Nancy Shaffer, founder and C.E.O. of Washington, D.C.-based Bravo! Events by Design, produced the event and said that this year's 350 guests outnumbered last year's crowd by nearly 100. Tom Nelson, C.O.O. of AARP, started the evening by thanking everyone for coming out in spite of the concurrent presidential debate. “Tonight is essentially the Emmys, the Grammys, and even the presidential debate, all rolled into one,” he said.

Maggie Daley returned as this year’s honorary chair (she also chaired the Museum of Science and Industry's Columbian Ball), while Judy Fitzgerald of Macquarie Real Estate and Joe Silich of Morgan Stanley served as co-chairs of the shopping event, fashion show, and cocktail party. Eight Unicef executive committee members and a host committee of 35 began planning the benefit in March, and an additional 62 volunteers helped out the night of the fund-raiser.

Though Hicks said that the state of the economy made finding sponsors "a little more challenging" than usual this year, the event ultimately landed principal sponsorships from companies such as Allstate, BP, and United Airlines. "What helped the most [with attracting sponsors] is who the co-chairs were," Hicks said. "[Our co-chairs] are well-known in the community and the city, and their involvement made people want to be a part of this event." (This year's co-chairs included Max and Jim Farrell and Mayor Richard Daley and his wife, Maggie.)

And throughout the cocktail reception, fashion show, and after-party, there was no question about who those sponsors were. Just outside the entrance to a tent fontning Millennium Park's Chase Promenade, Fall Out Boy bassist and Fresh Faces host Pete Wentz conducted interviews and posed for photos in front of a step-and-repeat splashed with T-Mobile and BlackBerry logos.

Mayor Daley served as the chair of the host committee, which included a roster of nationally recognized culinary experts, fine-dining chefs, and sommeliers. "Great restaurants, great chefs, and great nightclubs are all a part of being a global city," Daley said at the kickoff reception. "We are trying to highlight Chicago and our culinary industry, which is one of the best in the world and getting better every day."

Italian fixtures such as terrazzo floors, Venetian plaster walls, and Murano glass chandeliers spruce up the space. The marble that tops the 1930s Art Deco-style bar is also Italian.

Here's why you're reading about this here: The salon hosts private events, dubbed "Blo.bashes," that accommodate as many as 40 guests, though salon owners say it's easier to work with groups of 20 to 25 if every guest wants a service within an event's usual two-and-a-half hour time frame. 

Onsite catering and banquet staff can prepare everything from breakfast to multi-course dinners and bar service; thematic meeting-break snacks are also on offer. The "Movie Time" package, for example, comprises stations devoted to nachos, caramel popcorn, chocolate-covered raisins, and Milk Duds. The resort's three restaurants include Paisanos pizza and Woodland Lounge, which features local produce and a 90-bottle wine list.

Catering: "Limelight is fantastic. For Galapalooza this year they came up with the idea to have dim sum carts, not the typical Chinese dim sum, but fun small plates that people could just take off a cart as they rolled by. They always come with something new, and never have a cookie-cutter menu."

Decor: "Tom Kehoe [of Kehoe Designs] is the best in the city. Every year we have a themed garden party, and he always comes up with amazing ways to communicate and deliver a theme. He did a Japanese garden party for us one year, and this year we had a 1933 World’s Fair theme. He did Art Deco arrangements for us and even found historic postcards from the fair to incorporate into the centerpieces."

Catering: "One of the things I really like about Food for Thought is that they use unique ingredients and creative cuisine presentations. Their creative flourishes and modern tastes are amazing and leave an impact on your guests. We’re using Blue Plate Catering for Fresh Faces. They are an industry staple. They’re a quality caterer with a wonderful reputation and when you use them, you know your event will be a success. Another caterer that is on my radar is Greg Christian Catering. He positions himself as a conscious caterer and uses clean, environment-friendly ingredients and eco-practices."

The alleged unpreparedness—and more directly, 89-degree heat—caused one fatality among the runners, and 300 were taken to the hospital or medical tents. Ultimately, organizers canceled the event mid-race in an unprecedented move. So what's on tap for this year's marathon on Sunday?

Crain's lists banks and financial service firms as "out of the running" (pun presumably not intended) for sponsorship due to the current financial crisis. The airline and auto manufactuing industries are also suffering and carefully re-examining where they direct marketing funds, which has resulted in a tougher climate for athletic events looking to score corporate partners.

In a partnership between the Chicago Department of Aviation and the Chicago Office of Tourism, "Chicago Fashion in the Airport" will feature several fashion shows that move to different terminals throughout the day while promoting the work of local designers. The on-site fashion exhibition will feature clothing displays and house a "fashion concierge," an information desk where visitors can inquire about Chicago’s shopping scene through October 10.