygreen.org.
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Green Tie Ball xviI EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Co-Chairs

Jon Cotay, co-owner of Akira. Since 2002, Akira has been making a name for themselves as the place to go for fashion in Chicago. Located in the Wicker Park and Bucktown areas, Akira features the fashions of multiple designers ranging from local to internationally known.

Julie Darling is a partner at D/C inc, an event marketing and public relations agency, headquartered in Chicago with an office in Washington DC. Julie heads the Chicago office and works with clients in the restaurant, fashion and luxury categories. Julie was the director and founder of Gen Art in Chicago. For more information, visit www.dandcinc.com.

Executive Committee

Paul Blair aka DJ White Shadow, has cultivated a strong following and proven himself to be a driving force in the national's club scene, earning a spot as one of the country's most prolific and respected DJs. A celebrity favorite and high-profile event regular, White Shadow has been personally requested by Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz, R. Kelly, Todd Oldham, Bentley, Lollapalooza, Victoria's Secret and Gen Art, among others. FJ White Shadow masterfully mixes all genres, fueled by Hop Hop undertones and is known for his ability to connect with and engage a crowd. Paul, along with DJ Eddie Mills, is responsible for all of the incredible entertainment you will experience at Green Tie Ball XVII.

Shelley Howard, is a Chicago based graphic artist. If you live in the Midwest, and have ever seen an ad for a concert produced by Jam Productions, then you are familiar with his work, because he has designed them all.

Bill Johnson was born and raised in Northern Illinois. He is now a resident of Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood. He is the owner of Rush Construction which has been in business for eight years. Their primary client is Chicago Public Schools.

Jerry Kleiner is a restaurateur, entrepreneur and trendsetter. Kleiner and his partners are credited with pioneering Chicago’s West Randolph Street restaurant district with long-time hotspots Vivo, Marche and Red Light. He has also taken over the South Loop with innovative concepts including Gioco, Opera, and Saiko. Kleiner also set his sights on Chicago’s Fulton Street Warehouse District, designing and opening the trendy lounge Victor Hotel along with Carnivale, a grand scale Latin American restaurant. Kleiner’s latest opening was ROOM21, located in the South Loop. Jerry Kleiner's most recent project is Park 52 in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. A local celebrity, Kleiner’s own home design frequents the pages of the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times, interior design shows on HGTV and hosts many famous visitors to the area.

Jon Landan, a Chicago native, graduated from Francis W. Parker School in 1995 and The University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1999. After working in the Entertainment Industry for four years, Landan created Alife Group in 2003, A Lifestyle - Marketing And Nightlife Venue Development Company. Alife has become Chicago’s Premier Entertainment Development Company, specializing in the creation, development and management of top restaurants, bars, and nightclub venues and is for its creative ideas and professional execution of the most influential parties and large-scale corporate events around the city. Clients include nationally recognized brands such as Anheuser-Busch, Hyatt Corporation, America Online and Universal Studios. Landan also continues to do personal consulting work for some of Chicago's biggest restaurateurs including Jerry Kleiner and Phil Stefani.

Woody Levin is from Glencoe and has lived in and around Chicago all his life. After graduating from The University of Wisconsin-Madison Woody received his JD from The Chicago-Kent School of Law. He is currently the Managing Partner of Riverbank Capital Management and is President and CEO of GamersPlayfield.com. Woody is active in the community and also works with The JUF, Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation, and WITS.

Matthew McMillin has recently joined the Executive Team of Food For Thought as the Vice President of Culinary and Innovation, where he will be the chief food advocate and be responsible for the development of new products and concepts. Matthew McMillin spent the last 15 years with Lettuce Entertain You as the Executive Chef/Partner and Vice President of Culinary for Big Bowl, Big Bowl Chinese Express and L-Woods. McMillin joined Lettuce Entertain You in 1993, opening a number of concepts. McMillin joined the Big Bowl team in 1995, helping to develop it from a single unit concept to the eight restaurants operating today. McMillin and fellow Big Bowl partner Bruce Cost recently co-wrote Big Bowl Noodles & Rice, a Harper Collins publication He is both a graduate and current Advisory Board Member of Kendall College.

Ryan Preuett is currently the Director of Marketing for Gibsons Restaurant Group, (Gibsons Bar and Steakhouse, Hugo’s Frog Bar & Fish House, Quartino, Luxbar, and RL) located in Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Preuett’s expertise in the entertainment and hospitality industry utilizes traditional marketing methods and exploits emerging technology to convert existing businesses into nationally recognized brands. He has developed, produced, and directed events for many of he world’s most famous brands, media outlets, sports governing bodies, politicians, athletes, entertainers, models, and fashion designers. He is a Senior Advisor to Elevated Endeavors a premier corporate strategy and operations firm which partners enterprise businesses, emerging companies and individuals with the world’s leading marketers and media networks to help clients grow their business through advertising and marketing, media production and distribution, talent brands, sponsorship consulting, brand licensing, and sales strategies. Mr. Preuett is a graduate from the University of Michigan.

Brenda Sexton began her career in Corporate Real Estate Services in 1981. Quickly, she rose to be one of the top brokers in Chicago specializing in regional and national headquarters assignments of Fortune 500 companies and major service organizations. In 2003 Governor Blagojevich appointed Brenda to negotiate Film Production transactions for the State of Illinois. As Director of the Illinois Film Office from 2003 – 2007 Brenda is credited with creating and implementing effective tax credit legislation to entice production to return to the State. During her first 12 months in office, Brenda increased state productions revenues by well over 200%. In addition to Batman Begins, Oceans 12, and The Break Up, she also brought in the first dramatic television series produced in the state in over five years, Prison Break from Fox Television. These productions created over 20,000 jobs and over $100 million in revenues to Illinois.

Brenda was the first broker to be named Broker of the Year twice for her large tenant rep transactions. She was named a Crain’s 40 Under 40. Additionally, Mayor Daley appointed Brenda Chairman of the State Street Redevelopment Board. Roger Ebert awarded Brenda Sexton a Thumbs Up for her achievements in the film industry in Illinois, as did The Lawyers For The Creative Arts. In 2007 the City of Chicago passed a Resolution honoring her for her contributions to the city’s film industry. Brenda is on the board of PAWS Chicago, active with We Care CPS Speakers’ Program, The Chicago Urban League, and is a member of The Economic Club of Chicago.

Phillip Sylvester is a long-time friend of Chicago Gateway Green and the Green Tie Ball and has served on the committee, or as co-chair, for several years. He is the owner of Rock Bar, a hot spot in Miami’s trendy North Beach.

MCGOWAN DURPETTI & ASSOCIATES

McGowan Durpetti & Associates is a Chicago-based firm specializing in event production. Founded by Denise McGowan and Michelle Durpetti, MD & A serves as a partner to non-profit organizations, associations and corporations providing comprehensive events marketing and production strategies, building awareness of our clients and their messages. Our core practices are event management and media relations. For more information, visit www.mcgowandurpetti.com.

McGowan and Durpetti produced Green Tie Ball XVI – The Garden of Good or Evil in 2007. Check out the photo gallery at www.greentieball.org to see what you missed!

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Zapwater Communications

Zapwater Communications, Inc. is a Chicago-based, award-winning boutique public relations agency. Zapwater's diverse client roster currently includes some of the hottest entertainment, lifestyle and hospitality clients that regularly appear in Chicago and national publications. For more information, visit http://www.zapwater.com.