Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/508485
people saw him walking that way all the time, so they said, "Would you help me garden?" We got him some business cards, and he started doing stuff for other people. Assumption Church has a wonderful little garden, and they wanted some help, so we sent him over there—and this is where the miracle comes in: He befriended the church secre- tary, and she happened to have a friend who managed a building in the South Loop that had Section 8 housing and found out that he was entitled to some Social Security money. She got him [an] apartment— it's the first time he's lived under a roof in 35 years. He is a different man today—he stands taller. It's just amazing. What is your goal for The Chicago Help Initiative? Well, one of the things we also have discovered is that while some- body might be going for interviews, we have to give them bus fare to get there or hook them up with [nonprofit] Dress for Success to help them get clothes, but if we had more funds ourselves—if we applied for a grant—we could expand in a number of ways, too. There's always been a goal to eliminate or take away homelessness—I don't think that will ever happen, quite honestly, because there are so many different levels of why someone's homeless. But I think that there's far more compassion. The thing that I've learned is that a lot of people want to help, and they're very generous in helping, if we can harness it the right way. Tickets start at $85 for The Chicago Help Initiative's Helping Hands Fundraiser, June 11, 5:30 pm, The Montgomery Club, 500 W. Superior St. For tickets, visit chicagohelpinitiative.org. MA from top: Volunteers help with a dinner service; at a Wednesday-night dinner in February, (from left) John Chikow, Marc Schulman, and Jacqueline Hayes celebrated the CHI's 15th year of feeding the hungry and homeless. "I've learned that a lot of people [are generous] and want to help, If we can harness It In the rIght way." —jacqueline c. hayes PEOPLE Spirit of Generosity