Chicago Community Voice Mail

Morrison Security Corporation Is Hiring!!!

2010-11-08T10:33:00.000-06:00

Morrison Security Corporation Is Hiring!!!

Monday – Thursday
10am – 4pm
12334 S Keeler
Alsip, IL 60803
Locations:
 Chicago
 Evanston
 River Forest
 Wheaton
 Palatine
 Deerfield
 Naperville
 Willowbrook
 Northbrook
 Hinsdale

ALL Loss prevention Applicants MUST meet the following minimum verifiable experience and requirements:
 One year of verifiable UNDERCOVER Retail Loss Prevention (Retail/Grocery) experience required to apply
 Must have current Illinois PERC
 Must have reliable transportation
 Must have minimum 20-Security Training Certificate
 Must be able to work any shift
 Must be able to work weekends
 Must be able to provide proof of eligibility to work in the U.S.
 Must be 18 years of age or older
 Must not have any Felony or Theft Convictions
 Must be able to pass a local, state and FBI Background Check
 Must be able to pass a 7 panel drug test on date of application

Job Lead

2010-10-11T12:47:00.000-05:00

Monterrey Security Is Hiring

Monday – Friday
10am – 3pm
1649 West Cermak Ave.
Chicago, IL 60608
http://www.monterreysecurity.com/

Monterrey Security is a premier security firm offering a broad range of prevention and protective services to clients large and small. Our mission is to provide private security services grounded in established law enforcement and public safety techniques. Monterrey Security is a fast-growing company with the size and flexibility to handle diverse client needs. Based in the near west Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Monterrey Security is centrally located to all of Chicago and the surrounding suburbs.

Open Positions
• Security Officers
• Peace Officers (perfect for off-duty law enforcement officers)
• Field Supervisors
• Event Staff
• Guest Service Professionals
• Receptionists
• Parking Personnel

Requirements
• 21 years+ of age
• Experience strongly preferred but not required if an applicant has 20 Hr security Training Certificate and PERC Card

Application Instructions

1. Complete an application in person at the listed address and time (PREFERRED) OR
2. Go to http://www.monterreysecurity.com
3. Place mouse over “Contact Us” and click “Career Opportunities” when link appears
4. In the middle of page, click “Start your career with Monterrey Security >>”
5. Complete the online application then e-mail resume as an attachment and a cover letter as in message text stating your qualifications and desire. Make sure you state you completed the online application in the message.

Courtesy of
The Christopher Watts Initiative

2010 Fall Job Fair!

2010-09-27T11:45:00.000-05:00

NEED A JOB? Please join us for the ’s 2010 Fall Job Fair!

Don’t miss the Youth Job Center of Evanston Fall Job Fair on Wednesday, October 6 , 2010 from 1:00PM to 4:00PM at the Evanston Public Library, located at 1703 Orrington Avenue in Evanston (at the corner of Orrington and Church, just across from the Hotel Orrington).

The event will feature local employers with available retail, hospitality and shipping positions. The job fair is open to all job-seekers 16 and up. The event will end promptly at 4:00PM. All interested job-seekers should arrive by 3:30PM at the latest. Resume and appropriate interview attire strongly recommended.

LIST OF EMPLOYERS INCLUDE:
PLS Check Cashers
In Home Services
Rimland Services NFP
5/3 Bank
Levy Security
HCR ManorCare
North Shore Community Bank
US Cellular
TJ Maxx
AJ Wright
UPS
Chipotle
US Border Patrol
Van Ru Credit Corporation
North Shore Hospital
Toys R Us (still TBD)
Aerotek
Charlotte Russe
Restoration Hardware
Best Buy
Amtrak
Comcast

We hope you will be able to join us on October 6. Please contact Jordan Burghardt, Employer Outreach Coordinator, at the Youth Job Center of Evanston with any questions or concerns regarding the job fair. Thank you for your support!

Regards,

Jordan Burghardt
Employment Outreach Coordinator
Youth Job Center of Evanston
1114 Church Street
Evanston, IL 60201
Office 847-864-5627 ext. 22
Fax 847-864-3098
jburghardt@youthjobcenter.org

Job Fair

2010-09-22T09:27:00.000-05:00

Job Fair

An excellent opportunity for both job-seekers and employers. Apply for jobs, distribute copies of your resume, meet fellow residents of the 2nd Ward, and learn more about some of the city's largest employers.

When: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, September 24, 2010
Where: Malcolm X College, 1900 W. Van Buren

Dress for success and bring copies of your resume!
Employers and applicants who would like more information may contact Maritza Garcia in our office at (312) 263-9273.

Wit Hotel JOB FAIR

2010-09-20T13:30:00.000-05:00

Wit Hotel JOB FAIR
Thursday September 23rd, 2010
9am - 2:45pm
201 N. State St.
Chicago, IL 60661

Open Positions
• Casual Servers available Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
• Room Service Servers for all Shifts
• Fine Dining Cooks
• On Call Banquet servers
• Casual Bussers available Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
• Bartenders for early shifts in a Casual Restaurant
• Hosts and Hostess for Casual Restaurant
• Hosts and Hostesses for Rooftop Lounge
• Dishwashers for select shifts

TO BE CONSIDERED YOU:

• MUST show some degree of successful, full service high-volume experience at a hotel or restaurant of theWit caliber
• MUST have the ability to be part of a team and be a fast learner
• MUST have outstanding references and a willingness to work with the best
• MUST have had experience in the position you seek
• MUST have a natural rapport with guests and associates
•MUST demonstrate a passion for the hotel/restaurant/hospitality industry
•MUST have above average English communication skills, both verbal and written.
•MUST be able to work flexible schedule including days, nights and holidays
•MUST have a very professional image and demeanor
• MUST be comfortable in working in with the technology tools of each position
•MUST be TIPS Certified to work in Bar or Service positions.

THOSE WHO HAVE THE FOLLOWING STEP TO THE FRONT:

• Immediate availability
• Those who have experience in Modern Boutique hotels
• Proven ability to work on a team
• Point of Sale Experience especially Micros
• Ability to work with Open Table
• HAACP certification for Culinarians

No appointments necessary. Job offers may be made that same day for those who meet all qualifications and present outstanding credentials.
Please bring 2 valid forms of identification, one must include a photo.

BEFORE APPLYING LOOK US OVER AT:

http://www.thewithotel.com/

Courtesy of:
Christopher Watts, MBA

Deadline to Register to Vote November 2nd Election

2010-09-15T14:57:00.001-05:00

Hi, this is Karl Greene the Community Voice Mail Manager. This is a Broadcast Message with information that you, or someone you know, might find of value.

On Tuesday, November 2nd, the state of Illinois will have a general election. If you are not registered, you have until Oct. 5th to register to vote.

If you are 18 years old and a citizen of the United States, you have the right to vote even if you are unemployed, homeless, between permanent residences, or living in a shelter. So please register to vote and exercise your right. For more infomation go to http://www.chicagoelections.com/

Chicago Convoy of Hope Job Fair

2010-09-08T13:08:00.000-05:00

Chicago Convoy of Hope

Saturday, September 11, 2010
Noon – 6:00pm (Rain or Shine)
All Are Welcome!

Hansen Park
Grand & Central Aves.

FREE Groceries, FREE Haircuts, Kids Zone, Health Fair, Health Screenings
Immunizations (Please bring child’s previous records)
Job Fair & Job Placement
For more information, call 773-286-0767

Evangel World Outreach Center
Dr. Ray Allen Berryhill
Robin Berryhill
Local Coordinator

Jefferson & Lake Job Fair

2010-08-16T09:41:00.000-05:00

Thursday, August 19th
10am – 2pm
566 W. Lake Street, Lower Level
Chicago, IL 60661
Company Attendees Include

 AFLAC
 Avon
 Chiro One Wellness Center
 Comcast
 Crawford Broadcasting
 Cricket Communications
 DiTrolio Flexographic Institute
 Farmers Insurance Group
 Full Circle Financial Group
 Illinois Institute of Art
 Illinois Tax Training Institute
 Mary Kay
 Olivet Nazarene University
 Prudential
 Ray Graham Association
 Starbucks Coffee Company
 T-mobile
 TTC Marketing
 US Army
 Many More

Job Fairs

2010-08-16T09:38:00.000-05:00

Noteable Event, Inc Job Fair

Wednesday, August 18th
8am – 5pm
720 East Butterfield Road
Lombard, IL 60148

It’s Once Again for the 2010 BMW CHAMPIONSHIP at Cog Hill Golf Club in Lemont, IL. We are looking to recruit Servers, Bartenders, Bussers, Chefs, Cooks, and Utility Individuals who are available Monday 9/6 through Sunday 9/12.

Open Positions
 Server
 Bartender
 Busser
 Chef
 Cook
 Utility Individual
 Requirements
 Experience STRONLGY preferred in position applying for
 Must be available Monday 9/6 through Sunday 9/12
 Must have resume and references
 Must have reliable transportation to get to event in Lemont, IL
No Phone Calls Please!

Courtesy of the Christofer Watts Innitiative

National HIV Testing Day - June 27, 2010

2010-06-15T12:18:00.000-05:00

Every year, on June 27th, local organizations across the nation engage with communities to promote early diagnosis and HIV-testing. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 250,000 of the one million people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States are unaware of their status. NAPWA realizes that lack of access to treatment and care along with social stigma can make living with HIV difficult. With early diagnosis, uncertain individuals will know their HIV-status and should be placed in appropriate treatment and care. For more information go to: http://blog.aids.gov/

VA Secretary hopes to eliminate veterans homelessness in five years | cleveland.com

2010-06-08T14:26:00.000-05:00

VA Secretary hopes to eliminate veterans homelessness in five years cleveland.com

2010-04-09T15:07:00.001-05:00

Census Bureau says it's not too late to mail back forms

As elected officials and community leaders across the nation take part in "Census Day" activities to increase local participation in the 2010 Census, the U.S. Census Bureau Thursday announced that 54 percent of the nation's estimated 134 million households have mailed back their census forms.
While April 1 is officially designated as Census Day, the Census Bureau will continue to accept 2010 Census questionnaires by mail through mid-April. Beginning May 1, census workers will begin going door to door to households that failed to mail back their forms - a massive operation that costs taxpayers an average of $57 per household versus the 42 cents it takes to get a response back by mail.
"The Census Bureau and I would like to thank everyone who has already taken 10 minutes to fill out and mail back the 2010 Census," Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said. "For those who have not yet had a chance to send it back, I'd like to reiterate that it's not too late to participate and doing so will save a lot of taxpayer money."
Census Day serves as the point-in-time benchmark for the nation's population count for the next 10 years. April 1 has been designated by law as Census Day since 1930.

Courtesy of the Humboldt Beacon

Haitian Evacuees come to Chicago

2010-01-21T09:54:00.001-06:00

2009-12-14T10:50:00.000-06:00

Become a Monthly Donor
December, 2009
Dear Friends, What would life be like without Community Voice Mail?
Recently, the entire Community Voice Mail system went down for a whole day – a true crisis. During that long day, we received numerous messages from CVM users around the country. Here are two voices that spoke up. Without a phone number, people can’t advance out of unemployment, homelessness, or chronic illness. They are stuck surviving from day to day. Agencies have to expend more resources to reach clients, if they can reach them at all. A world without Community Voice Mail is a world with more waste, needless human suffering, and despair.
Can we really afford consequences like this? I say no, we can't.
That’s why I am asking you to include Community Voice Mail in your year end giving. Your gift really matters.
For $120 or just $10 per month, you are delivering Community Voice Mail to one person for a whole year. For $318 or $26.50 a month, you are delivering CVM to a whole region for an entire day. Your investment counts! Donate now!
On behalf of our Board of Directors, staff, many partners around the country, and, most of all, the many thousands of people who count on Community Voice Mail, thank you for helping people connect with opportunity, critical resources, and the support they need to reach their goals -- through Community Voice Mail.
Happiest of holidays,
Jenn Brandon - Executive Director
Help our Clients Stay Connected
Community Voice Mail 2009 Activity
Total calls: 5,686,413
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First-come, first-serve: City to offer free H1N1 flu shots

2009-10-23T11:27:00.001-05:00

Beginning Saturday morning, free H1N1 swine flu shots for city residents will be made available on a regular basis at six city college locations for at least the next several weeks.
The announcement of the vaccination clinics heralds the arrival of steady, regular supplies of the vaccine that the federal government first began shipping out in small quantities less than two weeks ago. Though they offer the free vaccination clinics, city health officials urged people who have personal physicians to go to them for vaccination.
The early shipments of the vaccine are being made available only to persons most vulnerable to the H1N1 virus. Those include: pregnant women; all children and young adults ages 6 months to 24 years; people who live with and/or care for infants younger than 6 months of age; people age 25-64 with chronic health conditions (like asthma or diabetes), and health care workers.
But amid concerns about delays in the production of the vaccine, Julie Morita, medical director for the health department's immunization program, declined to say how much vaccine would be available at the clinics this week.
She said patients would be served on a first-come, first-served basis until the presently available doses run out.
The Chicago Department of Public Health said that now that larger quantities of the vaccine are being delivered to hospitals and doctors' offices around the city, people in the high-risk categories should call their family doctors to get the shot.
"The best place to get an H1N1 flu vaccination is your own family doctor or other regular medical provider," said city Health Commissioner Terry Mason. "Now is the time for people who want a flu vaccination to contact their doctor to find out when they can get vaccinated."
For those who don't have a personal physician and lack the means to pay for the vaccination, free shots will administered at six locations: Kennedy King College, 6301 S. Halsted St.; Olive Harvey College, 10001 S. Woodlawn Ave.; Richard J. Daley College, 7500 S. Pulaski Rd.; Truman College, 1145 W. Wilson Ave.; Arturo Velasquez Institute, 2800 S. Western Ave.; Wright College, 4300 N. Narragansett Ave.
Beginning Saturday, they will be offered every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and every Tuesday and Thursday from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. at those locations.
Those with egg allergies should not receive the vaccination, the health department said. It said with larger quantities of H1N1 vaccine being delivered in the next few weeks, vaccinations will also be available soon at area retail pharmacies.
No appointments are necessary. City health officials also urged city residents who attend area colleges and universities to check with their campus health services to see if and when they will offer H1N1 flu shots.
"This is a time for all Chicagoans to be patient and think prevention," Morita said.
"Every week, thousands of doses of H1N1 vaccine are arriving in the city and suburbs. Assuming that vaccine production continues as anticipated, it is fair to say that every Chicagoan who wants an H1N1 vaccination will be able to get one in the weeks and months to come," she said.
Meanwhile, in Will County residents who are in targeted populations to receive the H1N1 swine flu vaccine will be able to get vaccinated free of charge beginning next Wednesday.
Vic Reato, spokesman for the Will County Department of Public Health, said today that the county got its first delivery of the vaccine from the federal government Wednesday morning, "several thousand" doses of the nasal spray formulation, and expected to get the injectable shot versions in the next few days.
The vaccinations will be offered from seven locations around the county, each one offering them twice on days different from the others.
They are:--Plainfield Central High School, 24120 West Fort Beggs Drive, Plainfield, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Oct. 28 and Nov. 16.--Joliet Central High School, 201 East Jefferson Street, Joliet, 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Oct. 29 and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Nov. 2. --Brooks Middle School, 350 Blair Lane, Bolingbrook, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Oct. 30, and 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Nov. 24.--Joliet West High School, 401 North Larkin Avenue, Joliet, noon to 6 p.m. on Nov. 1 and Nov. 22.--Hickory Creek Middle School, 22150 116th Avenue, Frankfort, 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Nov. 4 and Dec. 2.--Lockport East High School, 1333 East 7th Street, Lockport, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Nov. 9 and Nov. 30.--Crete-Monee High School, 1515 West Exchange Street, Crete, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Nov. 10 and Dec. 1.
"All dates are subject to change depending upon the availability of the vaccine," Reato said.
County health officials said the vaccine will be limited to pregnant women, parents and caregivers of children younger than 6 months old, young people beween 6 months and 24 years old, and persons younger than 64 years old with serious underlying medical conditions.
A complete schedule of community vaccination clinics in Will County is online at www.WillCountyHealth.org/SwineFlu.
-- William Mullen

H1N1 (swine) Flu Questions and Answers

2009-10-14T11:22:00.000-05:00

Flu seasons are unpredictable in a number of ways, including the timing of the beginning, severity and length. This flu season there are more uncertainties than usual because of the emergence of a new flu virus, H1N1, previously called "swine flu." Scientists are predicting that the H1N1 virus may cause the flu season to be worse than usual with a lot more people getting sick, being hospitalized and dying than during a typical flu seasonal. Click here to learn more about the United States and Illinois H1N1 flu pandemic and seasonal flu situation and response. For the most up to date information on H1N1 or seasonal flu, and to learn about ways to protect yourself and your family from getting ill check out the information on this Web site or visit www.flu.gov.

H1N1 Vaccine in Illinois

2009-09-23T12:55:00.001-05:00

With more than half of the state's counties reporting confirmed cases of the so-called swine flu, Illinois health officials reported Thursday that the state should get an initial delivery of nearly 2 million individual doses of H1N1 flu vaccine by mid-October.The state Department of Public Health said in a statewide teleconference call that a first shipment will include 1.5 million doses to 2,783 health-provider sites outside Chicago. Nearly 500,000 doses will go to 1,045 sites in the city. Provider sites had to sign an agreement with U.S. health officials to vaccinate only people in high-priority categories. That includes pregnant women, caregivers to infants younger than 6 months old, children and young people from 6 months to 24 years old, health-care workers, and 25- to 64-year-olds with serious underlying health problems.After the most-at-risk segments of the public are immunized, the rest will be allowed to get the vaccine, department spokeswoman Melaney Arnold said, but no timeline has been set for when it would become more widely available. So far the department reports more than 400 Illinois residents have been hospitalized from the H1N1 pandemic virus, and 17 have died. The vaccine is being made by four manufacturers gearing up to produce 20 million H1N1 vaccine doses a week for as long as necessary, Arnold said. Those weekly deliveries would include 660,000 doses outside Chicago and 200,000 to Chicago.State officials urged the public to seek information about the flu and efforts to contain it by visiting the Health Department Web site: ready.illinois.gov.wmullen@tribune.com

Poverty rate surges to 11-year high, is expected to get worse U.S. households face a bleak picture:

2009-09-14T11:07:00.001-05:00

The government's first broad look at the recession's impact on American households in 2008 showed that the nation's poverty rate jumped to an 11-year high, incomes sank for most every group, and the number of people without health insurance rose to 46.3 million. As bleak as these statistics were from the Census Bureau on Thursday, they captured only a part of the devastating effects of the economicdownturn that worsened last fall and into this year. Analysts said they expect the official poverty rate, which rose to 13.2 percent from 12.5 percent in 2007, to keep climbing this year and next, reversing gains made in the 1990s.With the unemployment rate averaging 8.9 percent this year, compared with 5.8 percent in 2008, incomes are likely to deteriorate further.Last year, the Census Bureau said, the median household income -- the point at which half were more and half less -- fell 3.6 percent from2007, to $50,303. That was the biggest decline for the first year of a recession since World War II, said Larry Katz, a Harvard University economist. Given the meager income gains for most workers in prior recent years, hesaid, "We've basically seen a lost decade for typical American families." Although some analysts believe the economy is coming out of the recession, the Census Bureau's annual report on income, poverty and health insurance was a sobering reminder of the widespread hardships inflicted by the downturn. And it added urgency to calls by various people for a national health-care overhaul as well as a strengthening of other social programs aimed at helping unemployed and poor Americans and other vulnerable groups."We need to have both a growing economy and focused government policies if we're going to make a dent in poverty," said Sheldon Danziger,director of the National Poverty Center at the University of Michigan. He noted that poverty spiked in inner cities. Overall, the nation's poverty rate was at its lowest on record at 11.1percent in 1973 but had hovered at roughly 12.5 percent from 2003 to 2007, when the economy was expanding. About 39.8 million people fell below the poverty line last year, including more than 14 million children. Jared Bernstein, economic adviser to Vice President Joe Biden, said the poverty figures were in line with expectations: "2008 was a good example of how much the economy hurt lower- and middle-income people." About 3.8 million payroll jobs have been eliminated since January, andunemployment, at 9.7 percent, is projected by many economists to surpass 10 percent in the coming months. That indicates many more workers and their families this year have slipped into poverty or lost their health coverage, or both. About 58.5 percent of the nation's population last year was covered by private insurance provided through their employers, although that percentage has been steadily decreasing, the Census Bureau said. The ranks of people without medical coverage, which increased from 45.7 million in 2007, were expected to have risen more sharply last year. But the decline in employment-based coverage was offset by expanding government safety-net programs and rising Medicare enrollment, which is driven by aging baby boomers. The number of uninsured children fell to7.3 million from 8.1 million in 2007.

By Don Lee
Tribune Newspapers

Mark Your Calendar: Upcoming Events!

2009-09-11T08:54:00.002-05:00

The Shopping BenefitThursday, October 29, 2009

Bloomingdale's 900 N. Michigan Avenue, Chicago; 600 North Wabash Avenue, Chicago (Home Store); Old Orchard Center, Skokie; Oakbrook Center, Oak BrookCost: $10
Inspiration Corporation is excited to participate in The Shopping Benefit along with over 60 local non-profit organizations. Tickets are only $10 and they entitle the bearer to a 15% - 20% savings certificate, on both regular price and sale price items, with few exclusions, valid during The Shopping Benefit on Thursday, October 29, 2009.

20th Anniversary Dinner 6:30 pm Saturday, November 7, 2009 Inspiration Cafe, 4554 N BroadwayCost: $300 Inspiration Corporation celebrates 20 years of serving Chicago's homeless with our Anniversary Dinner! The Cafe will be transformed into a temple of fine dining for just one night to celebrate 20 years of offering services and support to our participants in an atmosphere of dignity and respect. Chef Dominique Tougne of Bistro 110 will once again lead this year's culinary event, which will feature a magnificent and classic eight-course meal. Chef Tougne's delicious cuisine will be paired with fine wines to create an unmatched combination of flavors and presentations. For information on any of these events please contact Jennifer Simmons, Events Manager773-878-0981 ext. 222 or jsimmons@inspirationcorp.org

Poverty In Chicago

2009-08-17T10:03:00.002-05:00

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This documentary will provide insight for those who are unaware of the plight of many of the victims of poverty in Chicago.

Chicago Alliance Update

2009-07-21T09:12:00.001-05:00

Dear Friends of the Chicago Alliance,
We have some cautiously good news to report. Both the Illinois House and Senate passed bills last night that will spare human services the draconian cuts we have been fighting against for the past two months. The FY2010 Budget does not include an income tax hike – rather it attempts to fill the budget hole by borrowing $3.5 billion to pay the state’s pension obligation, freeing up funds for the general revenue budget. However, the state will run out of money later this year if additional revenue is not found. Senate President John Cullerton has stated clearly that he plans to move an income tax increase in January, when the General Assembly will only need a simple majority to pass it.
What does this mean for homeless services? The budget gives Governor Quinn discretion to distribute $2.23 billion to community-based human and health service providers, approximately 86% of the FY2009 level. As the Chicago Tribune reports, “the borrowing would allow many of those grants to be funded at more than 80 percent, budget negotiators said.” 80% sounds a lot better than 50% but it still remains to be seen who gets what – the Alliance and our partners will continue to work hard to make sure homeless services are strongly represented at the table. We should all be proud that our voices were heard loud and clear – legislators know that they cannot cut vital programs and that we are watching.
Thanks for all you do.

National HIV Testing Day coming up. . . .

2009-06-16T14:21:00.001-05:00

Saturday, June 27th is National HIV Testing Day. Every nine and a half minutes someone in the United States becomes infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. And a lot of people that have HIV don’t know they are infected. There is help and treatment available – which is why it is so important to know if you have HIV.You don’t have to wait until June 27th to take action. Here are a few ways to find an HIV testing center near you:1. Visit http://www.HIVtest.org, the National HIV and STD Testing Resources web site from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Enter your zip code to find a testing center near you. You can also find a lot of accurate information about HIV and the testing process.2. Call 1-800-CDC-Info (1-800-232-4636). This is the National hotline for the CDC. You can call anytime and someone will answer your questions and help you find a free or inexpensive testing center.3. Text a nearby ZIP code to “KNOWIT” (566948). If you have a cell phone and use text messaging, you’ll get a text message back with a local testing center (normal text messaging charges apply).

Public Health Message!

2009-04-30T08:36:00.000-05:00

This is an important public health message from Community Voice Mail and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
CDC has confirmed additional human cases of swine influenza (flu) virus infection in the United States, bringing the total number of U.S. confirmed cases to 64 as of April 28 at 11:00am ET (see http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/ for up-to-date information). This message contains important information about swine flu, including ways to minimize your chance of infection and symptoms to look for.
Like seasonal flu, swine flu in humans can vary in severity from mild to severe. Spread of swine flu can occur in two ways:
Through contact with a person with swine flu. Human-to-human spread of swine flu has been documented also and is thought to occur in the same way as seasonal flu. Flu is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
Through contact with infected pigs or environments contaminated with swine flu viruses.

Swine influenza, or flu, viruses are not transmitted by food. You cannot get swine flu from eating pork products.
There is no vaccine available right now to protect against swine flu. However, there are everyday actions that can help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like flu. Take these everyday steps to protect your health:
Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
Avoid close contact with sick people.
If you get sick with flu, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.

Ill people who experience any of the following warning signs should seek emergency medical care.
In children, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
o Fast breathing or trouble breathing
o Bluish skin color
o Not drinking enough fluids
o Not waking up or not interacting
o Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
o Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
o Fever with a rash
In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
o Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
o Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
o Sudden dizziness
o Confusion
o Severe or persistent vomiting
CDC has created a Web page with more information and updates. Visit www.cdc.gov/flu/swine or call CDC at 1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636) in English or Spanish, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Earth Day

2009-04-22T15:35:00.001-05:00

Op-Ed by Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis Building the American Clean Energy Economy

On April 22nd, people across the country and around the world will celebrate Earth Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness about the plight of our natural resources and taking real action to make a difference. For decades, while Americans in towns and cities across the country have worked to make a difference in their communities, politicians in both parties in Washington have ignored the energy crisis, imperiling our economy, our security and our planet. Now, we have a unique and critical opportunity to attack the energy crisis head on and create a comprehensive energy policy that will bolster our economy, end our dependence on foreign oil and reduce the threat of deadly pollution that is devastating our planet.
During his first months in office, President Obama has already taken some important first strides toward those goals as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Recovery Act included billions of dollars to be invested in cities and states across the country to strengthen our clean energy industry and help restore America’s place at the forefront of the 21st century global economy.
Recently, we visited the Community College of Allegheny County in Pennsylvania where workers at the facility are being trained for the types of green jobs those Recovery Act dollars are funding. At the community college, these jobs range from the construction and facility upgrades of green buildings to the installation of energy-efficient street lights to conducting energy audits. In a booming clean energy sector, those jobs will range from research and development to skilled labor jobs like weatherizing to floor shifts at wind and solar facilities. And these are jobs that cannot be shipped overseas.
This focus on jump-starting the creation of an American clean energy sector will be the foundation of the president’s energy policy. With the depletion of the world’s oil reserves and the growing disruption of our climate, the development of clean, renewable sources of energy is the growth industry of the 21st century. Rather than sending billions overseas to pay for these new and developing energy technologies, President Obama believes we should invest those dollars here in American jobs and innovation. By developing a clean energy economy here at home, we will end our dependence on foreign oil and begin to make America truly energy independent. That’s not just an economic and environmental imperative, it’s also a national security imperative.
As part of this comprehensive policy, we must crack down on the corporations that pollute the water we drink and the air we breathe. Cracking down on these polluters in a real way will mean that we can finally tackle global warming and its potentially catastrophic effects – because ultimately, our approach to energy policy and combating the effects of global warming are two sides of the same coin.
We have an enormous, urgent environmental and economic task ahead of us, and it is one that we have ignored for far too long. If we are going to create clean energy industry jobs in this country, break the stranglehold that foreign oil has on our economy and punish the polluters who are devastating our natural resources, then we’ve got to be honest about the difficult tasks and tough choices ahead. It’s going to mean telling the special interests that their days of dictating energy policy in this country are over. It’s going to mean refusing to settle for the status quo and the same ineffective policies that have held us back for over 30 years, created price shocks and fostered energy dependence. This president is committed to tackling these challenges head on to create a clean energy policy that works for all Americans, so that we can pass on to our children and grandchildren not just a stronger economy, but a cleaner planet.

High Cost of Living Unhealthy More Than in Just Dollars

2009-04-07T09:48:00.003-05:00

It’s strange when you think about it. There are over 44 million people in the United States of America without healthcare - a nation so rich, so powerful, so full of expectations - yet so full flaws; just a microcosm of the human spirit. Unfortunately, there are enormous amounts of people who have no idea how they are going to pay a medical bill if they have to take that proverbial trip to the doctor or emergency room. Face it, life can not be pretty for the under or uninsured. The fallout gets worse because there is a segment of society that continues to lead in most categories when it comes to poor health – it happens to be African-Americans.“When you talk about cost, black folks put an enormous amount of stress on the system,” said Dr. Roderick Brown, 39, of Philadelphia. “The bad health habits are drawing dollars away from what should and could go towards prevention. I don’t think people understand that it cost a couple hundred dollars a minute just to be in the operating room.”“I see it everyday, and it’s sad that I have to see it with my people," said Brown. "Whether it’s dealing with the 34-year-old grandmother, who happens to be 300-pounds, who does not want to do the necessary things just to get herself healthy, or the person who has not done the necessary things to treat their diabetes - then you find yourself having explain to them why you have to amputate their leg. It gets to be overwhelming. After a while, you become numb."More than 886,000 deaths could have been prevented from 1991 to 2000 if African-Americans had received the same care as whites, according to an analysis in the American Journal of Public Health. The study estimates that technological improvements in medicine - including better drugs, devices and procedures – averted only 176,633 deaths during the same period.That means "five times as many lives can be saved by correcting the disparities [in care between whites and blacks] than in developing new treatments," Steven H. Woolf, lead author and director of research at Virginia Commonwealth University's Department of Family Medicine, said in a telephone interview with The Washington Post.The American Cancer Society recently came out with statistics on cancer prevalence and death rates. And while the news might appear positive overall, reflecting advances in cancer treatments and screening technology, the United States continues to deliver the best care to wealthier, white citizens. According to the data, African-American men have a 19 percent higher incidence rate and 37 percent higher death rate from all cancers combined than white men. African-American women have a six percent lower incidence rate, but a 17 percent higher death rate than white women for all cancers combined. It is not just cancer. African-American men and women are twice as likely as whites to die of cerebrovascular disease or experience stroke, according to the National Institutes of Health. The rate of AIDS cases among African-Americans is 10 times higher than for whites, according to the department of Health and Human Services.African-Americans awaiting lung transplants are more likely to die or be denied than whites. African-Americans lag in almost every category. High blood pressure, heart failure, obesity and diabetes are just a few of the major problems that persist in the Black community.And if you’re African-American and living in the South, your health prospects are worse. In a study presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference in 2005, researchers reported that African-Americans living in the South were at the greatest disadvantage for combating stroke."When it comes to your risk of stroke, you get a penalty for being African-American, you get a penalty for living in the South, and you get an 'extra' penalty for being an African-American living in the South," George Howard, professor and chair of the biostatistics department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, told the conference.

By: Zack Burgess, Special to BlackAmericaWeb.com

WGN Channel 9 News Segment

2009-03-17T09:51:00.001-05:00

Recently, I ( Karl Greene, Chicago CVM manager) was asked by John Pfeiffer, Executive Director & CEO of Inspiration Corporation to do an interview for a WGN news crew and producer Jane Boal. The segment is called Chicago's Very Own. The segment is scheduled to air Friday March 20, 2009 at 9pm on WGN channel 9. Its possible that it will rerun on Monday March 23, 2009 at 11:30am also. Tune in and and give us your comments. I hope to hear from you.

Sacramento and Its Riverside Tent City - The Lede Blog - NYTimes.com

2009-03-12T14:45:00.000-05:00

See video at: http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/11/tent-city-report/?scp=3&sq=homelessness&st=cse

The New York Times
March 11, 2009, 3:19 pm

Sacramento and Its Riverside Tent City
By Katharine Q. Seelye

Housing the Homeless? 6:22 p.m. Several readers have commented that the city of Sacramento seems to have a lot of vacant housing and wondered if it might be converted for use by the homeless people living in tent city. My colleague Vikas Bajaj, who has written extensively about foreclosures for The Times, checked the numbers:

I looked up how many homes and apartments are vacant in the Sacramento area and here are the numbers: 10.4 percent of rental housing units are vacant and 4.8 percent of owned units are vacant. The vacancy rates are higher than the rest of the country.

It seems that the city/county/state should at least be considering putting the homeless in the people-less homes and apartments that plague the area, rather than making permanent these squalid tent cities. They can probably acquire foreclosed homes for very little money and turn them into low-cost, affordable housing.

I checked with Mayor Kevin Johnson’s spokesman, Steve Maviglio, about this idea of moving the tent people into vacant housing, and here’s what he said:

It’s been talked about a little bit, but it’s private property and we don’t have the ability to secure it. But we are looking at housing owned by the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency. The problem with that is that it’s low-income housing and is maxed out, fully occupied. So that’s not an avenue.

Still, he said, the city is exploring all ideas, both temporary and long-term.

Original Post 3:19 p.m. A tent city is burgeoning in Sacramento, Calif., prompting local officials to consider whether such an encampment should be made permanent, with plumbing and all.

The primitive settlement sits in the shadow of the state capitol and is home to about 300 people who have no toilets or running water, creating unsanitary conditions that advocacy groups worry could promote diseases like cholera. With the downturn in the economy and more working-class people losing their jobs and their homes, the tent city is expanding.

The mayor of Sacramento, Kevin Johnson, said in an interview that he wants to create a permanent tent city for the homeless, although he is not sure where it should be. He said he recognized that doing so would be difficult politically. But he said a permanent site could bring sanitation services and regulations like a ban on drugs and alcohol.

Mr. Johnson said that the rise in homelessness was a regional problem, and that surrounding localities should help pay for any solution, like establishing a permanent tent city. He will also have access to $2.3 million that President Obama’s stimulus package is giving Sacramento to deal with homeless issues.

“We’ve tried to sweep the homeless under the rug and it’s been our dirty little secret for far too long,” said the mayor, who took office three months ago and whose status as a former Phoenix Suns basketball star has helped attract media attention to the tent city. “We’ve been relying on good Samaritans and nonprofits, but they’re overwhelmed now.”

Tent cities — much like the “Hoovervilles” of the Depression — have sprung up elsewhere around the country. But Sacramento, with one of the highest foreclosure rates, has one of the biggest, with a population of “easily 300,” said Rob Fong, a Sacramento city councilman, and it is “definitely growing.”
“It’s an unfortunate sign of the times,” he said.

This tent city is in a place of great natural beauty, between two rivers, with birds and open sky and a relatively mild climate. Homeless people have lived there for years, largely unseen, but as more working class people move in, the tents are multiplying and becoming harder to ignore.

The official count of homeless people in Sacramento is 1,226 people, and they are spilling out to the tent city because the housing shelters are full; one of the shelters is turning away more than 200 women and children a day.

“With the recession, the numbers of people who need help has gone up dramatically,” said Joan Burke, director of advocacy for Loaves & Fishes, a nearby privately financed, non-profit organization that provides survival services for people who are homeless and tries to help them regain a home.

“The number of unsheltered people here went up 26 percent in one year,” she said. “We have lots of folks living in their cars. People are buying storage units and living in them. People are trying to do what they can to put a roof over their head. Sometimes people romanticize camping, that they are free spirits. In fact, it’s an act of desperation.”

While some residents are neat and tidy and build latrines, she said, many others are mentally ill, alcoholic or have other problems and do not use latrines. This has created what she calls “third world” conditions.

She said her group was trying to encourage the city to provide space at state campgrounds with toilets and running water. Mr. Fong, the councilman, is working on a plan that might convert the horse barns at a nearby state fairground, which is empty most of the year, into temporary housing. He is also encouraging a project in which local churches, synagogues and mosques would adopt a family from a local shelter and find housing for them, thereby creating more space in the now-full shelters for those living in the tent city.

Establishing a government-sanctioned tent city would require the approval of the city council and Sacramento County Board of Supervisors. Some property owners and developers have already raised questions about the idea, saying a permanent homeless encampment would reduce property values, put an extra burden on those nearby and block off a portion of the city to others.

“Today” on Sacramento’s tent city.

The current tent city, along the American River, has prompted concern by The American River Parkway Preservation Society, which has written on its blog: “If local government truly wishes to establish tent cities they need to be some place where the surrounding communities are not materially and criminogenically degraded — as the first call of public leadership is to protect the public.”

Nationally, almost half the people who are homeless live outside, not in shelters, according to a study released in 2007, said Michael Stoops, executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless.
“There have always been people living outside in huge numbers because no city provides shelter to all of its people,” he said. “But now there’s so many people and encampments have been getting larger.” Most of the tent cities began as shelters for the regular or chronic homeless, “but there’s new faces starting to pop up because there’s no room at the inn.”

Need Resume's?

2009-03-06T10:18:00.000-06:00

Need plenty of resumes for your job hunt?March 10th (next Tuesday) is the official "FedEx Office Free Resume Printing Day". Visit any FedEx Print and Ship during regular business hours to take advantage of this offer.You can get up to 25 black-and-white resume copies when you place and pick up your order in-store. You can bring a printed copy of your resume, or you can bring it in digital format. Your resumes will be printed single-sided on resume-quality paper."We understand that the economy has affected many people in a very profound way, and we want to help. Printing resumes is one small way we can use our resources to help those who need it." Brian Philips, President and CEO of FedEX Office.

HUD Announces Homelessness Prevention Funds

2009-02-26T13:28:00.000-06:00

Today, HUD announced funding allocations and eligible grantees for the new Recovery Act homelessness prevention program.

This information is available at: www.hud.gov/recovery.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, signed on February 17th, 2009, provides $1.5 billion, allocated according to the current Emergency Shelter Grants formula with a grant minimum of $500,000, to help families who are either homeless or at imminent risk of becoming homeless. This program will provide financial and other assistance to prevent individuals and families from becoming homeless and help those who are experiencing homelessness to be quickly re-housed and stabilized. The funds under this program are intended to target individuals and families who would be homeless but for this assistance. The funds will provide for a variety of assistance, including: short-term or medium-term rental assistance and housing relocation and stabilization services, including such activities as mediation, security or utility deposits, utility payments, moving cost assistance, and case management.

Center For Disease Control Announcement

2009-02-13T12:36:00.000-06:00

"Have you heard about the recall of foods that contain peanuts or peanut butter in them because they may contain Salmonella? Salmonella is bacteria that can make you sick with diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps. Products on the recall list include cookies, crackers, cereal, candy and ice cream that have peanut butter or peanuts in them. Major national brands of jarred peanut butter found in grocery stores are NOT affected by the recall. To find out if you have food that is on the recall list, call the CDC at 1-800-CDC-INFO… or 1-800-232-4636… that’s 1-800-232-4636. You can call this number 24 hours a day and speak to an operator who will look up the food for you. If you learn that food you have IS on the list, do NOT eat it, and throw it away. Also, do NOT feed the recalled food to your pets or other animals, as it can make them sick too. If you have questions about the recall or if you have questions about Salmonella, do not hesitate to call the CDC at 1-800-CDC-INFO… that’s 1-800-232-4636… 1-800-232-4636."

Happy Birthday! MLK

2009-01-15T13:35:00.000-06:00

Martin Luther King, Jr., (January 15, 1929-April 4, 1968) was born Michael Luther King, Jr., but later had his name changed to Martin. His grandfather began the family's long tenure as pastors of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, serving from 1914 to 1931; his father has served from then until the present, and from 1960 until his death Martin Luther acted as co-pastor. Martin Luther attended segregated public schools in Georgia, graduating from high school at the age of fifteen; he received the B. A. degree in 1948 from Morehouse College, a distinguished Negro institution of Atlanta from which both his father and grandfather had graduated. After three years of theological study at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania where he was elected president of a predominantly white senior class, he was awarded the B.D. in 1951. With a fellowship won at Crozer, he enrolled in graduate studies at Boston University, completing his residence for the doctorate in 1953 and receiving the degree in 1955. In Boston he met and married Coretta Scott, a young woman of uncommon intellectual and artistic attainments. Two sons and two daughters were born into the family.In 1954, Martin Luther King accepted the pastorale of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. Always a strong worker for civil rights for members of his race, King was, by this time, a member of the executive committee of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the leading organization of its kind in the nation. He was ready, then, early in December, 1955, to accept the leadership of the first great Negro nonviolent demonstration of contemporary times in the United States, the bus boycott described by Gunnar Jahn in his presentation speech in honor of the laureate. The boycott lasted 382 days. On December 21, 1956, after the Supreme Court of the United States had declared unconstitutional the laws requiring segregation on buses, Negroes and whites rode the buses as equals. During these days of boycott, King was arrested, his home was bombed, he was subjected to personal abuse, but at the same time he emerged as a Negro leader of the first rank.In 1957 he was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization formed to provide new leadership for the now burgeoning civil rights movement. The ideals for this organization he took from Christianity; its operational techniques from Gandhi. In the eleven-year period between 1957 and 1968, King traveled over six million miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, appearing wherever there was injustice, protest, and action; and meanwhile he wrote five books as well as numerous articles. In these years, he led a massive protest in Birmingham, Alabama, that caught the attention of the entire world, providing what he called a coalition of conscience. and inspiring his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail", a manifesto of the Negro revolution; he planned the drives in Alabama for the registration of Negroes as voters; he directed the peaceful march on Washington, D.C., of 250,000 people to whom he delivered his address, "l Have a Dream", he conferred with President John F. Kennedy and campaigned for President Lyndon B. Johnson; he was arrested upwards of twenty times and assaulted at least four times; he was awarded five honorary degrees; was named Man of the Year by Time magazine in 1963; and became not only the symbolic leader of American blacks but also a world figure.At the age of thirty-five, Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. When notified of his selection, he announced that he would turn over the prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the civil rights movement.On the evening of April 4, 1968, while standing on the balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was to lead a protest march in sympathy with striking garbage workers of that city, he was assassinated

THE ECONOMIC CRISIS

2009-01-07T09:48:00.000-06:00

Shelters brace for homeless families
People run out of options as evictions, joblessness take toll
By Lisa Black, Lolly Bowean and Steve Schmadeke Tribune reporters
January 7, 2009

Cindy Almendarez avoided the homeless shelter for as long as possible, shuffling her children from a friend's basement to a roach-infested apartment before bunking down in the back seat of her car, where, for nearly two weeks, they tried to pretend they were camping.She tried to cheer up Zachary, 10, and Zarah, 4, by joking that the family was "temporarily unassigned a permanent location" before finally winding up at a PADS Crisis Services homeless shelter this fall.Almendarez, 41, is one of the early victims of the foreclosure crisis, losing her Waukegan home in February 2007 after the death of her husband. Spiraling into depression, she lost her job, her financial footing and personal dignity as she tried to keep the children's daily routines intact while recovering from her losses.Across the Chicago area, social service providers say more families are turning to shelters. Just as alarming, they say, is the ballooning number of people who aren't homeless—yet—but who, lacking intervention, could join the ranks in 2009.

Some have been evicted from apartments after their landlord was foreclosed upon, and cannot afford the security deposit required to rent a new one. Others had their hours cut back at work and are struggling to meet their monthly bills."They were already just hanging on," said Marilyn Farmer, the executive director of the Morning Star Mission in Joliet.Since October, Chicago-area homeless shelters have reported increases of anywhere from 5 percent to 39 percent in people needing immediate housing, compared with the same time the previous year. The number of homeless students enrolled by Chicago Public Schools in November was 9,132—up 28 percent compared with November 2007, a spokeswoman said.What's harder to quantify are the numbers of people on the brink.Experts say that's because becoming homeless usually happens over time, not abruptly, and may never involve a formal shelter or governmental agency."People will use up every available resource, staying in a motel, staying with friends and family," even in their car, before going to a shelter, said Lynda Schueler, executive director of West Suburban PADS, based in Oak Park.But social service providers are noticing an uptick in people asking for the kinds of help that often presages homelessness—primarily help in paying their rent or mortgage and to catch up with utility bills."Lots of people are living doubled up," said Darlene Marcusson, executive director of the Lazarus House in Wheaton, which has seen a 20 percent increase in people seeking help to pay rent."You can just live with grandma or auntie so long. Eventually, grandma or auntie's going to ask you to leave, or their landlord's going to tell them you have to leave," she said.Taking in struggling relatives can, in turn, put financial stress on those who were just getting by.Julie Bailey, 47, is thankful that she's working and can pay the mortgage on her Riverdale house. But after her adult son and brother-in-law lost their jobs and moved in, she could no longer afford to provide for her four younger children. She is also helping her mother and sister who don't live with her, she said. She recently sought help from a social service agency in Harvey."I'm the only one really working and I have to stretch to keep us all afloat," Bailey said.Many of those seeking help said the trouble began when a family breadwinner was laid off or lost hours at work.Albany Park resident Luther Johnson, 51, has worked construction, carpentry and handyman jobs over the last few years. But since fall, the work has dried up, he said, and the specter of homelessness is hanging over him, his wife, who works part time as a grocery clerk, and their two children, 12 and 8.The family was homeless before, shuttling between family and friends' homes about five years ago, he said. Johnson said it has been so hard scrounging the $650 rent on their two-bedroom apartment that he has even tried panhandling."We're barely making it, barely making it," he said. "You try to pretend and pray that things are going to get better. But it's getting harder."Crisis calls to the South Suburban Family Shelter in Homewood have increased by about 100 per month since June, said Brianne Hetman, crisis intervention and training coordinator.Some callers "are in foreclosure and they are trying to plan ahead," Hetman said. "Some lived in a building that was in foreclosure and they didn't know it."In Evanston, Rose Terry, 62, is worried about potential foreclosure because she hasn't paid her mortgage since August. She refinanced the home she has owned since 1991 four times after lenders assured her that she could afford the terms.Instead, her monthly payment grew to $2,500—more than her pension, disability pay and income as a part-time bus driver together."I am just in a mess," said Terry, who has been trying to sell the two-bedroom house for a year. "I am just trying to keep on the lights, gas, and to buy food."The lender has not begun foreclosure proceedings, but the future doesn't look good. Catherine Leonard, Terry's real estate agent since July, said she has lowered the price several times. It's now listed at $215,000, but Terry owes more than $330,000 from two loans. The best-case scenario is if the house sells and the bank agrees to take the loss.Linda Walker, 51, of Burnham is in a similar position, having fallen two months behind on her mortgage. Her hours at a furniture rental company were cut, and she now has no health coverage for herself or her 13-year-old daughter."Life's just gotten too expensive," she said last week, after leaving a social service agency where she was hoping to get some assistance for her utility bills. She was told she needed to bring in more paperwork documenting her situation."People say 'sell your home.' But I can't. There's no one to buy it," she said.The region's housing troubles reflect a growing national crisis.The Pew Center on the States reported in December that one out of 33 homeowners will face foreclosure over the next two years as the result of a subprime loan. From 2005 to 2007, foreclosure filings in Chicago and five outlying counties increased by 80 percent, according to the Woodstock Institute, a Chicago-based non-profit.Schueler, of West Suburban PADS , recalled a single father with two children, ages 3 and 5, who lost his job at a local hospital. He left the state to visit a relative, and when he returned, found that his apartment building had been foreclosed upon."The experience of being homeless—this had never happened to him before," said Schueler, who said the man was referred to a shelter. Out of pride, he refused to enter the building. Instead, he slept in his car. The agency helped him find a place to stay.InnerVoice, which operates or oversees 26 shelters for the city, said demand has increased only slightly in the past year, but staffers are seeing more people who wouldn't normally be homeless."We are noticing that people of very different income levels are showing up at our door," said InnerVoice President Brady Harden Jr.Many are embarrassed and avoid help until the last minute.Almendarez, who lost her last job as a Spanish translator at a Waukegan preschool earlier this fall, is now being treated for depression. She teared up recently as her daughter, Zarah, showed a visitor the stuffed animals she had stashed in Cubicle No. 8 at the Lake County PADS shelter."It's not the best place to be, but it's warm," said Almendarez, who the next day moved into yet another family shelter."I am just so tired of moving."Tribune reporter Liam Ford contributed to this report.

2009 Tax Season

2009-01-06T08:41:00.004-06:00

Happy New Year! As you know, with the new year brings upon us the 2009 tax season. Last year, Chicago Community Voice Mail(CCVM) & Inspiration Corporation partnered with Melissa Spears, representative for the Center for Economic Progress, in providing information in regard to free tax preparation and Earned Income Tax Credit(EITC). Mellissa has agreed to return this year with additional tax information including some for individuals with disabilities. This will happen on Friday January 23, 2009 here at Inspiration Cafe from 2:30-4:30 during the CCVM Quarterly Advisory Committee Meeting.

The Recession's Impact on The Community

2008-12-22T14:38:00.001-06:00

FYI - The Chicago Community Trust is publishing a monthly update to track key financial and social indicators of the recession's impact on communities: