Preservation Forward

Preservation Forward is Landmarks Illinois’ main fundraiser, responsible for raising nearly half of the organization’s annual budget. The event brings together professionals engaged in community development, who gather for a shared mission: to support and uplift Landmarks Illinois’ efforts to help people save places across the state. Since 2023, the event has been hosted at the Old Post Office, which allows the ESP Presents team to creatively design unique floorplans to accommodate 800 guests. The event involves seamlessly transitioning guests between cocktails, a seated program with a paddle raise and awards ceremony, and an after-party. Highlights include flown LED walls above center stage to ensure that program content is visible to audience members from any vantage point, and commissioning custom light-up lanterns in the shape of buildings to guide guests from one space to the next.