A team of Chicago Police Department members will climb 105 flights of stairs inside Willis Tower on November 8, honoring a fallen officer and his critically wounded partner during this year's SkyRise Chicago benefit. The department says the climb is dedicated to Officer John G. Bartholomew, who was killed in the line of duty, and Officer Nelson Crespo, who survived the same shooting and has spent months recovering at the hospital the event supports.
According to Chicago Police
, the officers are climbing “in honor of fallen Officer John G. Bartholomew and his partner, Officer Nelson Crespo.” The benefit itself, SkyRise Chicago, raises money for Shirley Ryan AbilityLab and will run from 7 a.m. to noon on Sunday, November 8, according to
willistower.com
. Organizers note that in-person, virtual and handcycling participants will all climb — or cycle the equivalent of — the same 105 flights, per the same event listing.
A Fallen Officer and His Surviving Partner
Bartholomew was fatally shot at Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital in Lincoln Square, an attack that also left his partner, Crespo, critically wounded, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Bartholomew had served with the Chicago Police Department for ten years at the time of his death, the paper reported. Crespo has since been recovering at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, the same rehabilitation hospital the SkyRise Chicago stair climb exists to support.
The Sun-Times reported this month that Crespo made his first public appearance since the shooting, noting that he “was critically wounded in a shooting that took the life of his partner John Bartholomew.” That detail, paired with the fact that Crespo has been recovering at the same facility benefiting from the climb, gives this year's event a direct and personal connection for the department's participating officers.
An 18-Year Tradition at Willis Tower
SkyRise Chicago returns for its 18th year in 2026, according to sralab.org, continuing a long-running tradition of turning Willis Tower's stairwells into a fundraising gauntlet for the rehabilitation hospital. Last year's edition, the 17th annual climb, drew more than 2,000 participants who together climbed 2,149 stairs to reach the Willis Tower Skydeck, according to ABC7 Chicago. That 2025 event raised more than $1 million for Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, the station reported.
Chicago Police have participated in the climb before; ABC7 noted that Sergeant Mike Dineen had scaled Willis Tower 17 times by last year's event. No fundraising goal or total has been announced for the 2026 climb, and the department has not said how many officers will take part this time.
Reporting Tips and Contact Information
Chicago Police has noted that its social media feed is not an emergency response line and directs anyone with an emergency to call 911. The department also accepts anonymous tips through its usual channels for residents with information related to its cases.
