When Cynthia La Schiazza smiles, she could be wearing a baggy sweatshirt and she’d still look like one of the best dressed women in Chicago. Her sense of style and her enthusiasm flow from her heart.
Whether talking about her home state of Indiana, or the many cities where she, her husband and two children have lived, or the charities she’s embraced since returning to the Chicago area, Cynthia makes you want to put on your party heels and get involved.
One of her passions is the Daniel Murphy Scholarship Foundation, which provides four-year high school scholarships to 8th grade students in Chicago. “I’m so impressed at how poised and knowledgeable these kids are,” she says.
Another educational cause she supports is After School Matters, a program for teens in Chicago that was started by Maggie Daley. This public/private partnership provides hands-on opportunities for thousands of teenagers each year to explore career opportunities and learn marketable skills.
When talking about the clothes she wears when she goes to benefits, Cynthia looks for “timeless, classic styles I can wear year after year.” She says she’s just as likely to dig out a dress from the back of her closet and re-accessorize it as she is to buy a new outfit.
As far as designers, “I love Carmen Marc Valvo,” she says—the designer whose dress she’s wearing. “I’ve worn his clothes for 10 years now and he speaks to me!”
What the judges said about Cynthia:
“She looks classic and timeless.”
