Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund Annual Report 2009

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In 2009,

Our Fund Board

awarded $1.145 million to 48 organizations. Bethany Fund Communities Map

Humboldt Park

East Humboldt Park

Austin

West Garfield Park

East Garfield Park

North Lawndale

From Our Executive Committee The Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund marked a second amazing year in 2009. In response to the economic downturn, the Bethany Fund increased its grant making and awarded $1.145 million to 48 organizations across all five fund communities. In just two short years since the Fund Board was installed, we have awarded more than $2.145 million and 75 grants to local organizations that share in our collective mission to promote health and wellness and address health disparities and their determinants on Chicago’s West Side. We are truly thankful for the opportunity and ability to have awarded both new and continuation grants in these challenging times. The Fund Board continues to strengthen its partnerships in the community by conducting site visits with grantees in an effort to gain a firsthand understanding of the organizations and programs we support. To further assist in the development and sustainability of community organizations, we organized professional-development workshops to address some of the capacity-building needs of both grantee and non-grantee organizations. In response to the specific needs of our grantee organizations, we also established a new capacity-building initiative that provides them with more comprehensive and individualized technical-assistance support. To promote community collaboration, our Fund Board hosted its first VIP reception with grantees, board members and other stakeholders. The event provided the opportunity to network and share stories of challenges and accomplishments as advocates for and in the community. We continue to take pride in our unique and dedicated Fund Board, which is a vital part of the Bethany Fund’s success. Our Board—comprised of both Advocate Health Care representatives and community leaders from all five fund communities—comes together in faith and solidarity to advance the work of the Bethany Fund. We play a very active role in our grant-making operations and work with diligence and determination to support transformational philanthropy in our targeted communities. It continues to be a great honor and privilege to award grants to local nonprofit organizations that work toward the advancement of health and wellness on Chicago’s West Side. We continue to deepen our partnerships with our grantees as we seek to improve the lives of individuals, families and communities. We ask God for guidance and wisdom as we continue on our path to strengthen the communities we serve. Our journey continues.

Ina N. Owens Director



The Rev. Bonnie Condon Board Secretary Advocate Representative

The Rev. Wardell Newsome Board Vice Chair Community Representative

Mildred Wiley Board Chair Community Expert

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About Us

History and Mission



In 2006, Advocate Health Care founded the Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund (Bethany Fund). Established during Advocate Bethany Hospital’s transition to a long-term acute-care hospital, this fund was created as part of Advocate’s ongoing commitment to support existing community organizations as they build, promote and sustain healthy communities on the West Side of Chicago. The mission of the Bethany Fund is to address the unique health needs of the Bethany Hospital community by funding programs that promote health and wellness and reduce health disparities and their determinants. This mission will be carried out by nonprofit organizations that share the Bethany Fund’s core values of dignity, community investment, family and spirituality, and demonstrate a commitment to utilizing community assets to promote positive community development. Through the work of the Fund, Advocate Health Care will commit $14 million over 14 years to support local programs that seek to address the mission of the fund in five targeted West Side communities served by Advocate Bethany Hospital. These fund communities are Austin, Humboldt Park, East Garfield Park, West Garfield Park and North Lawndale.

The Fund Communities • Austin • East Garfield Park • West Garfield Park • Humboldt Park • North Lawndale 2

Because the mission of the Bethany Fund is to address the unique health needs of the Advocate Bethany Hospital community, grants are awarded to organizations and for activities that are located within the boundaries of the fund communities as defined by the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development. In order to meet the unique needs of the Humboldt Park community, however, the boundaries for Humboldt Park have been extended by the Bethany Fund Board to include the area east to Western Avenue, encompassing the community known as “East Humboldt Park.”

Leadership and Values Bethany Fund Board: The Bethany Fund Board, comprised of eight community members and seven Advocate Health Care representatives, is responsible for overseeing the Bethany Fund and selecting the applicants that will receive grant awards. Bethany Fund Advisory Council: Advocate Health Care formed an advisory council that was convened from December 2006 to June 2007 to conduct a needs assessment of the fund communities and to identify priority areas for funding. Led by an outside facilitator from

should reach his/her full potential with the support of the entire community. • Investing in and Promoting Community Institutions: Access for the entire community to institutions that provide opportunities for education, training, the arts, cultural activities, commerce, human services, recreation and conservation should be supported and valued in planning and priority setting.

Left to right: the Rev. Ira Acree, Bethany Fund Board; Lena Dobbs-Johnson, Advocate Bethany Hospital; the Rev. Jerry Wagenknecht, Advocate Health Care; Ina N. Owens, Bethany Fund; Tom Shirey, Advocate Charitable Foundation Board; the Rev. Michael Eaddy, Bethany Fund Board

• Family: Traditional and nontraditional family units provide a critical nurturing environment for healthy development and contribute to health and wellness. Community resources and institutions should be designed on a foundation of family support. • Faith and Spirituality: The hope, fellowship and values that are byproducts of faith communities and individual spirituality contribute to healthy communities and should be viewed as important considerations in planning for community-health improvement.

Technical Assistance and Capacity Building

Left to right: Osofo Atta, Advocate Health Care; Juana Ballesteros, Greater Humboldt Park Community of Wellness; Jeania Davis, El Rincon Community Clinic

the public health arena, this advisory council was comprised of both Fund community members and leaders and Advocate Health Care leaders. The advisory council has determined that all programs submitted for funding should utilize community assets and incorporate one or more of the following core values:

• Individual and Community-wide Dignity: Respect for diverse cultures, beliefs, physical abilities and age groups should be valued in the Fund Communities. The dignity of the individual should be paramount in all community efforts. These efforts should be guided by the principle that every individual

The Bethany Fund Board and staff believe that effective grant-making in the fund communities involves more than the mere distribution of funds to grantees. The fund board and staff establish relationships with and provide support to grantees through site visits and ongoing technical assistance. Capacity building workshops are offered and open to all community organizations within the five fund communities, which provide opportunities for organizational and professional development.

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Funding Priority Areas The Bethany Fund Advisory Council identified seven priority areas to guide initial funding efforts. In all of these areas, health disparities exist between the fund communities and the city of Chicago as a whole. To receive funding, all proposed programs must address one or more of these priority areas: • Diabetes: The age-adjusted rate of death due to diabetes mellitus in the fund communities is 73.3 percent higher than the Chicago rate. • Employment and Training: The unemployment rate among the population age 16 and older in the fund communities is 36 to 155 percent higher than the Chicago rate. • HIV/AIDS: The prevalence of AIDS in the fund communities is 17.9 to 139.4 percent higher than the Chicago rate. • Infant Health and Wellness: The infant-mortality rate in the fund communities is 67 percent higher than the Chicago rate. • School Dropout Prevention: The school-dropout rate at age 16 in the fund communities is 20.2 to 36.5 percent higher than the Chicago rate. • Teen-pregnancy Prevention: The rate of births to teens in the fund communities is 48.9 to 98.5 percent higher than the Chicago rate. • Violence Prevention: The age-adjusted rate of death due to assault (homicide) in the fund communities is 101 percent higher than the Chicago rate. The priority areas for this fund are documented in the report of the Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund Advisory Council (2007), “Reducing Health Disparities and Improving Community Health and Wellness in the Advocate Bethany Hospital Health Fund Communities.”

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In October 2009, the Bethany Fund hosted a VIP reception for grantees, board members and other stakeholders to network and celebrate the great accomplishments of the Bethany Fund.

Left to right: Michael Strode, Westside Youth Technical Entrepreneurial Center; Camille Lilly, Austin Chamber of Commerce; Wanda Wright, Austin Chamber of Commerce

Left to right: Kerry Nelson, Bethany Fund Board; Priscilla Jones, Priscy’s Production Outreach Program

Left to right: Nichole Williams-Edmonds, Bethany Fund; Amol Tripathi, Advocate Charitable Foundation

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Bethany Fund Grantees

A u s ti n Academy of Scholastic Achievement $35,000 School-dropout Prevention To support its Breaking the Barriers curriculum, which assists at-risk high-school students with achieving and setting goals through a comprehensive social-emotional and life-skills development curriculum.

Arthur Lockhart Research Institute $20,000 Diabetes To support its Sustaining Health and Families with Information and Testing Program, which provides diabetes education, awareness and testing, as well as individual referral and follow-up services.

Austin Chamber of Commerce $15,000 Employment and Training To expand the current Summer Youth program, which aims to combat unemployment by providing summer employment and life-skills training opportunities to youth, primarily in the Austin community.

Austin Childcare Provider’s Network $18,500 Employment and Training To expand a program that trains women who are unemployed or underemployed to become childcare assistants.

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Bethel New Life $35,000



Employment and Training For its youth employment program, which provides job-training and jobdevelopment services for youth who seek employment immediately after high school.

New Birth Christian Center $25,000

School-dropout Prevention To support its youth service program, which provides teenpregnancy prevention, anti-dropout and violence-prevention activities for youth ages 10-18.



Teen-pregnancy Prevention For its Blossoming of Souls Initiative, a mentoring program that promotes character development and aims to help girls develop decision-making skills and avoid high-risk behaviors, which may lead to teen pregnancy.

Comprehensive Community Organization $20,000

Walk by Faith Mission $25,000

Employment and Training To support educational and jobreadiness programs designed to increase the literacy and computer skills of community residents.

School-dropout Prevention To support its School-dropout Prevention Program, which sponsors workshops, activities and a summer program that promotes positive social behavior and cultural awareness for youth ages 11-18.



School-dropout Prevention For its Homework Hangout program, which provides after-school tutoring, social activities, and HIV and sexuality education for elementaryand high-school students.

Christian Faith MB Church $15,000

Direct Light Services $10,000

Greater St. John Center of Hope $15,000

School-dropout Prevention To establish its pregnancy-, dropoutand violence-prevention programs for at-risk youth.



Westside Health Authority $50,000 Diabetes For its Healthy Lifestyle Diabetes Prevention and Wellness Program, which provides screenings, health education, nutrition classes, fitness activities and support groups to identify and prevent the progression of diabetes in the community.



New beginnings: Academy of Scholastic Achievement Students in Chicago’s inner-city schools often face extraordinary challenges that are barriers to educational attainment and success. Teen pregnancy, low academic performance and chronic truancy are just a few of the many issues that have a profound impact upon student achievement. It should come as no surprise that these issues contribute to Chicago’s high-school dropout rate—a whopping 51 percent according to an April 2009 study by the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center. That’s where the Academy of Scholastic Achievement (ASA) steps in. For 32 years the alternative charter high school in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood has been educating students who have dropped out of traditional schools. “This is a population that has largely been ignored,” says ASA's director of resource development, Sabine Champagne, of the diverse student body. “We need to be able to relate to them, identify with them and find options to help them make positive life choices.” With an enrollment of nearly 200 students between the ages of 16 and 19, ASA focuses on each student’s wholistic development. “When students come to the academy, we assess where they are academically and socially,” Champagne says. “We nurture the students so they can achieve a higher quality of life.” To do this, the academy teaches life skills along with traditional school subjects. It also maintains smaller classes, so that students receive the individualized attention they need.

Champagne says. The program, which has been incorporated into existing classes, works with a group of up to 60 hand-selected teens and is facilitated by adolescent-behavior specialists.

The Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund has also provided support for ASA to implement Breaking the Barriers—a program that teaches students selfaffirmation, individual and social maturity, career development and financial independence. “Students aren’t just bombarded with facts, history, numbers and literature,”

The academy’s instructors stay attuned to what’s happening in their students’ lives, and adjust the pace, order and topics of the curriculum according to student need. This has helped students develop trust with the adults and has helped contribute to the academy’s success—it currently has a graduation rate of more than 70 percent.

“These kids are the future of our country,” Champagne says.

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E as t G a r f i e l d Pa r k Deborah’s Place $10,000 Employment and Training To support the Employment Services Program, which provides training and support services to help women find and maintain employment.

Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance $18,084 Diabetes For support of its Healthy Communities/Healthy People Walkforce program, which provides options for physical activity, promotes health awareness and educates residents about ways to incorporate healthy habits into their daily lives.

Marillac Social Center $34,266 Diabetes To provide diabetes prevention and management classes to residents of the West Side.

Taproots $40,000 Teen-pregnancy Prevention To support its Education for Life Comprehensive Abstinence Education Program, which aims to decrease teen-pregnancy rates and prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS.

Voices of Community Ministerial Association $25,000 School-dropout Prevention To fund its Youth for Change afterschool program, which provides youth ages 5-14 with tutoring, peer- mentoring training and lifeskills classes.

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Teaching Teens: Taproots Each year, nearly 10 million teenagers become infected with sexually transmitted diseases, and teen pregnancies account for 12 percent of all pregnancies in the United States. These sobering statistics are why Taproots was established on Chicago’s West Side in 1978. Initially founded as a drop-in center for teen parents and a licensed daycare center for their children, Taproots now provides social and prevention outreach, life skills and parenting education to children, adolescents and their families. An effective grassroots organization, Taproots has established partnerships with Chicago public and private schools, churches and community organizations to implement its Education for Life program. Its goal is to prevent teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections among adolescents by empowering them to make informed decisions. Taproots executive director and sex educator, Ruby Taylor, and her partners provide a 12-week course, which supplements the existing sex-education curriculum, to juniorhigh students at seven schools on the West Side. The course stresses abstinence and also educates students about basic anatomy, reproductive processes, sexually transmitted infections and safe-sex practices. Thanks in part to a grant from the Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund, the program reached approximately 350 students in 2009.

is a very big responsibility. And it can cause adult consequences.” Parent involvement is also a major component of the program. Parents attend seminars and workshops that are designed to empower them with information and skills to effectively communicate with their children about issues related to sex. “It’s more information that I didn’t know,” commented one parent in her evaluation of one of the workshops. The program has been well received by parents, teachers, and most importantly, the students. One student said it best: “This program helps the young people of the future make wise decisions. Every school should have a program like this one.”

The success of the program is due in great part to the dynamic and engaging program staff, who establish close relationships with students and create a comfortable environment where students are encouraged to ask difficult, yet important, questions. “They sometimes think they have all the information but they don’t,” says Taylor. “We want them to know sex

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Wes t G a r f i e l d Pa r k

Home of Life Community Development Corporation $30,000

Primo Center for Women and Children $15,000

Truth and Life Consciousness $25,000

School-dropout Prevention To support its High School Success program, which provides academic instruction, counseling and mentoring services to seventh- and eighth-grade students in preparation for high school.

Employment and Training To support the computer-technology center, which provides residents with new social and economic opportunities through computerliteracy courses.

Employment and Training To fund its job-readiness and computer-training program, which aims to increase employment opportunities for community residents through literacy programs, job-training and job-development services.

The Learning Network Center $10,000 HIV/AIDS To improve access to and use of HIV/AIDS-related services with a focus on ex-offenders and their families.

Marshall Metropolitan High School $19,320 Employment and Training To develop a Certified Nursing Assistant Training Program for unemployed or underemployed adults residing in the West Garfield community.

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People’s Community Development Association of Chicago $25,000 Employment and Training To provide job training, development and placement in the custodialmaintenance and computertechnology fields for ex-offenders, the unemployed and the underemployed.

Priscy’s Production Outreach Program $20,000



Violence Prevention To support its Youth Homicide Prevention Outreach program, which offers programs in the creative and performing arts to youth ages 12-25.



Westside Youth Technical Entrepreneur Center $30,000 School-dropout Prevention To support its West Garfield Life Rejuvenation Project, an after-school program, which utilizes technology to offer academic enrichment, HIV/ AIDS-prevention education, creative arts and career exploration.

Education for life: Marshall High School For more than a decade, John Marshall High School’s Allied Health Careers program has been providing students with skills that can lead to jobs in the medical field immediately after graduation. The program’s huge success—which has helped nearly 300 students since the program’s inception—has led to requests from parents and relatives of students to expand enrollment to community members. “There was a need in the community to address the adult unemployment rate,” says Celeste Rhinehart, R.N., program coordinator, “and almost any career in the medical field is guaranteed employment.” Thanks to a grant from the Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund, Rhinehart was able to create a program for adults in 2009. In March, Rhinehart began advertising to unemployed and underemployed adults living on Chicago’s West Side. With the help of students posting flyers in churches and daycare centers and an announcement on Marshall High School’s marquee, it didn’t take long before she was inundated with applications. Twenty applicants were selected from a pool of more than 120 to participate in the program, which began in June. For six weeks the group received hands-on clinical training at Advocate Bethany Hospital and classroom instruction that covered both nursing curriculum and basic job skills. “This group understood what a gift they were being given,” Rhinehart says.

“Most of them had wanted to get this training, but couldn’t afford it. It can cost $700 to $1,000.” In August, all 20 adult participants completed the course, and 19 passed the state exam to become certified nursing assistants. Since then, the majority of students have found jobs ranging from working in nursing homes and health clinics to working with autistic children.

Others are pursuing advanced nursing degrees. “This program is good for everybody—it helps the participants, and it serves the community,” Rhinehart says. “It is one of my proudest achievements.”

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Hu m b o l d t Pa r k Association House of Chicago $10,000 Employment and Training To support the expansion of its Center for Working Families program, which combats unemployment by providing income-support services, career-preparation courses and financial coaching.

Chicago Anti-Hunger Federation $10,000 Employment and Training For its Oliver’s Kitchen Culinary Arts program, which trains unemployed and underemployed residents for jobs in the food-service industry.

El Rincon Community Clinic $25,000 HIV/AIDS To enhance its ongoing counseling services for Humboldt Park residents by offering HIV/AIDS testing, awareness and education along with pastoral-care sessions to high-risk individuals on the West Side.

Greater Humboldt Park Community of Wellness $30,000 School-dropout Prevention To establish its Pipelines to Careers program, which prepares students age 16 and older for health careers through academic enhancement, health-careers exploration and the securing of paid internships or employment.

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New Life Community Church $25,000 School-dropout Prevention To support its faith-based and family-focused after-school programs, which include mentoring, tutoring and adult-career coaching.

La Casa Norte $26,000

Puerto Rican Cultural Center $25,000

Employment and Training To support its Casa TeraU program, which provides technology training and employment services to community residents.

School-dropout Prevention To expand its Barrio Arts, Culture and Communication Academy, which provides youth with a chance to develop their creative talents

and skills in the areas of theater, newspaper development, radio, photography and film.

West Humboldt Park Family and Development Council $20,000 Employment and Training To support its Building Employment and Entrepreneurial Partnerships (BEEP) program, which provides job-placement assistance and one-on-one job-counseling services.

Community Collaboration: West Humboldt Park Family and Community Development Council BEEP Program For 17 years, the West Humboldt Park Family and Community Development Council has served as a catalyst for family, community and economic development. In 2006, the Development Council organized residents and local stakeholders to form the Building Employment and Entrepreneurial Partnerships (BEEP) committee. Two years later the BEEP committee joined forces with Chicago Commons Adult Education and Training Center and Latino Career Services to design and implement the BEEP program, which provides job counseling, training and placement assistance for area residents age 16 and older. “Ninety percent of our clients are unemployed when they first come to us, and about 55 percent are ex-offenders,” says Jackie Summerville, an employment and intake specialist with BEEP. The program targets residents who are unemployed or underemployed, and who have a limited work history. After job seekers complete a skills profile and a one-on-one assessment, the staff offers an array of services ranging from computer training and resume-writing support, to life-skills training around time management and effective communication skills. “BEEP is not just about placing someone in a job,” says project manager Janece Simmons. “It’s about preparing them and giving them lifelong skills.” In addition to providing training services, BEEP partners with local

government officials, business owners and developers to create jobs and hire people within the community. The program maintains a database of potential job candidates, serves as the liaison between employers and employees and follows up with employers after a candidate has been placed in a job. In 2009, the program successfully placed more than 50 people in jobs

ranging from construction to retail in the Humboldt Park community. “We could never have achieved any of the success we have had without our partners in the community, including the Bethany Fund,” says BEEP chairperson Ed Boone. “It is a win-win for everyone. Residents find work, business owners get skilled employees and the community as a whole flourishes.”

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Nor t h L a w n d a l e A Hand Up Recovery Homes $15,000

Lawndale Christian Development Corporation $20,000

Employment and Training To provide support for its drugcounseling, job-training and development services, which aim to increase employment among individuals recovering from alcohol and drug addiction.

Better Boys Foundation $16,330

Employment and Training To support a technology-centered training and workforce-development program for residents ages 18-35, who are unemployed or underemployed.



School-dropout Prevention To support its After School Program (ASP), which provides rigorous academic support through a daily homework center and a series of learning-enhanced activity modules year, round for youth ages 13-18 in North Lawndale.

Breaking Ground $37,500

Community Christian Alternative Academy $50,000



School-dropout Prevention To support a comprehensive, schoolwide health-education program aimed at reducing risk factors associated with school dropout, unemployment and teen births.



HIV/AIDS To support its existing HIV/AIDS awareness, education and testing program and to establish a new diabetes-screening program.

Diabetes To implement a diabetes education and awareness campaign, “Diabetes Sweet & Bitter: I Can Be Free,” aimed at decreasing the mortality rate caused by diabetes in the West Garfield Park community.

Sinai Community Institute $25,000

Lena Washington Food and Shelter Foundation $20,000 Employment and Training To support efforts to provide job assessment, training and placement for homeless and unemployed residents of North Lawndale.

School-dropout Prevention To support its Bound for Glory program, which seeks to reduce the number of school dropouts in North Lawndale through a combination of mentoring, academic assistance and life-skills education.

North Lawndale College Prep Charter High School $20,000

Umoja Student Development Corporation $40,000



School-dropout Prevention To support several development and enrichment programs that focus on providing students with academic and life-skills development so they can successfully complete college.

North Lawndale Employment Network $35,000 Employment and Training To support employment acquisition and retention for formerly incarcerated persons in the North Lawndale community.

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The Gift House Inc. $25,000

Sankofa Safe Child Initiative $20,000

Lawndale Christian Health Center $25,000 Diabetes To expand its Chronic Care Program, which provides education, nutritional counseling and exercise programs in an effort to improve the health outcomes of patients with diabetes.



Employment and Training For support of its APL Teaching Factory program, which creates and oversees job training and placement in the manufacturing and building trades for hard-to-employ West Side residents.





School-dropout Prevention To support its school-based studentdevelopment programs, which engage high-school students in academic achievement, post-secondary planning, career exploration, community building and leadership development.

Young Men’s Educational Network $20,000 School-dropout Prevention To support its Making Men through Mentoring initiative, which provides mentoring support for African-American boys, in an effort to reduce schooldropout and unemployment rates.

Opening doors to success: Umoja Student Development Corporation Since Umoja Student Development Corporation was founded at Manley Career Academy High School 12 years ago, the high school’s graduation rate has increased by more than 30 percent. Today, more than 60 percent of its graduates go on to pursue post-secondary education, compared with 10 percent in 1997. As one of the few nonprofit organizations that has established a long-term residency in a Chicago public school, Umoja provides students with a range of opportunities to help them understand that education offers a path to personal, professional and civic success. “Kids stay in school when they believe there’s a purpose for their education, that it’s getting them something somewhere and that there are people who care about them and believe in their success,” says Lila Leff, CEO of Umoja. The organization’s best-practice model of youth development and education actively engages students in academic achievement, community building and leadership opportunities. Its staff collaborates with students and teachers to integrate leadership- and selfdevelopment into the existing curriculum, helping to create a school culture that supports and expects high achievement. Umoja also partners with the school administration and nearly 300 community leaders and businesses to provide students with experiences and a firsthand look at success. These relationships help promote Umoja’s focus on keeping students in school and helping them make good transitions into adult life and college. “Our partnerships help us make the world bigger for our young people by taking them out into the world and also bringing the world

to them,” Leff says. In 2009, Umoja also helped students acquire more than $1 million in scholarships. The program has been so successful that it has also established Umoja University—an intensive weeklong training for educators—which shares theory, tools, resources and strategies to support efforts to build positive, student-centered communities in their own schools.

in Orr Academy High School and Power House High School and reaches more than 2,000 students annually through its combined programs. “The grant has shown a real community investment in our young people,” Leff says. “Our work enables and empowers students to successfully claim their future.”

Thanks to funding from the Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund, Umoja’s scope has expanded. The organization has launched programs

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from the ground up:

Building a sustainable community organization

New Life Center

When Bethel Evangelical Lutheran School in Chicago’s Humboldt Park community closed in 2006 because of declining enrollment, elementary-school teacher Elizabeth Galik wasn’t willing to give up on programming that the West Side community desperately needed. The school had recently received a donation of a computer lab, and Galik sought permission to keep it open for children who needed a place to go after school and other community members. “It started out as just internet access and baby toys for all of the people who would bring their little ones,” she says. “Within six months its attendance tripled.”

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The program continued to grow, but it needed funding. “We were asking friends and family for Christmas presents to maintain us at that point,” says Galik, by then the center’s director. It was at that time that she received a request for a proposal from the Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund. “I checked out all kinds of books from the library just to figure out how to write a grant,” remembers Galik, who had never written one before. “The Bethany Fund was our only hope for sustainability and growth.” In 2008 the Bethany Fund awarded a grant to Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church, enabling the organization to expand services. These included educational programming featuring tutoring, computer training and field trips. Galik also hired an afterschool teacher, enabling her to dedicate more time to fundraising and program development. She attended the Bethany Fund’s educational sessions to learn capacity-building skills, which helped her secure additional educational and volunteer support from several community organizations including the Moody Bible Institute, North Park University, Chicago Cares and Sit, Stay, Read. Galik has also been able to diversify funding sources and secure additional grants and contracts from organizations such as the Springboard Foundation, After School Matters and YouthWorks Foundation.

took on its current name. With the support of a second grant from the Bethany Fund, Humboldt Park’s New Life Center now operates on a $75,000 annual budget and has served nearly 250 children since its inception. “The Bethany Fund is what really transformed the center from being me and a friend doing as much as we could to becoming a sustainable organization,” Galik says. “It really was the biggest answer to our prayers.”

In 2009 Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church donated its facility to New Life Community Church, a multi-site church ministry, and the program

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Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund Executive Board Mildred Wiley­—Board Chair Community Expert The Rev. Wardell Newsome—Board Vice Chair Community Representative The Rev. Bonnie Condon—Board Secretary Advocate Representative

Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund Board The Rev. Ira Acree Community Representative

Janine Katonah Advocate Representative

Carroll Cradock, Ph.D. * Advocate Representative

José López Community Expert

Margaret Davis Community Representative

Kerry Nelson Advocate Representative

Jaime Delgado Community Representative

Loris Rayner, M.D. Advocate Representative

The Rev. Michael Eaddy Community Representative

Jacqueline Reed Community Expert

Dianna Grant, M.D. Advocate Representative

The Rev. José Rosa * Advocate Representative

The Rev. Sherman Hicks, D.D. Advocate Representative

Dominica Tallarico Advocate Representative

Advocate Bethany Health Fund Staff Barbara Giloth, Dr. P.H. Vice President, Program Development Advocate Charitable Foundation

Ina N. Owens, LCSW Director, Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund Advocate Charitable Foundation

James Hohner, CPA Vice President, Finance Advocate Charitable Foundation

Nichole Williams-Edmonds Coordinator, Advocate Bethany Hospital Community Health Fund Advocate Charitable Foundation

* Ended term in 2009 Community Expert—Individual must have expertise and experience in community health, public health, epidemiology, community philanthropy, housing, public education, community or economic development, or similar area. Community Representative—Individual must live, work or volunteer in the fund communities and must be highly knowledgeable of one or more fund communities. Individual must have the ability to leverage significant resources on behalf of community initiatives.

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Grants Summary 2009

West Garfield Park 15% $174,320

Austin 25% $283,500

120,000

East Garfield Park 11% $127,350

100,000 North Lawndale 32% $368,830

117,527

Humboldt Park 17% $191,000

80,000

60,000

20,000 Teen-pregnancy Prevention 6% $65,000 HIV/AIDS

0

5% 60,000

Austin

Humboldt Park

North Lawndale

20,881

41,768

40,000

23,019

65,836

Funds Awarded by Community

West Garfield East Garfield Park Park

Population of Fund Communities as of 2000 Violence Prevention 2% $20,000

*2000 population data from the Chicago Department of Public Health

Employment and Training 33% $376,320

School-dropout Prevention 39% $456,330 Diabetes 15% $167,350

Funds Awarded by Priority Area 19

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our journey continues...

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Advocate Charitable Foundation 205 West Touhy Ave. Suite 125 Park Ridge, IL 60068 847.384.3420 advocatehealth.com/bethanyfund