Windy City Performing Arts Benefit

CHICAGO - April 15, 2013 - PRLog -- CHICAGO, IL - Windy City Performing Arts (WCPA), Chicago's oldest and premier LGBT choral arts organization will honor three Illinois legislators who have been instrumental in advancing marriage equality legislation in Illinois at a fundraising event at the Center on Halsted on Saturday, April 27, from 5 to 9 p.m. At the WCPA event, titled "Eat, Drink & Be Married: A Tribute to Marriage Equality in Illinois", WCPA will present Representative Greg Harris, Senator Heather Steans, and Representative Deb Mell with its Voice of Change Award. The event will also feature performances by WCPA's two choral ensembles--Windy City Gay Chorus and Aria--along with silent and live auctions, food by Hearty Boys Catering, and signature cocktails provided by Halsted Vodka, a new vodka that donates 15 percent of its profits to LGBT organizations. Tickets for the event are $40, and can be purchased online at windycitysings.org.

Heather Steans is an IL State Senator of the 7th District. She has represented Illinois Senate District 7 for four years.  She graduated from Princeton with a B.A. in Urban Studies and received her M.A. in public policy from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Steans’ professional career has focused on government finance, economic development and education reform. Senator Steans sponsored the bill supporting Civil Unions in Illinois, and is now supporting legislation for same-sex marriage.

Deb Mell is IL State representative in the 40th District. She is one of four openly LGBT (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT) members of the Illinois General Assembly (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois_General_Assembly). Mell served on former Mayor Richard M. Daley (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_M._Daley)'s Advisory Council for Human Relations and is active in numerous LGBT activist groups. She has received a National Organization for Women (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Organization_for_Women) award for her activism, as well as the Howard Brown Cornerstone Award for community excellence.

Greg Harris was elected to the Illinois General Assembly in 2006. Harris serves as State Representative for the 13th District, which includes parts of Uptown, Ravenswood, Lincoln Square, North Center, West Ridge and Bowmanville. Harris, who is openly living with HIV, is an openly gay elected official in the State of Illinois. He is Chairman of the Appropriation–Human Services Committee, and serves on the Insurance (Vice Chairman), Tourism and Conventions (Vice Chairman), and Environment and Restorative Justice Committees.

"Eat, Drink & Be Married: A Tribute to Marriage Equality in Illinois" takes place Saturday, April 27, 2013 from 5 to 9 p.m. at Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St. in Chicago. Event tickets are $40 and can be purchased online at windycitysings.org.

Windy City Performing Arts (WCPA) was incorporated in 1983 as an independent not-for-profit umbrella organization for Windy City Gay Chorus and Aria. Each ensemble in WCPA performs a variety of musical styles. The chorus is committed to musical excellence, and embedded in the spirit of every performance and outreach event is our mission statement:

Windy City Performing Arts celebrates diversity, honors creativity, and cultivates pride through the transformative power of music and the arts.