Better Chicago's Summer Issue: Inspiring Voices, Heroes & Community Comes Together

Oh, how our world has changed since the last time you received a print issue of Better! The pandemic hit as we were working on our traditional spring issue. We dropped that like a lead balloon, in order to lean into our mission to provide you with helpful, trusted, up to the minute, digital content that connects you to the best local and national sources. And you devoured it.

From makeshift home offices that we shared with our spouses and adult kids unhappy to have returned from schools or jobs, often while homeschooling younger children too, we doubled or tripled our usual weekly digital content. We learned to zoom, collaborate online even better, work faster, more intently and with even greater purpose – in order to provide you with the most timely articles and recommendations, most helpful or entertaining advice. As a result, our email newsletter “Better Letter” subscriptions and social network followers soared. As you would expect, we pivoted to help nonprofits that had to cancel events do more virtual fundraising too.

The COVID-19 curve flattened sufficiently for Mayor Lori and Governor JB to ease restrictions as our weather promised to improve. So, we started planning this summer issue. But then the after-effects of George Floyd’s murder exploded here and across the country, elevating the injustice and cruelty of long-standing systemic racism. We pivoted again, to elevate the Black Lives Matter movement and recommend ways you can help too. This was easy for us, because our mission to help you, our audience, to live, love, work and play with greater purpose has always included a strong emphasis on social justice too. We’re doubling down on those efforts going forward.

So, it is indeed a very different world than it was before coronavirus and George Floyd. And it’s an incredibly challenging time. But, it’s also a time to feel even more grateful to live here – in beautiful and caring communities, and to lean into a yearning to help keep local strong, and to make choices based on important values. That means, it’s a powerful time for our company – Make It Better Media Group. We were founded on and developed from a strong desire to help and connect. We’ve never felt more useful or more honored to serve than now.

Also, we just launched a modified version of our beloved annual Audience Choice Best Of. Please help us celebrate local by voting for your favorites here.

We would love to hear from you about your experiences during these difficult times too. Your time, attention, recommendations and connections are precious. We promise that our content helps you make your life and the lives of others better with every click, like, share and send. We hope that reading this issue will be a good example of this too.