Alternative Medicine $155,000
Project Title
Integrative Medicine Pilot
Amount
$15,000
Category
Alternative Medicine
Year
2020
Location
Downers Grove, IL
Advocate Good Shepherd is an acute care hospital located in Barrington. In an effort to improve outcomes for a subset of high risk surgical patients, their Center for Health and Integrative Medicine will pilot and measure the effectiveness of services such as outpatient nutrition counseling, acupuncture/pressure, mindfulness and meditation, aromatherapy, body work, etc.
Project Title
Trail to Zero - Windy Knoll Training - Covid recovery
Amount
$65,000
Category
Alternative Medicine
Year
2020
Location
Harvard, IL
BraveHearts provides innovative equine-assisted activities and therapies in support of children, adults, and our military veterans. Located in Harvard and Poplar Grove Illinois, BraveHearts has the largest horse program in the country for military veterans; all veterans receive services at no cost. Veteran participants may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and other issues associated with a return from active service. Veterans learn horsemanship skills and techniques on how to gentle a horse. This grant supported a team of BraveHearts staff and veterans who completed a 20-mile trail ride in Illinois, bringing awareness of the 20 veterans who commit suicide each day in the U.S. while also raising funds for the BraveHearts veterans program. It also supported training for the ride at Windy Knoll Farm. (Additional funding was provided to address BraveHearts’ unexpected drop in fundraising and volunteer help as a result of the pandemic.)
Project Title
Integrative Medicine Residency Program, Complementary and Alternative Services and Outpatient Clinic
Amount
$35,000
Category
Alternative Medicine
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
First Year of a three year grant ($35K in 2020; $35K in 2021; $35K in 2022) Funding supports the Supportive Care and Comfort Team efforts to provide aromatherapy, massage therapy and more. Funding also supports comprehensive training for medical staff and pediatric residents at the Comer Children’s hospital to promote the increased recommendation and use of complementary and alternative medicine.
Project Title
Honey Bee Research
Amount
$15,000
Category
Alternative Medicine
Year
2020
Location
Estelline, SD
This organization is a hub of research ranches and farms that serve to advance the science and educational support for regenerative agriculture practices. Honey bees and the honey bee industry are threatened by a suite of factors and require short term, nature based solutions to keep them alive until food production systems are transformed. This grant supports research of the effect of toxic pesticides on bees and potential ways of restoring bee immunity and gut microbial diversity.
Project Title
Integrative Wellness-Oncology Program
Amount
$25,000
Category
Alternative Medicine
Year
2020
Location
Harvey, IL
Recently merged with UChicago Medicine, Ingalls Memorial Hospital operates as a licensed nonprofit community hospital providing comprehensive healthcare services to the Chicago Southland community. This grant supports Ingall’s integrative model of cancer care which includes Reiki, massage, reflexology, day and educational events for patients receiving infusion therapy.
Assisting Sick and Abused Children $254,500
Project Title
Rebuilding Lives and Businesses Campaign
Amount
$35,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Two of Chicago’s top anchor institutions collaborated to help people and businesses through the pandemic and to provide for those facing the prospect of homelessness, joblessness and economic despair in its aftermath. “We must work together because by helping the small business community recover, we can create jobs so that unemployed individuals can rebuild their lives.”
Project Title
Medical Education Program
Amount
$35,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Naperville, IL
Third of a three year grant ($15K in 2018; $25K in 2019; $35K in 2020) Almost Home Kids provides transitional care in a home-like setting to children with complicated health needs (cerebral palsy, spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, etc.), training for their families and respite care. This grant funds AHK’s Medical Education Program (current and expansion) which teaches community based care for children who are medically complex to medical students, residents, fellows and practicing doctors in the community. The primary goal is to prepare tomorrow’s medical community with the knowledge, skills and attitude to allow them to competently serve a vulnerable population.
Project Title
CASA Volunteer Program
Amount
$15,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Geneva, IL
CASA Kane County is a nonprofit, volunteer organization that serves the best interests of abused and neglected children. CASA recruits, trains and supervises community volunteers who serve as Court Appointed Special Advocates and Guardian ad Litem for children who are in court by no fault of their own. This grant supports the expenses associated with volunteer recruiting, 45 hour/8 week training classes, background checks, and continuing education.
Project Title
Education, Prevention and Policy
Amount
$10,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
The mission of Chicago Children’s Advocacy Center is to unite public, private and community partners to ensure the safety and well being of abused children. They have served over 42,000 children impacted by sexual abuse through family advocacy, case coordination, forensic interviews, trauma therapy and education training free of charge. This grant supports evidence informed training to professionals, parents, caregivers, youth serving organizations, first responders and community members on recognizing, reporting, responding to and preventing child sexual abuse.
Project Title
Covid19 Service Model Adjustments
Amount
$15,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Chicago Lights builds brighter futures for Chicago’s youth and adults, many of whom are struggling to flourish under the stress of poverty and violence, by providing mentoring, social services, academic support, career development and arts education. This grant supports Chicago Lights service model changes needed in light of the current pandemic including computer equipment to address inadequate technical capacity, offline versions of games, books and learning materials, replacement for clothing donations (not allowed due to public health restrictions), etc.
Project Title
Covid19 Crisis Grant Funding
Amount
$7,500
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Children’s Home + Aid is a leading child and family service agency in Illinois. Its programs and services focus on child abuse prevention, healthy child development, and strengthening families. Grant recognizes that, in response to the Covid 19 Pandemic, the organization cancelled fundraising events while continuing to support the most vulnerable in our community.
Project Title
2020 Medical Program(surgery weekends) in Chicago
Amount
$8,500
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Arlington Heights, IL
The mission of this organization is to transform the lives of disadvantaged infants, children and teens suffering from physical deformities caused by birth defects, accidents, abuse or disease through the gift of reconstructive surgery and related healthcare services. This grant supports uncovered expenses associated with fiscal year 2020 Surgery Weekends at UCM Comer Children’s Hospital in Chicago
Project Title
GiGi's Kitchen Kids Pilot
Amount
$17,500
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Hoffman Estates, IL
GiGi’s Playhouse changes lives through consistent delivery of free education, therapeutic-based and career development programs for individuals with Down syndrome, their families and the community. The grant supports a new/pilot program for children with Down syndrome ages 6-12 in greater Hoffman Estates area. GiGi’s Kitchen Kids is designed to emphasize the importance of health and wellness through nutrition education, kitchen safety, food preparation, social activities and a shared meal/snack. GiGi’s Kitchen Kids will build participants’ self-esteem and self-confidence as they learn about their own nutrition and wellness.
Project Title
Emergency Covid 19 support
Amount
$10,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Green City Market (GCM) was founded on a mission to improve the health of local communities. This grant support emergency funding needs relative to the Covid 19 pandemic including the development of a virtual market place connecting Chicago’s consumers to local, sustainable growers; development of the GCM app; additional aggregation and food delivery costs, etc.
Project Title
Restaurant Employee Relief Fund
Amount
$15,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Eating and drinking places in Illinois lost 31,000 jobs in November alone, the most of any state in the country. It’s expected that a minimum of 20% of restaurants will never reopen in Illinois. As the restaurant industry continues to be impacted by the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Illinois Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (IRAEF) has developed the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund to provide financial support to restaurant workers in need.
Project Title
Child-centered Health and Advanced Therapies Program
Amount
$15,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
The Angel Harvey Family Health Center of the Infant Welfare Society has a history of leading innovative community based preventative healthcare, designed from the beginning to specifically provide Chicago’s most vulnerable families and communities with access to affordable health care. Grant supports occupational therapy, speech therapy and social skills groups for children and families experiencing developmental delays.
Project Title
HOPE Center Services
Amount
$5,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Palatine, IL
The mission of JOURNEYS is to individually assess and serve the homeless and those at-risk of becoming homeless, while broadening community awareness and involvement with the homeless. The Hope Center provides services including long term case management, mental health support, legal referrals, access to a clothing closet, food pantry, laundry and shower facilities. Of the nearly 800 clients served annually, more than half were women and children – 223 of whom are survivors of domestic violence.
Project Title
P90 Program; Covid Crisis
Amount
$12,500
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Kids Above All P90 program places youth in foster care who have experienced sexual abuse and are reacting to that trauma with inappopriate behaviors. Grant support expansion of Kids Above All targeted recruitment campaigns to identify, attract and retain foster parents who have the skills to enhance the well-being of the children. Additional funding supports immediate needs created by the Covid 19 pandemic – masks, gloves and disinfecting wipes for case managers; printers and scanners for supervisors working from home; P90 at home kits
Project Title
Tower Gardens and Stationary Bikes (Yr 2)
Amount
$6,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Aurora, IL
The organization’s mission is to reduce childhood obesity through healthy eating and active living initiatives, innovative strategies and community partnerships. Building on the previous funding, this grant expands community outreach and the purchase of additional stationary bikes for use in schools for the students use and learning.
Project Title
School Pantry Program
Amount
$10,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Geneva, IL
The mission of the Northern Illinois Food Bank is to lead the northern Illinois community in solving hunger by providing nutritious meals to those in need through innovative programs and partners. The School Pantry Program provides access to nutritious food for families with school age children in convenient and familiar settings. With fourteen school and campus based pantries, students are nourished to reach their full potential.
Project Title
Discretionary
Amount
$5,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Oak Park, IL
Oak-Leyden Developmental Services provides opportunities to over 1,000 children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Oak-Leyden offers an extensive range of services and programs for children who demonstrate a delay in one or more areas of development. They also offer music classes and drop-in programs for all children in the community.
Project Title
Lake Zurich Area Coats for Kids Program
Amount
$5,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chadds Ford, PA
Operation Warm provides warmth, confidence and hope to children in need through the gift of brand new winter coats. This grant supports the seventh year of the Lake County, Illinois Operation Warm event in which approximately 2,500 children in Lake County received a much needed new winter coat.
Project Title
Fun Run In Color - Wheaton Park District
Amount
$2,500
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Lisle, IL
The Foundation’s mission is to create barrier-free and universally accessible outdoor play spaces and gardens in DuPage County. Through the cognitive, social and physical value of play, the Foundation promotes a spirit of inclusion and enhances quality of life. This donation supports the Fun Run In Color even in Wheaton, a fundraiser for Play for all Playground and Garden Foundation.
Project Title
Covid 19 Emergency Funding
Amount
$5,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Tinley Park, IL
St. Coletta’s Kennedy school supports students with intellectual and developmental disabilities. During the pandemic, the Kennedy School, like other schools, moved to on-line learning. This grant supports the purchase of iPads and licensing needed for e-Learning for students who do not have technology at home
Project Title
Fresh Start Program
Amount
$20,000
Category
Assisting Sick and Abused Children
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
TWTC’s mission is to provide women with a continuum of care, recovery tools, and parenting skills to maintain a sober lifestyle as they rebuild their lives and their futures and mend the bonds with their families. The population of homeless mothers served by TWTC is growing. The grant supports a program which ensures that all of the incoming children have their basic necessities met (food, clothing, shelter, health, safety).
Environment $150,313
Project Title
Future Environmental Stewards Community Education Project
Amount
$20,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Barrington, IL
The mission of the Barrington Area Conservation Trust is to preserve our community’s rare and exceptional open spaces for current and future generations. This grant builds on the BACT highschool summer intership program and Teens4Green Youth Advisory Board. It funds the development of a year-round opportunity for future environmental stewards to participate and learn from the environment. Specifically, students will work on wetlands, prairie and oak savanna restoration.
Project Title
Native Habitat Intern Restoration Project
Amount
$20,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Barrington, IL
Funding for four, college summer interns who participate in weed control, seed production, planting plugs, education functions, and other miscellaneous conservation issues as part of a native habitat restoration project to return the Flint Creek Savanna, and other critical properties in the Barrington area, to their original (pre-1840) condition of tall grass prairie, oak and hickory savannas, sedge meadows, and wetlands as a habitat for bluebirds, bob-o-links and sand hill cranes.
Project Title
Environmental Conservation Group Collaborative Tech Small Grant Fund
Amount
$10,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
This small grants program is designed to respond quickly to unexpected technology expenses incurred as organizations adapt to working from home. Grants are made to help Chicago-area non profit environmental and conservation organizations work effectively and remotely during the Covid-19 public health crisis
Project Title
Rethinking the Great Lakes Shoreline's Built Environment; Covid-19 Funding
Amount
$25,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
ELPC is the Midwest’s leading public interest environmental legal advocacy organization. Climate change realities are hitting hard on the Lake Michigan shoreline communities as record-high lake water levels and waves hammer the built environment, and upcoming lower water levels will stretch and strand water intakes, piers, docks and marinas. High water levels, combined with high waves caused by storm surges, are wreaking havoc now on residential buildings, commercial and industrial facilities, and beaches and parks along Lake Michigan. Multiple communities are threatened. This grant supports multi-faceted work to help make the Lake Michigan Shoreline resilient to flooding risks by analyzing specific high flood risk areas and through raising awareness of flooding challenges with policymakers. Additional funding was provided to address urgent needs resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic including a loss of fundraising revenue and additional IT expenses for work-from-home.
Project Title
Spring Creek Restoration
Amount
$15,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
The Forest Preserve Foundation dedicates energy and resources needed to connect people with nature in Cook County. This grant funds restoration efforts in the Spring Creek Valley headwater and supports the conclusions provide in Openlands’ Status of Headwater Streams of Chicago Wilderness Report. Considering the priorities present in the Openlands report, the Forest Preserve Foundation will restore six acres around the Spring Creek Valley headwater. where currently two sedge meadows at the site are divided by a large wall of buckthorn, which is contributing to the erosion of Spring Creek’s streambanks.
Project Title
Chicago River System Land Use Plan
Amount
$25,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
First of a two-year grant (total $50K). Friends of the Chicago River improves and protects the Chicago River system for people, plants and animals. The Chicago River System Land Use Plan connects many government and nonprofit projects together through a broad watershed analysis, addressing overlapping environmental, water qualty and equity challenges. The project consists of Chicago River Watershed Council, Wildlife Connectivity Action Plan, Nature belongs to You and Chicago Wilderness.
Project Title
Midwest Grows Green: expanding Sustainable Landscapes across Greater Chicago
Amount
$15,313
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Madison, WI
IPM’s mission is to improve sustainability in agriculture and communities by using the power of the marketplace. IPM projects aim to increase adoption of IPM and other best practices that improve working conditions, reduce greenhouse gases, improve air quality, water quality and soil health while reducing risks to health and the environment from pesticide and nutrient use in agriculture and communities. This grant supports efforts to transition the north lawn of the Field Museum, a part of Chicago Park District’s Grant Park, to organic lawn care.
Project Title
Volunteer Stewardship Network
Amount
$15,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Second year of a two-year grant ($15K in 2019; $15K in 2020) In 1983, The Nature Conservancy in Illinois and the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission created the Volunteer Stewardship Network (VSN) to connect volunteers to the outdoors and the natural world. Since then, the VSN has empowered thousands of people to preserve Illinois’ lands and waters. These volunteers work to protect and restore natural areas by collecting and dispersing native seeds, removing invasive species, planting trees and other plants, performing prescribed burns and many other activities. This grant supports scholarships and tools necessary to allow volunteers to get the certification and training they need to participate in the very important function of prescribed fire and builds on prior year grants.
Project Title
Covid 19 Emergency Funding
Amount
$5,000
Category
Environment
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Covid 19 Emergency funding covers the unexpected expense of equipping staff to work from home. Includes lap top computers with cameras, extra large monitors, additional outside IT support.
Veterans $57,000
Project Title
Veteran Stand Down
Amount
$12,000
Category
Veterans
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
A Safe Haven is a non-profit social enterprise that helps people aspire, transform and sustain their lives as they transition from homelessness to self-sufficiency with pride and purpose. The grant supports ASH’s seventh annual Veteran Stand Down. The event provides approximately 500 homeless and at-risk veterans with breakfast, lunch, military surplus goods, clothing, footwear, and supportive services (Haircuts, eye exams, medical screenings, employment services, etc.).
Project Title
At Ease: Art and Nature for Veterans
Amount
$15,000
Category
Veterans
Year
2020
Location
Riverwoods, IL
Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods promotes the importance of nature for nurturing personal and community well-being, cultivating creativity, and inspiring learning. The Oberweiler Foundation grant supports Brushwood Center’s nature inspired art programs for veterans. Research shows that time in nature reduces stress and improves mental disorders that afflict veterans such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Building on past funding this grant supports growth of The At Ease: Art and Nature for Veterans workshops through new offsite prgrams, research programs, and outreach efforts.
Project Title
Discretionary
Amount
$5,000
Category
Veterans
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
Code Platoon helps veterans and military spouses transition into the civilian workforce by providing technical training and career placement through a coding bootcamp in Chicago. Students learn software development principles, modern software languages and professional best practices – frequently culminating in local paid internships.
Project Title
Emergency Financial Assistance
Amount
$15,000
Category
Veterans
Year
2020
Location
Palatine, IL
Salute, Inc. passionately pursues meeting the financial, physical and emotional needs of military service members, veterans and their families. Military members served are currently experiencing the effects of the economic challenges our country is facing along with reentry to civilian life, unemployment in many instances caused by PTSD, physical injuries, and emotional issues, all due to their military service. As well, many experience delayed benefits from the enormous VA backlog. Financial assistance includes delinquent rent, tax bills, food counseling, medical bills, phone and utility, car payment, out-patient transportation, insurance, etc. All payments are made to vendors (not directly to veterans) and cases managed by experienced volunteer counselors.
Project Title
iRest®
Amount
$10,000
Category
Veterans
Year
2020
Location
Chicago, IL
The mission of the Veterans Restorative Project (VRP) is to help veterans in Northern Illinois improve their health, well-being and resilience through iRest Yoga Nidra Meditation. This grant supports continuation of iRest programs at the Hines Veterans’ Administration and Chicago Heights Vet Center.