The Board of Directors
Devin Breen, President, CTO (he/him)
Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign. Founder and President of the CHIditarod Foundation. Co-Founder and past-President of Bold Urban Renaissance Network 501(c)(3). Co-founder and past-performer with the Pyrotechniq Fire Performance Troupe. Senior Software Engineer at Apple. He is dedicated to the betterment of life for all people on this planet, and focuses his energy improving his hometown of Chicago.
Leslie Anne Engel
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Syracuse University. Charter member, Past President, and Past Vice President of the Off The Street Club Junior Board, for which she created the Annual OTSC Halloween Candy Drive. Tutor for 10+ years for the Time to Read program. Past member of the Chicago Associate Board Presidents’ Council. After a decade as a freelance producer in TV and film, Leslie joined corporate America and works as a Director of Operations and Director of Project Management in advertising media. Her goals are to have fun while “doing a good thing all wrong”, be a positive influence on those around her, to serve bakes worthy of a Hollywood Handshake, and make sure everyone always has enough to eat.
Amy Bartlett Bashiti, Grant Program Director, (she/her)
Bachelor of Arts, Tulane University. Master of Urban Planning and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago. Amy raced in the first CHIditarod in 2006 as part of the Drinktown (RIP) team, and hasn’t stopped since, finally joining the Board in 2022. She is an affordable housing professional and is privileged to be able to travel across this beautiful state she now calls home and work directly with communities to make them better and more accessible through her work at the Illinois Housing Development Authority. Past Vice President of the Urban Planning and Policy Student Association and Social Chair of the CUPPA Alumni Association at UIC, she knows the value of a good party and its ability to raise money to help others. It’s taken twenty years, but this transplant from the South has finally taken CHIditarod’s unofficial motto to heart. There is no bad weather, only poor costume choices.
Shelly Howell, Secretary (she/her)
Bachelor of Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Emmy-award winning journalist who now creates digital content for a large Chicago-based non-profit. Animal lover and junk-food vegan. Her hobbies include coffee, live music, crafting the perfect cocktail and traveling.
Alysha Balog (she/her)
Bachelor Fine Arts – Graphic Design and Certificate in Arts Administration, Indiana University. Alysha began racing with her team Six Pack Attack in 2015 and quickly began championing the Chiditarod to her friends and peers ever since. She leveled-up in 2021 by helping with the grant reviewal process and then joining the board in 2022. Alysha is a design director that specializes in packaging design, which has cultivated a professional and personal relationship with food that helps motivate her passion for wanting food to be accessible to all. She can often be found supporting the arts all around Chicago or drinking a craft beer in a cozy dive-bar.
Liz Breen, Treasurer (she/her)
Interested in joining Chiditarod’s Foundation Board of Directors
The CHIditarod Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to provide funding for organizations working to alleviate food insecurity. A board member is a year round position that meets virtually every month. Time commitment to the Board is based on the role/position that you take on within the Board. Being a racer in the annual event is completely allowed if you are a board member. LEARN MORE