Polk Bros. Foundation Vice President of Programs Evette Cardona to retire in May

Evette Cardona, longtime Polk Bros. Foundation Vice President of Programs and esteemed activist and organizer for LGBTQ+ rights, has announced she will retire at the end of May 2025.

Evette first joined Polk Bros. Foundation in 1997 as a program intern from the University of Chicago Crown School of Social Work, Policy and Practice launching what would become a nearly three-decade career dedicated to strengthening Chicago’s communities and improving the philanthropic sector. Through her leadership, deep commitment to justice, and ability to bring people together, she has played a pivotal role in guiding the Foundation’s grantmaking and influencing broader efforts to build a more just and equitable city.

When she first came to the Foundation, Evette was keen to learn about grantmaking before pursuing a career in social work. When her eight-month internship was complete, however, she accepted an invitation to stay on with the Foundation full time as a Program Officer and has since played a vital role in shaping and guiding the Foundation’s grantmaking.

“Evette’s leadership, deep community roots, and unwavering commitment to racial equity have strengthened both our Foundation and Chicago,” said Polk Bros. Foundation CEO Gillian Darlow. “As a social worker, advocate, and funder, she has brought invaluable insight to our grantmaking, ensuring it is informed by those most proximate to inequity and injustice. I will deeply miss Evette as a colleague and thought partner, and I know our entire organization — and the broader philanthropic and nonprofit sectors — will long feel the impact of her partnership and insights.”

As a Program Officer, Evette’s grantmaking was strongly informed by her ongoing work as a community organizer, activist, and board member — just as her role at the Foundation strengthened her advocacy and leadership beyond it. Also, having started as an intern herself, she later mentored and supervised interns, passing on insights she had gained through both her community work and her time at the Foundation, reinforcing the interconnectedness of philanthropy and grassroots efforts.

In September 2012, Evette was promoted to Vice President of Programs and began overseeing the Foundation’s grantmaking and grantmaking recommendations to the board of directors. During her tenure as Vice President, the Foundation awarded more than 4,000 grants and supported just over 800 nonprofit partners — totaling an estimated $316 million dollars in grantmaking.

Evette’s dedication to collaboration and advocacy has had a lasting impact across Chicago’s nonprofit, philanthropic and public sectors. Her leadership has spanned numerous organizations and initiatives, demonstrating her commitment to equity, inclusion and community-driven change. As an adjunct instructor at the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, she has helped shape the next generation of philanthropic leaders. She co-founded Women of All Colors and Cultures Together, Amigas Latinas to create supportive spaces for Latina lesbian, bisexual, and questioning women and was a founding board member of the Center on Halsted. Evette has played a pivotal role in philanthropic networks, serving on the steering committees of Chicago Latines in Philanthropy and the Illinois Immigration Funders Collaborative, as former chair and secretary of the board of Forefront, former chair of the national Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues, and former co-chair of Chicago Foundation for Women’s Lesbian Leadership Council. Her other board and advisory roles have extended to organizations such as the Lesbian Community Cancer Project,  the Institute for the Study of Women and Gender in the Arts and Media at Columbia College, and Chicago History Museum’s Out at CHM planning committee. Through these contributions, Evette has had a lasting impact on systems, programs and partnerships that continue to strengthen Chicago’s communities.

Evette has also been honored with numerous awards for her community and professional work including:

• Crossroads Fund Lynda J. Tipton Memorial Award for Social Justice Honoree (April 2025)
• Mujeres Latines en Accion’s Maria T. Mangual Leadership Award and the Maria “Maruca” Martinez Award
• Association of Fundraising Professionals Chicago’s Professional Grantor Award
• Puerto Rican Arts Alliance’s second Felisa Rincon de Gautier Distinguished Woman Award
• The National Museum of Mexican Art’s Sor Juana Award
• The Center on Halsted’s Human First Award
• ACLU/Chicago’s John R. Hammel Award
• Illinois Women’s Bar Association’s Women with Vision Award
• The University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice’s Elizabeth Butler Award For Outstanding Professional Success And Achievement In Social Work
• University of Chicago’s Leadership in Diversity Alumni Award
• Latinos Progresando Leadership Award
• The Illinois Association of Hispanic State Employees Leadership Award
• The Near Northwest Neighborhood Network Leadership Award
• The Coalition of African, Arab, Asian, European, Latino Immigrants of Illinois Leadership Award
• Literacy Powerline Leadership Award
• The Association of Latino Men For Action Leadership Award
• Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame 2002 Inductee

Before joining the Foundation, Evette worked with adolescent mothers and their children at Christopher House as the program coordinator, overseeing peer support groups, training group facilitators, and developing outreach and evaluation materials. She was also a teaching artist for Urban Gateways, grades K-12, and did freelance photography/audio-visual work. Evette is a graduate of the University of Chicago’s Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice and holds a BA in Art and Design from University of Illinois at Chicago.

“Serving Chicago’s communities through my work at the Foundation has been the greatest honor of my career,” said Evette. “I will forever be grateful to Sandy Guthman and Nikki Stein for hiring me and giving me the opportunity and privilege to work alongside dedicated colleagues and visionary grantee partners who are creating lasting change in our city. As I prepare for my next life chapter, I am filled with gratitude for the partnerships, lessons, and collective impact we have built together. I look forward to seeing the Foundation’s work continue to evolve toward the vision of a more racially just and equitable Chicago.”

Upon Evette’s retirement at the end of May 2025, Anna Miran Lee will step into the role of Vice President of Programs. Read more about Anna’s transition.