For some, the new year brings forth renewed energy with fresh aspirations and goals, while for others, it carries the weariness of a busy December and post-celebration blues, missing family and friends, or even a reminder of their daily struggles and need for support. Rates of depression and loneliness are at an all-time high following the New Year – particularly for those struggling with mental health issues. It’s no surprise that January is Mental Health Awareness Month – a reminder to tend to our mental well-being.
January is also a month celebrating the voice and light of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – a visionary who fought for systemic change, carving a pivotal pathway for social justice and equity. He invited us all to embrace the idea that we need to be active agents in improving our communities by strengthening our ties to one another while we address the critical issues that divide us.
This month, we celebrate all our staff, partners, volunteers, and supporters who dedicate themselves to supporting those who are struggling with mental health issues and trauma and those working towards a more equitable world where each person – regardless of background or zip code – has access to the care, safety, vital resources, and respect they each deserve.
As January comes to a close, we invite you to reflect upon what it means to commit to serving others and the impact you have when you engage with your community – directly or indirectly – when you heed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s call to action.
Read on to enjoy all that transpired this month and to learn what’s ahead.
Check out what’s happening at CPA.
- Wednesday, February 15th – Foster Parent Orientation
- Wednesday, February 22nd – Foster Parent Training
- SAVE THE DATE – Friday, June 2nd – Annual Gala 2023
CLICK HERE for more event details and volunteer opportunities.
Program Spotlight: Home-Based Support
Did you know that Children’s Place Association has a home-based program for children from birth to three years old, supporting parents as primary educators and children as active learners? We provide infant health checks, monthly interaction and education for families, bilingual staff, year-round programming, and welcome children with disabilities. And there is no cost for qualifying families. To learn more, email earlylearning@childrens-place.org.
Meet A CPA Team Member
Expressing Gratitude
We’re profoundly thankful to our Board of Directors and Junior Board for leading the charge during our year-end giving campaign and to all the individuals whose incredible generosity brought in nearly $36,500 to help meet our children’s and families’ most pressing needs this holiday season!
SAVE THE DATE – Gala 2023
Mark your calendars for Friday, June 2, for our annual celebration bringing Children’s Place supporters together. This year, we are thrilled to have our Annual Gala Committee and our Junior Board join forces in hosting a fun and innovative “twist” on our yearly event honoring our youth and families, leaders, volunteers, supporters, and more! Stay tuned for more details.
Want to get involved in helping us inspire others and build bridges within our community? Whether it’s volunteering to help us plan the gala or engaging donors and sponsors to help support our mission, we would love to have you join us! Email Shantal at salonso@childrens-place.org to learn more about how YOU can make an impact.
Tools for Safety & Education
Providing resources that ensure a child’s ability to get somewhere safely and the tools needed for an enriching educational experience is vital to our children and youth’s development and experience. Some current priority needs are car seats, art supplies, and STEM kits. Please read the “How You Can Help” section for more details.
Client Milestones – SMART Goals Achievements
Clients have an annual service plan that provides a wellness and independence support model through development domains. Each domain focuses on task goals that are accomplished through a SMART goal format, analyzed and supported monthly through case management support, and recognized quarterly for development and participation achievement. The SMART goal format provides clients with Specific, Measurable, Actionable Steps, and Time-Bound defined measures within the service plan which provides clear guidance with supportive curricular guidance.
Congratulations to our clients for achieving amazing milestones this month:
- Completing 13 consecutive weeks of therapy and working a lot on their manuscript.
- Attending a low-income housing open house, preparing to study for their drivers permit test, teaching their youngest son to write his name, celebrating their older son starting on the basketball team and for overall reading more books for their own relaxation.
- Passing their driver’s portion of the Illinois State Driver’s License test.
- Obtaining a window and city sticker for their car, awaiting their background check to sign up for ShipIt/UberEats filling out applications at other housing locations out of state, and hosting an excellent Thanksgiving party where the food was so good that they didn’t have leftovers.
The Beginning of a Partnership
Child Thrive is beyond excited to have started our KIPP partnership on the 23rd! We are looking forward to this great start to a new adventure for Child Thrive in hopes this brings us closer to more school partnerships! Child Thrive is looking to start Family Fridays in March. Dates are still being finalized so be on the lookout!
(Paul creating his ping-pong paddle & the Child Thrive team’s 1st day at KIPP!)
CLICK HERE for more Child Thrive pictures.
Sports Physicals & Pediatric Consultations
Does your child(ren) have a cold, flu, strep throat, or COVID-19? If you don’t know, take advantage of getting a free consultation! We offer the community free school-age pediatric consultations and sports physicals with our continued partnership with Rush and Dr. Margi. Every Wednesday (unless otherwise noted by Dr. Margi) from 1 – 5 pm. To set an appointment, email thrive@childrens-place.org.
Mental Health
Our partner, JPA, continues to offer mental health counseling on-site (at WHP) every Friday from 2:00-6:00 pm with Ben. We also have Julie available for individuals who prefer services with a female-oriented/gendered person. These services are available to everyone associated with CPA and the West Humboldt Park community. To make an appointment, email thrive@childrens-place.org.
Student Enrollment
The Center welcomed its final two families this month for full enrollment in our Head Start and Early Head Start programs! Our Home-Based program has had a spike in new applications thanks to Delilah Bedolla’s recruitment efforts and is nearing 50% enrollment!
(The kids getting outside in January and practicing yoga stretches and meditation)
CLICK HERE for more pictures of our Early Learners
Inspections and Monitoring
This month, we passed inspections on health and electrical from the City of Chicago. Winter quarterly monitoring from Start Early and DCFS monitoring starts in February.
Upcoming Events:
In February, we will host a father engagement/male involvement event with the theme of going fishing. More details to come. In March, we will host our Community & Parent Focus Group Brunch in which our community partners and parent volunteers will discuss the services/neighborhood over the past year and make plans to improve services in the upcoming year.
Teamwork makes the dream work, and we are grateful for our foster care and adoption team!
- Congratulations to Breona Tatum (Licensing and Recruitment Coordinator) for completing the required DCFS Rule 402 exam last month!
- Congratulations to Betty Hall (Foster care case manager) for successfully emancipating her client from the CPA Foster Care Program last month!
- Kudos to Patrick Taitt and Almeta Rollins for the success of the foster care family holiday party last month!
A Day in the Life of a CPI Haitian Caseworker
Children’s Place International (CPI) caseworkers in Northern Haiti are special people. They come from the communities they serve and understand local families’ challenges. Caseworkers travel to CPI client family homes bi-weekly – sometimes by foot up into the mountains or sometimes by motorbike into rural areas.
Caseworkers meet with several families a day and are welcomed as honorary members of each family they visit.
They discuss the health and well-being of every family member, and provide medications, medical appointment assistance, food, support groups, and emergency funding as needed. As a result of this ongoing support, HIV-positive clients have improved their quality of life and their family life greatly.
They also work with the children to troubleshoot any issues with their schooling – getting there, having supplies, paying the fees, keeping up with homework, attending afterschool programming, and graduating. As a result, most CPI program students have been able to go on to complete primary and secondary school, with the hope of then getting technical or university degrees and the chance to support their families.
The CPI caseworkers critically impact the lives of vulnerable children and families.
In the words of a CPI caseworker in Limonad, “Thankfully, the clients understand and appreciate the team’s work. They feel secure by our presence. My position is very interesting because it brings more hope for the families and for me. My job is like a divine mission; I am doing it with compassion and devotion. Thank you to everyone who has likewise shared their love to bring hope to the families impacted by HIV/AIDS in the community of Limonad, Haiti.”
Major Company & Foundation Supporters
Anonymous, Chicago Trading Company, Foundant Technologies Inc., Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC, Goldman Sachs, Green State Credit Union, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Konbit Lasante Pou Limonad, Takeda, Wines for Humanity
Major Individual Supporters
Derrick Anandappa, Anonymous, Patrick Barrett, Munisha & Viresh Bhatia, Jenny Blickenstaff, Celine Cluzel, Eva Fitz Declaration, Patrick Demarco, Mary Finnegan, Cheryl Gelfond, Abe Goldman, Marcy Huffaker, Howard Jacob, Michael Kamperschroer, Katherine Korey, Steve Levine, Shannon Maloney, Leslie McLeod, Nancy Meyer, Richard Moser, Kara Murphy, Benjamin Roach & Ilana Rosen, Rossman Family Foundation, Jan Simon, Julia Sommer, Carole Streicher, Randall Swatland, Jaclynn Szwagiel, John & Heather Sweeney, Amanda Thomason, Mike Villano, Eric Wilder
In-Kind Donations
Thank you to Target Crestwood for donating $500 in diapers and wipes.
Volunteer. Donate. Join Our Team.
Join in and be part of the positive solution in helping Chicago’s most vulnerable kids. We have a variety of volunteering, support, and engagement opportunities.
Current Opportunities
Child Thrive
- STEM Kits: Model Car Kits, Electronics Exploration Kits, Wooden Building Kits, Solar Power Robots Creation Toy and Robotics Kits, Engineering Science Experiment Kit, and more. For a detailed list of specific items and quantities, please email giving@childrens-place.org
- Art supplies: Mixed Media Paper, mixing / painting knives, large palettes, canvases, hardening modeling clay, clay sculpting tools, bulk acrylic paint, paint brushes. For more details on quantities and types needed, please email giving@childrens-place.or
Foster Care
- Gift cards (Visa/MC, Walmart, Target) for families in need or crisis
- Cribs or toddler beds
- Infant car seats (rear-facing only), generally for kids age birth to 12 months
- Convertible car seats (forward facing with harness) generally for kids ages 1–3
- Booster car seats (forward facing), generally for kids ages 4-7
General – All Programs
- New or gently used winter clothing
- Toiletries, essential household supplies
- Baby items (formula, diapers, etc.)
Philanthropy
- Outreach & Engagement Committee: Volunteers are needed to help champion our mission, connect us to new partners/sponsors/donors/volunteers, and build visibility for Children’s Place in the broader community. For more details on role descriptions and/or to learn more, email volunteer@childrens-place.org.
- Gala Volunteers: Volunteers needed to join our Gala Committee and Junior Board to help plan our 2023 Annual Gala.
Join The CPA Team
To learn about openings:
- CLICK HERE: Grants Coordinator
- CLICK HERE: Parent Educator
- CLICK HERE: Youth Coordinator
- CLICK HERE: To read about other existing job opportunities
Ongoing Opportunities
There are plenty of volunteer and donation opportunities throughout the year. Check out which might be most suitable for you:
- Join our Junior Board, Donor Engagement Committee, or Gala Committee
- Host a friend & family house party or fundraiser to benefit Children’s Place
- Get involved with Adopt a Family
- Lead an employee group community service day and/or fun activity day with our kids & youth
- and so much more!
Whatever your skillset or time commitment, we have something that fits YOU!
Contact us today to learn more and get started on your volunteer journey.
Invest in a Child’s Future
We believe EVERY child and family deserves equal access to care, safety, and shelter – regardless of circumstances or zip code. Your support helps us provide critical services to those most affected by serious health issues and extreme poverty.
Help us keep our promise to them in creating pathways of hope and well-being by supporting their potential.
- $25 – Allows a child to participate in an education l field trip to a local museum, park, or zoo
- $50 – Supplies grocery gift cards to families in need or crisis
- $100 – One youth or family workshop on financial literacy, workforce development, nutrition/health, or neighborhood safety
- $250 – Provides transportation for families to access health and wellness services and childcare
- $500 – Funds 3 weeks of afterschool activities, including the cost of food, transportation, and supplies, to offer a safe, supportive space for children in unsafe neighborhoods
Whether you give a one-time gift or a recurring monthly donation, $5 or $500, your donation directly impacts our children’s future. Please donate today to support our kids’ and families’ education, health, and economic stability.
DONATE TODAY
Hope Thrives When Communities Care
CLICK HERE to check out CPA pictures.
Come join us socially
An easy way to support CPA’s work is by engaging with us on our social media channels. By liking, commenting, and sharing our work, you help us expand our reach, bringing in new volunteers, donors, and awareness.
CPA Facebook| CPA Instagram | CPA LinkedIn |CPA Twitter | CPA YouTube
CPI Facebook | CPI Instagram
Child Thrive Facebook | Child Thrive Instagram
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