The Flossmoor Community House Community was jam-packed with community members, Center for Food Equity in Medicine (CFFEIM) volunteers and local chefs for the second annual Soup for the Soul fundraising event on the evening of Monday, Feb. 17.
About 20 chefs from the South Suburbs, other Chicago suburbs and Chicago served soup to the attendees, who also had the option to purchase quarts of their favorites to take home.
The proceeds from ticket and soup sales were donated to the CFFEIM, a Flossmoor-based nonprofit organization that organizes community popups and delivers food to families struggling with cancer and other life-altering health conditions. Any leftover soup that wasn’t eaten at Soup for the Soul is set to be frozen and donated to CFFEIM clients.
The event was organized by Maureen Mader, Dunning’s Gourmet Market & Deli owner and Flossmoor Business Association president, in conjunction with the CFFEIM.
Participating chefs came from Homewood Brewing Company in Homewood, Flossmoor Station, Dunning’s Market and Bistro on Sterling in Flossmoor, The Barrell Club in Oak Lawn, Kimski in Chicago and other restaurants throughout the South Suburbs and Chicagoland region.
In addition to restaurant chefs, this year’s Soup for the Soul featured the culinary works of Chef Lupe Raymundo from the Pilsen Food Pantry on the southwest side of Chicago, who served lentil soup, and independent chefs, Gigi Moore and Stef Anderson.
The scents of vegetables, spices, meat, seafood and poultry filled the air. Community members chatted with one another and listened to upbeat music played by Todd “VanBurren,” a sound technician and CFFEIM volunteer who DJed the event.
Homewood Brewing Company ran out of chicken dumpling soup within the first hour of the three-hour event, so company staff returned to the restaurant at 18225 Dixie Highway to retrieve beer cheese soup for the remainder of the evening.
Anderson ran out of lentil soup within the first two hours of Soup for the Soul.
Independent chef Stef Anderson, left, and Homewood Brewing Company chef Gabriel Seymour share a booth at Soup for the Soul. (Nick Ulanowski / H-F Chronicle)
Justin Rush, owner of the St. Charles-based online shop JustBread, provided freshly made sourdough bread. Assisting the CFFEIM, Homewood-Flossmoor High School student Noelle Kelly served bread to attendees.
Dunning’s Market provided wine for the event. Al’s Cookie Mixx, a Chicago-based online cookie shop, served three different kinds of homemade cookies.
Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson attended Soup for the Soul for her second time.
“You really see the personalities of the chefs coming out in their food. And everything’s done with so much love and creativity,” Nelson said. “Everything is so different. It has such a different flavor and flair.”
Sue Kluger and Larry Kluger, owners of Kluger Furs in Flossmoor Commons, also attended the gathering for the second time.
“We bought two quarts to take home and I’m eying a third,” Sue Kluger said.
“It’s cold, so it’s a perfect day for soup,” Chef Moore said. “I love seeing the people and how they’re getting along and talking. It’s just refreshing right now in this political environment just to see everybody happy.”
“This is one of three [fundraising events] that we do,” CFFEIM founder and executive director Ann Jackson said. “The next one is in June. It’s our Soundbites for Equity. And then we have another one in October. It’s called Dining for Equity.” She pointed out that CFFEIM fundraisers don’t always feature chefs, “but there’s always going to be food there.”
About 200 community members attended Soup for the Soul this year, Mader said.
