Dear Facing Forward Community,

Thank you for your support and for sharing your well-wishes for our residents and their families. I hope you are safe this weekend during the new stay at home order. As we continue to ensure the safety and health of our clients, staff, and community, we wanted to highlight that your collective efforts have helped hundreds of people find a home, newfound stability, and a hopeful outlook.

In these challenging times, we are reminded of the importance of caring for the most vulnerable people in our community, and we continue to work with our shelter partners and those who remain unhoused to provide resources and support. We are incredibly thankful that families and individuals in our program, like Angela’s family, have a safe home.

Angela and her grandson

A few years ago, fearing for her life, Angela was forced to flee a dangerous situation and leave her job, her family, her home, and all of her possessions behind. Over the next two years, Angela was separated from her family as she and her daughters struggled through homelessness and unemployment.

In 2016, Angela was connected with Facing Forward. Upon obtaining housing, she was able to establish income and access primary care to maintain her health. During her first year in our program, Angela also cared for her grandchildren while helping her adult daughters find housing and employment. One of her proudest achievements is restoring stability to her family.

Today, Angela is raising two of her grandchildren while her daughters focus on maintaining employment and completing their education. Angela’s top priority is to be present and supportive of her grandchildren.

Hundreds of others, like Angela, her daughters, and her grandchildren are in their homes at this very moment thanks to you.

Still, many of you have asked how you can continue to help, and we are grateful for your outreach and support. We are assessing our needs on an ongoing basis, and please feel free to reply to my email or contact our Director of Development, Marissa Trevisan at marissa@ffchicago.org, for updates.

As of right now, the following items would be most helpful to our clients:

• Hand soap
• Bleach
• Hand sanitizer
• Disinfectant sprays and wipes
• Toilet Paper

You may ship supplies to our headquarters at the following address:

Facing Forward to End Homelessness
642 N Kedzie Ave
Chicago, IL 60612

Additionally, any contributions made on our website will support our area of greatest need: https://www.ffchicago.org/donate/

I encourage you to stay up-to-date with us through our social media posts.

Please stay well, and thank you again.

Sincerely,
Rev. Douglas Bradshaw
Executive Director