Devin Breen

Man of Action.

Senior software engineer. Founder & president of a Chicago hunger nonprofit that has raised $1.23M+. Public speaker on the plenary stage at Burning Man and elsewhere. Consultant for community nonprofits, 501c3 formation, and municipal partnerships. Co-founder of a troupe of urban fire ninjas.

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Four pillars

I am a multi- hyphenate

Pick a thread and pull. Each of these is its own years-long story, but they share the same operating principle: figure out what needs to happen, then make it happen.

01 · Engineering

Senior software engineer at a major tech company.

Two decades of shipping. Most recently a senior engineer at one of the most valuable companies on Earth. Earlier: full-stack web, hardware interfaces, internal platforms, and a long tail of side projects that taught me more than any of the day jobs.

02 · Nonprofit

Founder of a $1.23M+ Chicago hunger nonprofit.

The CHIditarod is Chicago's beloved shopping-cart race that has raised more than $1.23M+ for local hunger relief since 2006. I founded it. I'm still its president. It taught me how to scale a volunteer institution.

03 · Speaking

Plenary stages, leadership rooms, and creative mornings.

Plenary speaker at the Burning Man Global Leadership Conference. On stage at Creative Mornings Chicago. A regular voice at CHIditarod events and beyond. I talk about leadership, civic experiments, and why some volunteer groups thrive.

04 · Consulting

501c3 formation, municipal partnerships, founder-coaching.

I help new community organizations get incorporated, get their tax exemption, navigate city hall, and find their first hundred volunteers. I'm cheaper than a lawyer and faster than a board retreat.

05 · Art

Fire and film.

Two crafts, one hand. Twenty years on fire with Pyrotechniq and 500+ shows. An award-winning short film. A decade of making things in public.

Selected highlights

A short list of moments

2026
Senior Software Engineer at Apple

Eight years in Apple Services. Shipping tools you use every day without seeing them.
2025
CHIditarod crosses $1M raised

Nineteen years in, the cart race becomes a million-dollar food bank.
2016
Plenary speaker, Burning Man Global Leadership Conference

San Francisco. On scaling a volunteer institution to 1,000+ active participants.
2014
Creative Mornings Chicago

On stage at the city's monthly creative ritual.
2006
Founded the CHIditarod

A shopping-cart race that became Chicago's most-loved hunger fundraiser.
2006
Co-founded Pyrotechniq

Five friends, one fire troupe — grown into a ten-member ensemble of choreographed pyrotechnic spectacle.

See the full résumé The CHIditarod story