Our First Spring Campaign is Here! Donate Today.
by Allison Yates
A few years after moving to Chicago, I realized something surprising: despite living here for three years, I didn’t fully feel connected to the city. One day, after reading The Battle of Lincoln Park, I laced up my sneakers and set out to explore the neighborhood and witness firsthand the 20th century transformation described in the book’s pages. That day became the blueprint for the signature events that would make up Read & Run Chicago. By reading books and exploring the city on foot, I began to understand Chicago in a deeper way, with all its joy, contradictions, untold history, and the people who make it the vibrant and diverse city it is today.
Today, Read & Run Chicago helps Chicagoans better understand themselves, each other, and the places they live through stories and movement. We believe Chicagoans deserve opportunities to explore neighborhoods beyond their own. We believe local bookstores, libraries, and small businesses are essential for communities to thrive. And we believe that all stories – whether in books, photography, oral history, or everyday lived experience – can help us become better neighbors and people.
Over the past five years, our community has grown into something bigger than runs. We’ve hosted book-inspired neighborhood tours, community book swaps, bookstore field trips, and mentorship opportunities that invite people to move their bodies, stay curious, and get in touch with parts of Chicago they may have never explored otherwise. We’ve also worked hard to keep these experiences accessible. We regularly subsidize tickets, host free events, and intentionally keep costs low because we never want price to be a barrier to participation.
This spring, as we celebrate five years of Read & Run Chicago, we’re raising $25,000 by June 26 to sustain and expand our free and affordable programming throughout the year.
Your gift will go directly towards:
Keeping community events free and accessible
Supporting local bookstores, libraries, and small businesses
Investing in future programming across more neighborhoods
Building a sustainable future for Read & Run Chicago
If Read & Run Chicago has introduced you to a new neighborhood, a new bookstore, a new friend, or a new story, we hope you’ll consider supporting this next chapter.
Chicago is full of stories worth discovering, and we hope you’ll keep exploring with us.