The Alliance to End Homelessness in Suburban Cook County is the coordinator of a federally mandated homeless count that occurs every other year. During this single night, over one hundred volunteers canvass the streets in groups of three or four and attempt to count every person living outside in suburban Cook.
This month, our Volunteer Spotlight section features a new staff member we'd like you to know. Since starting at Housing Forward last month, Etta has really hit the ground running. With a leadership position open on the volunteer program team, the learning curve has been steep, but she’s proving to be up for it.
Do you enjoy holiday shopping and need more names on your recipient list? We still have many names of people in need of gifts---our supportive housing and shelter clients--waiting to be paired with...
On Nov. 2, 1998 Lynda Schueler began working at Tri-Village PADS (now Housing Forward) as manager of Volunteer Services. She joined six other employees working in two rooms of a church basement in Maywood. Much of the work in those days was done by a small, hardy band of volunteers and a determined board of trustees (most often the same people) concerned about a growing population experiencing homelessness in the area. Nothing has been the same around here ever since.
The Associate Board of Housing Forward hosted Charity Royale, a successful casino-themed fundraising event on October 20th at South Branch Chicago. More than one hundred attendees raised over $18,000 while mingling, enjoying appetizers and cocktails, and using “faux dough” to try their luck wagering on various games of chance.
Adar is finally stably housed after living under bridges, in stranger's cars, on sidewalks, in doorways, in woods and at times couch surfing for almost 3 years. After being homelessness once before, Adar had made a promise to himself to stay on the straight and narrow to avoid being in that position ever again. He had a steady job as massage therapist, a car and an apartment, but after a break-up depression hit. He wanted be a "normal guy” but things quickly fell apart.
This past week, five Supportive Housing clients, and members of Housing Forward staff traveled south to Springfield for the Supportive Housing Providers Association (SHPA) 2018 Annual Meeting & Fall Conference.
During the month of November, every Giving Bag sold at the Fresh Thyme located at: 7501 North Ave., River Forest will generate an automatic $1 donation to support PADS Shelter, unless otherwise...
Lynda Schueler, Executive Director of Housing Forward, said that by mid-November her staff will be turning some homeless people away from their shelters. There is a seasonal dynamic. "Homelessness is a 365-day-a-year problem," she explained, "but the numbers seeking our services do tend to dip in summer. Some people prefer to sleep outside." Housing Forward made a decision 27 years ago to invest their limited resources in an emergency shelter that would be open mid-September to mid-May.
Armando Smith, Director of Operations & Client Services, traveled to Bloomington, Illinois for the 2018 Housing Matters! Conference, entitled “Leading the Way ” October 25-26. He joins nearly 300...
