CHICAGO — Thanks to a new partnership between Virgin Hotels Chicago and Donda's House Inc., young adults in the organization's fashion and music production program will host a photo shoot at the Downtown hotel next month.
Donda’s House Inc. is a local nonprofit that supports young aspiring artists in Chicago. It was started — and named — in honor of Kanye West's late mother, Donda West, a longtime educator who died in 2007.
The partnership with the hotel chain will give Donda's House participants another venue option to host their events, said spokeswoman Kelsey Riley. Donda's House has other partners who offer their locations for events.
(PRO)ject US is a program that trains young adults 13-23 in fashion design, music production and new media journalism. Members will host their photo shoot April 9 to officially launch the partnership. They'll coordinate most of it on their own with adult supervision.
"Having that opportunity to have events Downtown at a premier landmark, it's really exciting to have that space open and for our youth to have access to it," Riley said.
Donnie Smith, Donda's House executive director, said many of the organization's values such as "teamwork, passion and creativity" align with Virgin Hotels'.
“The Virgin brand epitomizes entrepreneurship and success, and our hope is that through this partnership, our students are both empowered and inspired," she said in a news release.
The partnership will offer volunteer opportunities for Virgin employees, and they will host notable guests for Donda's House.
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