Assistance League Chicagoland West
Photos by Michelle James
The Assistance League Chicagoland West hosted its annual Books & Brunch in early November at The Abbington in Glen Ellyn. Close to 500 attendees joined the lively conversation with Pulitzer Prize Winner Jonathan Eig as well as authors Luis Urrea and Libby Fischer Hellmann, and moderator Andrea Thome.
The Assistance League Chicagoland West supports DuPage and western Cook Counties through programs like Operation School Bell, aiding students with clothing, literacy, and necessities.
Other initiatives include New Start for housing essentials, Scholars Support scholarships, Community Outreach crisis aid, and Assisteens, where teens develop community service projects, fostering education, stability, and self-sufficiency. Visit ALCW.org for more information.
Assistance League charter members Marilyn Krafthefer and Jan McGivern
Assistance League members Laura Morse and Patricia St. Cyr
Guest Gina Bucciarelli and Assistance League member Inga Haveric
Assistance League members Gopi Ahuja and Bijal Bhuva-Doshi
Books & Brunch Emcee Andrea Thome, Books & Brunch Co-Chairs JoAnn Barranco and Susann Oakum, Assistance League President Yvonne Mayer
Jewelry Raffle Winner Mridu Garg, Michelle Kovach and Amy Malfese from Bella Cosa Jewelers
![Aili Flannery’s award-winning sculpture, “Process,” was made of copper, string, copper wire, glass beads, glass, rust-stained fabric, lace, turmeric sun-printed paper, and thread. It represents “the timeline of having depression to the process of healing,” Flannery explained, and the theme is rooted in her own experiences. “‘Start’ shows up again at the end [of the piece], because I was ready to start healing and to continue living.”](https://dupagemagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/26-1-DG-Scholastic-Art-Writing-Awards.jpg "26-1 DG Scholastic Art & Writing Awards")
