While they mourn, leaders and staff at the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless are celebrating the life of Stephanie Hooker, a community leader, founding member of its Speakers Bureau, and a CCH Board member.
Stephanie died at home March 5. A long-time resident of Deborah’s Place on the West Side, Stephanie moved into a nearby apartment a year ago. CCH will celebrate Stephanie’s life with a memorial at our office on Monday, March 24 at 4 p.m., in the third floor conference room at 70 E. Lake Street.
“Stephanie was a leader at CCH who was involved for so long and in so many campaigns, that she became part of the fabric of our organization. We will miss her and her leadership,” said Policy Director Julie Dworkin.
“Stephanie really knew the issues that impact homelessness, and how to explain them to people,” Community Organizing Director Jim Field said. “Last week I was with her when she spoke to a group affiliated with Northwestern University. Stephanie told them about the time she spoke with Gov. Quinn about finally including affordable housing in the state’s capital budget. She said that moment changed her life forever.”
Stephanie helped launch the CCH Speakers Bureau in 2007, remaining an active member through the years. In seven years, Stephanie spoke to more than 4,500 people during engagements before school, civic and religious groups across the Chicago area.
“Stephanie was frank when she spoke about the years she coped with homelessness,” said Hannah Willage, the associate organizing director who founded and coordinates the Speakers Bureau.
“She talked about being homeless off and on for decades while she worked low-wage jobs in New York and Michigan. Stephanie also talked about staying at REST shelter in Uptown, and losing her bed in the lottery sometimes, so that she had to ride the train all night. She would explain that there was a time when she was one of those people who had to push her things around in a shopping cart. Her talks could be powerful.”
“Stephanie really enjoyed what she was doing,” said Charles Jenkins, another founding member of the Speakers Bureau. “She made sure she got her point across. It seems to me that she was in her element when she was talking to church groups, and she really enjoyed the talks at DOOR Chicago and Columbia College.
“Stephanie really was a no-nonsense, straight-to-the-point person, making sure that things run smoothly and fairly and in a timely fashion. If there were two minutes allotted to speak, then at a minute 59, she was giving you the high sign!” Charles said, chuckling.
About a decade ago, Stephanie secured a studio apartment through Deborah’s Place, a supportive housing program for low-income women. It changed her life. For one thing, after Stephanie met CCH organizer Dollie Brewer during outreach, she helped Dollie start a women’s activism group called She-Motion. Her work and friendship with Dollie led to Stephanie volunteering on CCH housing campaigns.
When CCH mobilized the Sweet Home Chicago Coalition in 2008, Stephanie was a reliable presence at rallies, neighborhood actions and City Council meetings, regularly representing CCH as a leader on the Sweet Home steering committee, which involved 12 organizations. At one point, on her own, Stephanie persuaded a Chicago Tribune reporter to undertake a prominent feature story about the housing campaign.
For her work on the Sweet Home Chicago campaign, CCH presented Stephanie with a leadership award that she treasured. In November 2010, Stephanie was asked to join the CCH Board of Directors with fellow Speakers Bureau member Vanessa Jackson. Stephanie made a point of making small annual donations to CCH, done so that her organization could report that it had financial support from every one of its board members.
“Stephanie was always very proud about her position as a board member of CCH,” said Statewide Organizer Jim Picchetti. “Whenever I would do a Speakers Bureau event with her or practice what she was going to say at an action, she would always remind me to make sure it said that she was a board member of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.”
Stephanie loved time spent with her Speakers Bureau colleagues, her daughter, and Deborah’s Place friends.
“Stephanie was so sweet with me the second time I was pregnant,” said Hannah. “She would always ask me, ‘How is our baby doing?’ or tell me, ‘I thought of some names for our baby.’ She loved movies. She spent a lot of time at the public library checking out movies. Stephanie adored her daughter. She loved cooking her daughter chitlins, and would always make her a special batch for Thanksgiving. She was always so happy about the gifts her daughter would give her.
“And Stephanie had the best laugh, loud and full of joy.”
– Anne Bowhay, Media