Soup takes center stage at sold out BEDS Plus fundraiser

Chicago Tribune

04-02-2025

Juan Silva ladled out a portion of his abuela's chicken tortilla soup Sunday along with a sizable helping of empathy during the 13th annual Soup and Bread benefit hosted by BEDS Plus.
'My motto is that nobody will ever go hungry on my watch,' said Silva, a former La Grange Park trustee who owns Beach Avenue BBQ in Brookfield, who was among those serving up a variety of warm soups at the Holiday Inn in Countryside. 'If I can support a cause like this, I will always do it.'
BEDS Plus executive director Tina Rounds said the idea for Soup and Bread arose from a similar, but slightly different, event many years ago at The Hideout, a Lincoln Park Music Venue.
'I thought it would be a good way to communicate our mission out to people,' she said.
For $30 per person, an estimated crowd of 800 people interested in helping end homelessness in the area could sample 22 different soups, including newcomers like Beach Avenue BBQ and Happier Now in La Grange Park, and longtime participants like the Irish Times, also in Brookfield.
A silent auction in the main banquet hall accepted bids on items ranging from Disney vacation getaways, a Colorado mountain retreat trip, White Sox tickets and sports memorabilia autographed by hockey greats Bobby Orr and Stan Mikita.
Musical acts such as the August James Band playing classic blues, the Vaughn Building playing classic rock music and Crows of Furey playing eclectic covers provided the soundtrack for the evening while Marko the Roving Magician offered an element of surprise.
But the main attractions were the soups.
Carpi Ristorante Italiano in Palos Heights served pasta fagioli; Brookfield's Irish Times, a Soup and Bread participant from the beginning, offered corned beef and cabbage; Prasino in downtown La Grange brought its cream of mushroom soup; and the Works Hideout in nearby Summit served up chicken dumpling soup.
'This is our second year and it just seems like it's getting bigger and bigger,' Nanette Pecoraro, owner of Antonino's Ristorante in La Grange, said while serving the restaurant's minestrone soup. 'We're getting more and more people volunteering, more people with their soups. It's really popular.'
Buck's Pit Stop in Hodgkins served vegetable beef soup doled out by Brian Centers and Julie Wilson.
'I've been volunteering here at BEDS Plus for about 20 years, Julie has been about six years,' Centers said. 'This is about the sixth year I've done Soup and Bread. I've been a volunteer with BEDS for some time. We used to work out of churches.'
La Grange officials said the annual fundraiser illustrates the kindness of people in the area.
'This is a great family friendly event for a very worthy cause, with a lot of wonderful people from our community in support of our local businesses,' said Charity Jones, the village's community development director. 'It's really what makes small businesses so special, how they give back to the community.'
That included several area providers of libations, including breweries such as La Grange Park's Hop District, Brookfield's Imperial Oak Brewery, La Grange's Milk Money Brewing and BuckleDown Brewing in Lyons, all which served craft beers. Cooper's Hawk Winery and Restaurant served its red and white selections while WhistlePig Whiskey sent representatives from Vermont to offer samples of their rye and bourbon whiskies.
'It's really nice to see all the restaurants that want to contribute,' La Grange President Mark Kuchler said.