Our Stories

Improve the Present

The recent earthquake in Haiti impacted our families in very different ways.  One of the children in our program, Schneider, was in Port at the time of the quake and was struck by falling block. He visited the doctor and was simply sent home with antibiotics.  During a visit from a Children’s Place International team member they noticed that Schneider’s injury was not healing.  

The team mobilized to help determine appropriate treatment for the young boy.  Thanks to a photo of his x-ray, the internet and the help of our medical director in Chicago, Schneider was started on a different course of antibiotics to treat his infection without needing to travel hours to a different medical center.

The team in Haiti had to visit 10 different pharmacies in Gonaives to find 2/3 of the treatment. The remaining doses were gathered by the Children’s Place International team in Cape Haitian.  It was eye opening to see one of the scary realities facing Haitians, as already scarce medical resources are stretched even thinner and basic medications, like penicillin, become more and more difficult to find.

When the team visited Schneider a couple of weeks after starting him on the new treatment he was already back in school and doing much better.  Children’s Place International also worked to move Schneider’s family to a new home.  After the quake they had been sleeping under sheets in a family member’s back yard. 

The ripple effects of the earthquake are seemingly endless. As the weeks and months go by Children’s Place International will continue to work with our team members in Haiti and focus on meeting the needs of the children like Schneider and their families.

Secure the Future

Casandra is 30-years old living in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood with her husband, two children, and mother who is suffering from Alzheimer’s.  Her oldest daughter Elena is four and her baby girl Lucita is just shy of one.  Casandra is HIV positive.

Not long ago Casandra’s family lived a life of isolation and misfortune.  She struggled each day to keep her family together, with no support for her health or her children’s futures. That all changed when Casandra learned about an organization providing free early childhood education for families dealing with HIV. 

Casandra thought that if she was able to enroll Elena in school it would free her up to better care for her newborn as well as her mother’s failing health.  Upon entering The Children's Place Association, Casandra realized it was much more than a school or a building.  It was the life raft her family desperately needed…providing safety, security and hope. 

The staff immediately made her feel comfortable, offering advice and encouraging her to ask questions. With both children well cared for at the center, Casandra has found the time to begin applying for schools so she can go back to college and complete her degree.

The Children's Place Association provides much more than an education for Elena and Lucita, it is helping this family break the cycle of poverty and adversity which has plagued them for generations. It has given them a new start.