Blog Archives - Chicago Coalition for the Homeless

Almost $62,000 raised, thanks to your support this Giving Tuesday

Posted on December 1, 2021December 2, 2021 by Claire Sloss

Thanks to your generous support on Giving Tuesday, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless has raised almost $62,000. And our loyal donors that supplied $100,000 in matching funds have extended the time period to draw them down because they know life can get busy. So there is still time to help CCH reach this ambitious goal!

I know we can get there; we just need to donate, share, and share again. Donate here, and don’t forget to share to get the word out.

Please help us meet our $100,000 dollar-for-dollar match on Giving Tuesday

Posted on November 24, 2021November 29, 2021 by Claire Sloss

Tuesday, November 30 is Giving Tuesday, a global day of giving. All donations to the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $100,000 total by generous donors Marta Delgado & Sam Nandi, Muriel Quinn & Robert Pasin, and Dem Hopkins! Make a tax-deductible gift here.

For the third year in a row, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless received a Perfect 100 from Charity Navigator. Less than 1% of the thousands of charities nationwide earned perfect scores.

National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week: A reflection from Policy Intern Sana Sami

Posted on November 19, 2021November 19, 2021 by Claire Sloss

In recognition of National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, CCH is sharing reflections from people who work with us – interns, board, and associate board members – writing about what inspires their work.

Today’s essay is written by Policy Intern Sana Sami, a student at Loyola University School of Law graduating this spring.

My current goals and priorities in my work so far with CCH include educating myself through all the tools available to understand homelessness and the data associated with homelessness. I came to CCH with a preconceived notion of what homelessness actually entailed or what it looked like in our local Chicago communities and along the way I have learned that there is a lot more to understand. Since we all have a responsibility to work towards a better future for everyone in our communities, understanding that homelessness can take many forms is a key step in beginning to work towards real solutions.

National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week: A reflection from Associate Board Advocacy Chair Lindsay Welbers

Posted on November 19, 2021November 29, 2021 by Claire Sloss

In recognition of National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, CCH is sharing reflections from people who work with us – interns, board, and associate board members – writing about what inspires their work.

Today’s essay is written by Associate Board Advocacy Chair Lindsay Welbers.

Lindsay (left) volunteering in the CCH Riot Fest tent in 2019, pictured here with Community Organizer Bisma Shoukat

Part of the reason that I volunteer to support the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is because they don’t normally ask me for direction. CCH believes that the best people to understand homelessness, and the work that needs to be done to eliminate it, are people who understand that experience. That doesn’t include me, because I have never experienced life on the streets, in a shelter, or doubled-up with someone else. In working with CCH’s grassroots leaders, who do have that experience, I’ve learned a few things: Homelessness is not a moral failing on anyone except the society that allows it to exist, and the kinds of people who experience homelessness are more like me than I thought.

Remembering our mentor, organizer, life coach, and friend, Keith Freeman

Posted on November 18, 2021November 19, 2021 by Claire Sloss

With sad and heavy hearts, we share the news that our friend and colleague Senior Community Organizer Keith Freeman passed away on November 10 after a long illness.

By Grassroots Leaders at the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless

What words would we use to describe Keith? He was hard-working. He was relentless. He was compassionate, a listener and people person. He was an all-around nice guy. He was a GEM – someone that would always Go the Extra Mile. He not only saw the best in us, but he brought out the best in us.

Remembering Keith Freeman

Posted on November 18, 2021November 29, 2021 by Claire Sloss

Reflections from CCH Staff and Grassroots Leaders

“Keith met no strangers along his way! He saw his fellows as part of his world, community, and I believe, even himself. He had a warm greeting, generous and easy smile, and gave encouragement to most everyone he met. Keith treated each day as a gift, and treated the folks he knew, loved, organized with, and served as gifts themselves. Keith had a passion, a fire, I believe it was akin to a prophetic mission. He believed in the amazing, incredible, and immeasurable skills, talents, and gifts that were inside of people, and he worked along those he knew to help them step into the greatness they had within.”

– Wayne Richard, Director of Organizing

National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week: A reflection from Associate Board President Sara Szwankowski

Posted on November 17, 2021November 29, 2021 by Claire Sloss

In recognition of National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, CCH is sharing reflections from people who work with us – interns, board, and associate board members – writing about what inspires their work.

Today’s essay is written by Associate Board President Sara Szwankowski.

Sara (right) with Holly O’Hern, former AB President

Hi! I’m Sara Szwankowski, a member of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless Associate Board. I have been a member since 2016, serving a few roles during my time on the board. I began as a general member, moved into leadership roles with the exec committee, and am currently serving a second term as President of the Associate Board.

Daihana shares her story, resolved to help others

Posted on November 8, 2021November 17, 2021 by Claire Sloss

Daihana Estrada, a recent graduate from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, is no stranger to the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. In fact, she has been involved with CCH for more than a decade, as a scholarship winner, an intern, an advocate, and a member of the scholarship selection committee.

She also recently raised $1,890 for CCH through an online fundraiser, garnering support from 65 people from around the world.

Today, Daihana is a first-year attorney, working as a judicial law clerk in Minnesota. Hers is a journey more than 12 years in the making.

Secret talent? Participate in our Variety Show this December!

Posted on October 27, 2021November 17, 2021 by Claire Sloss

By Sophie Babcock, Associate Board Co-Vice President, Events

Do you have a talent or fun skill you’re proud of? Or know someone in your network who does? We are now recruiting participants for the CCH Associate Board’s second annual virtual Variety Show on Thursday, December 16 starting at 7 p.m.

Whether you are a singer, dancer, musician, comic, or just someone who loves to take on a fundraising challenge, we invite you to participate! Last year’s show featured talents ranging from pie-eating to juggling, so please don’t be shy and feel free to think outside of the box.

CCH welcomes Equal Justice Works Fellow Thomas Edwards

Posted on October 27, 2021October 27, 2021 by Claire Sloss

Thomas Edwards joined our staff last month as an Equal Justice Works Fellow in our Law Project. We asked Thomas to introduce himself.

Hi! My name is Thomas Edwards. I’m joining the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless (CCH) Law Project through a two-year Equal Justice Works Fellowship sponsored by Mondelez International. I’ll be working to develop a Family Law practice at CCH.