About 

Red Jacket Optional

On a crisp evening each October, over 600 of our most dedicated and fervent supporters step into a transformative space. The melodious voices that greet guests immediately set this event apart from the crowd. From a mood-setting cocktail hour into dinner, DJ mixes melt into live music as singers take the stage and enrapture their audience with world-class performances that deliver a world-changing message. More than $1 million will be pledged by the night’s end in support of programs that reach more than 4,800 Chicago youth.

Red Jacket Optional represents an explosive confluence of our city’s tastemakers, trendsetters, corporate leaders and entrepreneurs with its brightest young citizens whose voices compel us all to bridge divides and work toward a better future for Chicago and for the world.

chicago children's choir

Our mission is to inspire and change lives through music.

Founded as a single choir in Hyde Park at the height of the Civil Rights Movement in 1956, today we serve more than 4,800 youth who represent all 57 Chicago zip codes. Our founder, Reverend Christopher Moore, believed in using music to unite youth from diverse backgrounds. That simple yet powerful mission has grown exponentially, with programs in 85 city schools, 10 neighborhoods, a choir for boys with changing voices and the world-renowned Voice of Chicago. Under the leadership of President and Artistic Director Josephine Lee, Chicago Children’s Choir’s mission has been elevated to a world stage, using music to create global citizens and revolutionizing the youth choral arts.

Learn more at ccchoir.org/about

Our Honorees

RJO 2018 honors outgoing Board Chairman Bob Fealy and his wife Rose for their extraordinary commitment to CCC.

Read more in Event News »