Ursula Schroeder: Benefiting Others Through Her Boutique

Welcome to our regular weekly feature, Wonderful Wednesday. Every Wednesday, Naperville Patch will introduce you to someone doing great things in the community. Do you know someone who deserves the spotlight? Contact Local Editor Mary Ann Lopez at maryl@patch.com. 

This week, we recognize a boutique owner who uses her business, whenever possible, to help raise funds for nonprofit organizations. This week Jody Bender has nominated Ursula Schroeder, owner of for the honor because in Bender’s words, "Ursula has a fun shop and is always doing events for nonprofits." Recently Schroeder hosted a night of fashion benefitting at .

Ursula Schroeder really gets to know the women who stop in and shop at her boutique Lillians of Naperville. She has owned the franchise, which specializes in boutique items sold at non-boutiquey prices, for more than two years. She began hosting fundraisers when she saw an opportunity to help a customer in more ways than finding her the perfect size. 

The shop has offered “Diva Nights” to clients where a group of women enjoys a private party while they get to shop. Schroeder provides some appetizers and the venue for the women to enjoy a fun night of shopping. Normally the party's hostess earns a percentage from the sales that are generated.

But, when a customer mentioned that she was a breast cancer survivor who was on a team and raising money for breast cancer research, Schroeder said things started to click. Rather than giving a percentage of funds to the party hostess, she thought: “why don’t I write a check” to the charity.

“When I first started doing it, I felt good but bad at the same time,” she said, adding that she felt bad that early on she was only able to donate $100 to some of the charities she tried to help. “The more events we did, and the more we gave, the more my heart was full. The way these women were so gracious it made my heart feel so fabulous.”

Schroeder realized that those she was helping didn’t mind how much money she was able to raise, they were just pleased to have the donations, she said.

Along with owning and managing Lillians, Schroeder also works as an office manager at an alarm company in Bensenville. She is mom to an 11-year-old, Savannah, who she said she hopes is proud of her for the work she does. Before opening Lillians, Schroeder said she would help at her church and with food drives, but she became more involved in helping the community once she opened her store.

The business helped her to step outside of her comfort zone, into a new zone with a new circle of friends and connections, she said. 

“When I got into this business I met so many more people and I began to think about all the ways that I could help them,” she said. “Meeting all of these women who are involved in these organizations you just want to help.”

Recently she hosted an event outside of her business at BlackFinn, which raised funds for Loaves & Fishes. The “Fight Hunger with Style” event included some “Real Housewives” trivia, a fashion show along with drinks and appetizers. The event raised about $2,000, Schroeder said. A lot of time and planning went into the event, but Schroeder said she is always impressed with the response from the community. She said she had so many people who wanted to volunteer that she had to turn help away.

“I was amazed,” she said.

She plans to host larger fundraisers outside of the business on a quarterly basis and would like to benefit different organizations in the community, but for now she’s going to a take a break for the holidays and once they are over will sit down with her employees Mary Fran Greenberg and Pam Ford and figure out a plan.

“It just seems like there are so many good causes in Naperville and for me it just seems like a really good fit,” she said.

While she is grateful for being able to use her business to help others, she is also grateful for the women she has met through her boutique.

“Boy these women have your back no matter what, if you are having a bad day you can Facebook them or call them, but they are always there,” she said. “These women [many who are in business] just get it, they realize we can’t do everything. This group of women is always there to support me.”