Elizabeth O’Brien appreciates the extra touches Catholic Charities offers at its community suppers. Guests—many of whom are unhoused individuals or recent arrivals to Chicago—are welcomed with open arms. They are seated at tables set with tablecloths and flowers. Volunteers bring plates of food to them at their tables.

“It’s wonderful because it really adds … that layer of dignity to the people in the room that need the food,” said O’Brien, who leads the commercial real estate practice group at Chicago-based law firm Levenfeld Pearlstein.

“There is nothing more clear on Tuesdays (than) when you have a room full of people of all backgrounds, all genders, races, countries, and they’re all there with one common need, and that’s food” she said. “That’s to be fed.”

Every week, thanks to the generosity of partners like Levenfeld Pearlstein, they are.

Welcoming people of all backgrounds

Levenfeld Pearlstein is a full-service law firm that was founded in 1999 with a special commitment to social impact. Over the last three years, under the leadership of O’Brien and Michael St. Peter, a partner in the firm’s corporate group, Levenfeld Pearlstein’s partnership with Catholic Charities has expanded significantly.

“It aligns with our core values of welcoming people of all backgrounds, all faith traditions, all experiences,” said St. Peter.

Corporate social responsibility is a foundational principle for Levenfeld Pearlstein, which employs 200 team members, including approximately 100 lawyers, with the goal of providing an unparalleled experience to clients and community partners. For example, the firm gives a fixed portion of its revenue to charity partners every year.

“These aren’t discretionary expenses for us,” said St. Peter. “It is part of our commitment to being in the community that we serve and to giving back to our community.”

Levenfeld Pearlstein supports Catholic Charities community suppers; work welcoming new arrivals to Chicago; and House of the Good Shepherd, a transitional home that provides safety and stability to mothers and children who are survivors of domestic violence. The partnership with Catholic Charities reflects shared core values, St. Peter said: “helping people help themselves, empowering people to create their own success story.”

It also has had a personal impact, as both St. Peter and O’Brien have volunteered at Tuesday night suppers. O’Brien is a regular.

Breaking down barriers to bring people together

One of O’Brien’s favorite parts of volunteering is witnessing barriers break down to yield moments of connection and encounter. She loves talking with and getting to know guests.

“Being able to form relationships with some of the people that you see there on a regular basis is incredibly powerful,” she said.

Children run up to hug her leg in gratitude. Recently, a guest pulled her aside to confide that he’d fallen on hard times. He told her, “It’s people like you and people like Catholic Charities that have allowed me to continue eating during this time period.”  

She remembered another man, shortly before Easter, who stood up and led the blessing before supper.

“The prayer that he said stuck with me,” O’Brien said. “He kept saying, ‘Father God, Father God, Father God.’ And I hear this when I pray at night. I hear his words in my head playing back. It was a prayer of bringing the people in the room together.”

Make a gift to support the Sister Joyce Dura, O.S.F. Supper Program. 

Contact [email protected] for information on volunteering at a Tuesday night supper.

Learn more about Levenfeld Pearlstein’s social impact at www.lplegal.com/2023-social-impact-report  

A Tuesday Night Supper Blessing, led by Calvin G.:
Thank you, Father God for another day,
Thank you, Father God for another way.
Thank you, Father God for your grace and mercy and mercy and grace, Father,
Thank you for the immigrants, for the refugees, Father,
Thank you for the orphan and widow, Father,
Thank you for the volunteers, for being the light in a dark world, Father God,
Thank you, Father for the homeless. 
Thank you for all the people who are here today, Father God.
Thank you for the food we are about to receive, Father.
I ask and pray and pray and ask that it be edifying mentally, physically, emotionally, and intellectually. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.