Chef and Restaurant Owner speaks to Hyde Park High School students

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BY TIA CAROL JONES

At the end of February, he paid it forward by speaking with students from Hyde Park Academy High School as part of the Obama Foundation Future Series.

“I thought this would be a good way to give back and give back in the way I was taught as well. I had people speak to me so I wanted to actually make sure I was doing the same thing for the next generation, so they could see representation of people in the food industry who had a background similar to theirs,” Reed said.

The Future Series is a collaboration between the Hyde Park Academy High School and the Obama Foundation. It began in 2022, after First Lady Michelle Obama spoke with students from the school about their career aspirations. The students are chosen to attend speaking engagements based on their career goals. Past speakers include Craig Robinson, Executive Director of the National Association of Basketball Coaches; Valarie Jarrett, Obama Foundation CEO; John Rogers, Ariel Investment Founder; Myles Gage, Founder of Rapunzl; Britney Robbins, Founder of The Gray Matter Experience; Kim Godwin, ABC News President; and Juan Delgado, Chancellor of City Colleges of Chicago.

Reed opened Luella’s Southern Kitchen in 2015. He named it after his great grandmother who lived in Morgan City, Miss., and moved to Chicago. The restaurant serves food that Reed grew up eating and provides a nostalgic ambiance, along with the food. He relives his childhood memories through the restaurant and shares it with the Lincoln Square community and patrons who come to the restaurant.

Growing up, Reed used to watch Cajun Chef Justin Wilson on Channel 11. He chose Culinary Arts at Dunbar as his vocation. Cooking was something he enjoyed, but at the time, in high school, he wasn’t considering it for his career.

Reed enjoyed the experience with the high school students discussing culinary arts and owning his restaurants. He thought the students were sharp and they asked him questions that made him think. He has been interviewed a lot since Luella’s opened eight years ago. The students asked thorough provoking questions about his best memories, and the difference between his brand and the restaurant’s brand. “I enjoyed the dialogue, I enjoyed the back-and-forth with them. It was almost like a working lunch. We fed them lunch and they asked questions. I was able to introduce them to myself and a little story about my great grandmother. In turn, I learned they were pretty bright students,” Reed said.

Luella’s Southern Kitchen is located at 4609 N. Lincoln Ave. For more information about Luella’s Southern Kitchen, visit www.luellassouthernkitchen.com.

SBA Offers Disaster Assistance to Businesses and Residents of Illinois Affected by the Jan. 25 Apartment Building Fire in Chicago

WASHINGTON – Illinois businesses and residents affected by the Harper Square Cooperative apartment building fire in the Kenwood area of Chicago on Jan. 25 are eligible to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman announced today.

Administrator Guzman made the loans available in response to a letter from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker dated Feb. 14, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. Businesses and residents in the declared area can now apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA. The declaration covers Cook County and the adjacent counties of DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will in Illinois; and Lake in Indiana.

“The SBA is strongly committed to providing the people of Illinois with the most effective and customer-focused response possible to assist businesses of all sizes, homeowners and renters with federal disaster loans,” said Guzman. “Getting businesses and communities up and running after a disaster is our highest priority at SBA.”

To assist businesses and residents affected by the disaster, the SBA will open a Disaster Loan Outreach Center (DLOC) at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21 in Chicago: Disaster Loan Outreach Center Cook County Harper Square Cooperative (Club House) 4850 S. Lake Park Ave.

Chicago, IL 60615

Opening: Tuesday, Feb. 21, 11 a.m. to 6 pm.

Hours: Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Closed: Sunday Permanently Closes: Friday, March 10 at 4 p.m.

Customer Service Representatives will be available at the DLOC to answer questions about the disaster loan program and help individuals complete their applications. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the SBA has established protocols to help protect the health and safety of the public. All visitors to the DLOC are encouraged to wear a face mask.

“Businesses and private nonprofit organizations may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace disaster-damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets,” said SBA’s Illinois District Director Robert Steiner.

For small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations, the SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster.

Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance is available regardless of whether the business suffered any physical prop-

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