Meet Laura Yepez - 1st Ward Community Leader & Advocate
Laura’s life experiences and values have shaped her into a true community advocate.
Committed to our 1st Ward Community:
Laura’s Vision for Positive Change
Laura Yepez is an MBE/WBE local business owner with deep ties to the community. She owns and operates a Bed & Breakfast in the heart of Wicker Park, and previously owned the Alliance Bakery. She currently serves on the board of the Wicker Park Bucktown Chamber of Commerce, is an active member of the West Town Chamber of Commerce, and serves as President of the Chicago Bed and Breakfast Association. Laura also has twenty years of advertising experience working on blue chip accounts at Publicis and is currently VP of Operations for a start-up digital media company.
Laura has a lifelong commitment to community. After graduating from a local public high school, she attended Brown University and graduated with a degree in Urban Studies. Laura interned in Washington DC with a community organization dedicated to educational advancement of inner-city youth. After graduation, she worked in the Illinois General Assembly supporting a Latina representative and leading media production for house members.
Laura has lived in the 1st Ward since 1998 and has four teenagers, each attending a different CPS high school. Laura currently serves as a parent representative on the Lincoln Park High School LSC.
Laura is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and grew up in a Union household. She is a lifelong Democrat who will fight for women’s reproductive rights, protection of LGBTQ+ rights, sustainable wages for working families, and community policing efforts to keep our neighborhoods safe.
Advocate For Public Education
Laura is a parent rep on the Lincoln Park High School Local School Council, and is a hard working mom of four teenagers, each attending a CPS high school. Laura is an advocate for public education and resources for diverse learners.
Advocate For Local Businesses
Laura is a small business owner and active member on all three 1st Ward Chamber of Commerce – Wicker Park, Bucktown, West Town, Logan Square and Noble Square. Small businesses are essential to thriving communities. With her work on the chambers as well as hosting guests at the Wicker Park Inn and running a successful operation, Laura has dedicated her career supporting local, independently owned businesses.
