Dear CCR Community:



Happy Spring! I am so excited to see many of you at our upcoming annual fundraising event. This year’s event is CCR Presents: Enchanted Garden, and we have so many fun

themed elements planned for an excellent night at Kaiser Tiger on May 8. See below in the newsletter for more details and a preview of some of our exciting silent auction items

and a very special raffle this year.

CCR has been hard at working launching a number of new initiatives related to the lifeblood of our organization – our volunteers! Thanks to all of you for your responsiveness to our recent demographic survey and volunteer experience survey. The

information we have gathered will help us serve our community more effectively and inclusively. We appreciate you! We have also been proud to move through our first cycle

of our revamped Mediator Mentorship Program (MMP). Volunteers for this cycle are just getting underway with their mentorship, and we look forward to welcoming them into our

community of mediator volunteers.

Thank you for being a part of the CCR!

Best,

Cassie

CCR's Annual Event: Enchanted Garden

The Annual Event is fast approaching – don’t miss CCR Presents: Enchanted Garden on Thursday, May 8^th from 5:30-8:00pm!

Join us at Kaiser Tiger for an evening of food, fun, friends, and fundraising. Bid on fabulous Silent Auction items and get a mystery bottle of wine at our Wine Pull. Tickets are on sale now at our event website here!

Not able to attend? You can donate on the event website and bid on Silent Auction items without being at the event! And if you have an item or idea for a Silent Auction donation, we’re always interested – just email Laura Warren at Lwarren@ccrchicago.org

For more information visit our event website here.

Last but not least! Don’t miss this year’s exciting new Golden Ticket Raffle! One lucky winner gets the pleasure of choosing from 4 incredible trips:

• All-inclusive 5 nights in vibrant and sunny Cabo
• 6 nights immersed in food and wine in Tuscany
• Luxury 3-night retreat to Sedona’s Wilde Resort and Spa
• Lexington, KY 3-night bourbon escape

Tickets are $100 and can be purchased on our event site.

Join the

Volunteers-Only Website Section

Are you a volunteer mediator looking for supportive materials, interesting continuing ed videos, or a refresher of CCR's processes? CCR's website has a volunteers-only space with all of this information and more! It's your one-stop-shop for all your CCR mediating needs. To join:

• visit https://www.ccrchicago.org
• select 'Volunteer Log In' in the top right corner
• select 'Sign Up' to enter your information.

Don't miss the easiest access to CCR mediating materials you've ever seen!

Core Values Nomination

Have you seen a member of the CCR Community doing a great job demonstrating one of our Core Values? Nominate them to be featured in Caucus!

Do you have general thoughts/comments/ideas related to our Core Values initiative? Let us know! 

Share your thoughts HERE.

ADR In The News!

Check out this Chicago Sun-Times story featuring the work of CCR organizational partner and former staff member, Stephanie Senuta:

Kids caught in the middle of domestic violence cases offered support, solace by Cook County court.

Welcome,

Amara Alexander!!

Congratulations to CCR Board member Jenny Plagman and her husband Benny Alexander on the birth of Amara (pictured here with proud big sister, Willow)!

Welcome New Staff!

Kennedy Bradley joined CCR in 2024 as a Programs Manager for the Early Resolution Program. She

earned her BA in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin and her MSW from the University of

Chicago. FULL BIO

Larni Emery joined CCR in November 2024 as a Training Specialist. She brings over a decade of international

experience in training, management, education, and admin support to CCR. Prior to CCR, Larni worked

as an onboarding and customer service trainer, where she discovered her passion for teaching and

facilitating growth in others. FULL BIO

Caroline Strauss joined CCR in 2025 as a Program Manager for the Early Resolution Program. She holds her

Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Michigan State University and her Master in Social Work from the

University of Michigan where she was also a part of the Jewish Communal Leadership Program. FULL BIO

Ways to Give!!

We are excited to share that there are now more ways to support CCR! Visit the CCR website HERE to find information about making donations via:

• Qualified Charitable Distributions
• Donor Advised Funds
• Matching Gifts
• Beneficiary Designations
• Bequests through Wills or Revocable (Living) Trusts

The Training Team recognizes Rae Kyritsi for collaborative spirit in supporting development of a new training module. Rae also strives for personal best while helping us re-imagine how we introduce ADR to our trainees. Thank you, Rae!

Cassie and Israel would like to recognize longtime volunteers Mike Cohen and Howard Epstein for their work in analyzing data from CCR’s recent Volunteer Experience survey. Howard and Mike, who both were instrumental in the process to discover, establish, and reinforce CCR’s Core Values, perfectly exemplify the core values of Inspire Growth & Success and Inclusivity. Their thoughtful analysis ensured that important comments weren’t overlooked, that we can engage with big themes, address low-hanging fruit, and make the experience of volunteering for CCR better for everyone. We look forward to sharing more of the insights with the community in the coming weeks. Thank you, Mike and Howard!

Join us for 

Reflective Practice Group! 

Every first Wednesday of the month at noon via Zoom. Discuss a recent mediation, trends in ADR, or anything mediation-related with CCR staff and your fellow volunteers.

Join the fun via the Zoom link here.

Password: Magic

Help Us Plan an Upcoming

Continuing Ed Program!

Do you have a great idea for

a speaker or topic for an upcoming Continuing Ed Program? If so, we would love to hear your thoughts.

Please email Israel to connect about your ideas.

Connect with us

Learn more about CCR and our Core Values HERE!