2011 Best of Illinois

The 2011 Best of Illinois honored the Chicago Cubs and the Ricketts family and included a special tribute to Ron Santo. This inspiring event raised nearly $700,000!

The double-header event took place on Thursday, May 19th at Wrigley Field. The day began with a Little Sluggers family event at 2 p.m. Kids and their parents experienced guided tours of Wrigley Field, which was kicked off by Dave Kaplan from WGN, JDRF Illinois Executive Director Patrick Reedy, and honoree Tom Ricketts.

The evening portion of the event began at 5:30 p.m. and guests enjoyed dinner and behind-the-scenes access to Wrigley Field. “The Friendly Confines” was open for guests to explore – including walking on the field, touring the Clubhouses, dugouts, media booth, and batting cages.

Emcee, David Eanet from WGN, welcomed guests as they moved into the stadium seats and began the program by introducing John Vincent, who sang the “Star-Spangled Banner.” The night quickly got exciting with the live auction, which included a trip to the Discover Orange Bowl that sold for $12,000!

After the auction, Billy Corgan, front man for the Smashing Pumpkins, sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” accompanied by a group of children with type 1 diabetes or who have loved ones with diabetes.

Event chair, John McDonough, presented Tom Ricketts with the Jim Tyree Best of Illinois Award, which was recently renamed in memory of Jim Tyree, an outstanding champion for the city of Chicago and the JDRF community.

Following the award presentation, the Fund A Cure program began with moving speeches from Kady Helme and Glen Tullman, followed by a tribute to Ron Santo on third base. Flowers were placed on third base and ten JDRF Illinois volunteers each added a flower to the arrangement before embracing Ron Santo, Jr. A moment of silence was held in honor of Ron before his daughter, Linda Santo Brown, spoke about carrying on her father’s legacy for finding a cure for type 1 diabetes.

This year’s Fund A Cure program raised nearly $365,000, which will benefit research in the area of complications. At the request of the Chicago Cubs and the Ricketts family, the funds will be named in honor of Ron Santo.

Thanks to all of our incredibly generous donors and participants for making this a special event for the Chicago Cubs, the Ricketts family, the Santo family, and the JDRF Illinois Chapter!

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