Eat. Drink. Change- Meet Rogue Philanthropy

     Our Mission: Rogue Philanthropy is a charitable organization dedicated to promoting the empowerment of people with disabilities.  We focus our efforts on the funding of grass roots organizations such as The Arts of Life, that rely strongly on volunteer efforts, and where our support will make a significant difference.    Meet the Chef/ Director, Dave Gebhardt: My history here in the Chicago food scene started nearly 14 years ago as a fine dining chef, spending countless hours honing my craft at many renowned restaurants such as Japonais, Bin 36 and L2O. After that, I began working as a chef consultant either opening restaurants for others or fixing problem kitchens. In doing so I became more involved with the business side of the operations, an experience that taught me that a restaurant could make a substantial profit not with food but alcohol sales. Then the “gastropub” craze came to Chicago and became a way for the public to gain access to all the great food happening in Chicago without the high prices that made many preceding restaurants out of reach.      Where we’ll find success: Our “Philanthropub” idea stems from reading about the high volume of beer sales in Chicago as well as the rest of the country. According to a recent article in the Washington Examiner, beer sales in this country were 83 billion in 2013, expecting to reach 95 billion by 2018. After realizing that in a downed economy the first thing people cut from their budgets is giving, while at the same time alcohol sales go up, we thought there must be a way to take advantage of this reality. By rethinking the standard business model we can simultaneously bring change to unfair work practices for people with and without disabilities, as well as how we give back to our community. Restaurants and bars are an untapped source of funding that could relieve the constant burden of fundraising for our local social service providers.      Our studio partnership: Rogue Philanthropy was formed to support the mission of The Arts of Life after seeing the studio struggle to maintain consistent funding after state cuts and a recession that has significantly lowered donations and left them in crisis mode. We consist of volunteers who have accepted the challenge of bridging the gap between state funding at the level of basic need and what is needed for those supported to share what we all want…the best quality of life.     Rogue Philanthropy also seeks to raise Chicagoans’ awareness of those with lifelong disabilities and encourage others to offer time, talent and financial resources to help this worthy population maximize their abilities. We will begin carrying this out by hosting a series of underground dinners and cocktail parties to raise funds for our project, as well as bring together like-minded people ready to strengthen and expand philanthropy to everyone.      Our goal: Our five year strategic plan will be to open Chicago’s first “philanthropub” where all profits will be donated to The Arts of Life.  We also hope that by proving this model works, we will be able to expand our efforts beyond The Arts of Life and into other great organizations.     Get involved: Helping is as easy as eating and drinking. Join our mailing list at www.roguephilanthropy.org to be invited to these exclusive parties or throw your own. We are available to cater all of your holiday party needs. Make the holidays merry by throwing a worry-free party with Rogue Philanthropy.  We house a talented team of planners, chefs, and bartenders whose festive finger foods and signature cocktails will leave your guests with visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads. Not to mention, feeling good about helping a great cause.  We offer a variety of formats and custom pricing to suit the environment, audience and occasion.  Visit us at www.roguephilanthropy.org