54th Annual Park Ridge Men's Prayer Breakfast set for April 6

Mark Soderquist, administrative pastor of Westlawn Gospel Chapel on the west side of Chicago, will be the speaker at the 54th Annual Park Ridge Men’s Prayer Breakfast Saturday, April 6, at 7:30 a.m. at the Park Ridge Country Club. Tickets at $30 per person are available at https://www.parkridgemensprayerbreakfast.org/ or by mailing a check made payable to Park Ridge Men's Prayer Breakfast, to PO Box 249, Park Ridge, IL. 60068. Seating is limited.

As executive director of Urban & Ethnic Ministries, an organization he founded under the umbrella of International Teams, for more than 20 years, Soderquist led mobilizing and training of teams to live in underserved urban neighborhoods and partner with existing local churches. After beginning in Chicago, teams were developed in six other major cities in the United States, partnering with African-American, Latino, and Asian churches.

His international and urban experience has led to speaking and consulting about race, diversity, justice, poverty, economic development and the church’s role in the context of the city. He also serves on several non-profit boards, including president of Westlawn Youth Network, and president of the Soderquist Family Foundation.

A 1980 graduate of Taylor University with a degree in business systems, he also holds a master’s degree in Intercultural Studies from Wheaton College. After employment at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, he worked with Operation Mobilization in England and on the Indian sub-continent for five years.

Sponsored by a voluntary committee of laymen who have formally joined together to plan the event each year, Park Ridge Men’s Prayer Breakfast is one of the longest running local prayers breakfasts in America. “Through the event, we are seeking to create a space around the preciousness of God at work in the lives of ordinary people like us,” said Mark Hendee, who is chairing the event this year. For more information, call Hendee at 312-593-1896.