Making A Difference

NBC 5 Chicago, Telemundo Chicago and Comcast NBCUniversal announced $227,272 has been awarded to eight local nonprofit organizations through the 2024 NBCUniversal Local Impact Grants. Since 2018, NBC 5 Chicago and Telemundo Chicago have provided more than $1.5 million to 47 area nonprofits through the grant program.

The Will County’s Forest Preserve’s Nature Center is the first in the nation to be accredited by the National Inclusion Project. NBC 5’s LeeAnn Trotter explains how.

A retired school teacher is making a difference in his community by playing soothing music to help calm down dogs at an area shelter, as LeeAnn Trotter explains.

Thanks to a non-profit organization called “Fun 4 the Disabled,” a new video series called “Accessible Chicago” helps people with disabilities navigate a new location before they even arrive. NBC Chicago’s LeeAnn Trotter reports.

Several men dealing with a variety of challenges have been given a fresh start — thanks to a brand new home and the organization that made it possible. NBC 5’s Regina Waldroup reports.

Together, volunteers handed out more than 200 meals at Chicago warming centers.

A new ice-skating rink will open to the public Wednesday in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood as part of a massive dream for Chicago-area resident and business owner Corie Luckett. Vi Nguyen reports.

NBC Chicago is celebrating those who are making positive change in the Chicago area with a special piece showcasing our “Making a Difference” stories from 2023.

While it may seem like the thousands of toys collected at Another Chance Church is significant, organizers of the annual holiday toy drive say the numbers paint a much different picture. 

The “Today Show” kicked off their season of giving in a big way, helping to deliver thousands of turkeys to the Greater Chicago Food Depository all to help families in need for the holiday season. And the effort helped to set a Guinness World Record. Alex Maragos reports.

While “World Kindness Day” took place Monday, a Chicago artist has made the idea of kindness the central theme in their work. NBC 5’s LeeAnn Trotter has more.

Newcomer Catherine Debrunner won the 2023 Bank of America Chicago Marathon wheelchair race Sunday, beating defending champion and fierce competitor Susannah Scaroni in a nail-biting sprint to the finish.

Meg Kresach and her husband lost their daughter Olivia to brain cancer at 22 years old. The couple has since started a non-profit called BrainUp, which brings awareness to brain cancer. All funds raised, Kresach said, go towards research at Chicago-area hospitals.