THE SWISS BENEVOLENT SOCIETY OF CHICAGO

A NON-PROFIT, PRIVATE FOUNDATION

The Swiss Benevolent Society of Chicago is a non-profit, private foundation, organized under section 501©(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Society was founded in 1872, shortly after the destructive Chicago fire, and was designed at first to help out members of the Swiss Community of Chicago to weather the hardships inflicted upon them by the fire.

SUPPORT ACTIVITIES

The initial funds grew through generous contributions and smart investment activities and the Society began to widen its scope of support. Projects included the financial support of Swiss community members hit by disasters, disability, or the inability to find work. In more recent times, the focus of the Society has turned towards the following lines of financial support:

• Monthly stipends to elderly or handicapped citizens of Swiss descent;
• Funding of senior member gatherings;
• Scholarship grants to students of Swiss descent, having permanent residence in the Greater Chicago area, the state of Illinois or parts of Wisconsin, awarded by annual competition;
• Support for summer language study at Concordia language villages;
• Funding assistance for special events of cultural and other nature directly related to our Swiss heritage or benefitting the Chicago area Swiss Community at large, as far as tax laws permit it.

Distributions of the Society are limited to the proceeds generated from its accruing funds. Detailed information on our activities and programs, past, present and future, can be found at the sites dedicated to each category listed above. For general questions on the Society, please contact the Society's president.