Time for guests to enjoy a nutritious hot meal!

HELP Is Making Some Very Positive Headway

by JoAnn Bennett

Each winter, Robert counts the long nights that he has slept in dark doorways trying to keep warm. Preferring to travel at night with “his partner,” a steel shopping cart, he tries to stay out of sight during the day.

Robert, 47, has been homeless for 17 years, but is still not used to the terrible weather conditions and the equally cold treatment he receives from Chicagoans passing through downtown.

Wearing faded blue jeans, a thin white long sleeved shirt and a sports hat, Robert considers himself an eyesore to others.

“People don’t even acknowledge me,” he said. “People think I am crazy.”

Like Robert, there are many homeless citizens living in the affluent areas of downtown Chicago. Fortunately for some, a local organization feeds the homeless a weekly meal, often served by some of the finest restaurants in Chicago.

This organization is called Help Ease Local Poverty.

HELP is an Illinois not-for-profit organization comprised of groups such as Catholic Charities, Fourth Presbyterian Church, Greater North Michigan Avenue Association, Holy Name Cathedral, Lawson House YMCA, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, River North Association, Streeterville Organization of Active Residents and Thresholds Mobile Assessment Unit.

Additionally, the City’s Department of Human Services, the 18th District Police Station and the Department of Veteran Affairs also work very closely with HELP.

The organization strives to both feed those in need and to provide other quality of life services in an attempt to lessen the number of homeless on the streets of Chicago.

To reach these goals, volunteers gather to help serve some 125 disadvantaged community members.

Jacqueline Hayes, president of HELP, meets with the volunteers and divides tasks such as guest check-in, meal ticket collection, Salvation Army coat distribution, coffee service, new program introduction, etc. As guests arrive at the doorway, Hayes takes a few moments to greet each individually.

As guests arrive, a line is formed for faster check-in

"I enjoy treating each of our guests with dignity,” Hayes said.

The suppers are provided by restaurants such as Intercontinental Hotel, Bin 36 and Signature Room among others. The meals are then served at 721 N. LaSalle St., a spacious, attractive and safe facility made accessible by Catholic Charities.

Hot, well-balanced suppers are served by restaurants on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month. On the alternate Wednesdays, the suppers served are more casual and provided by companies such as Costco.

Regardless of the meal being served, there is always something intellectually stimulating for the guests. The volunteers engage in the programs, which are either educational or just plain entertaining. HELP’s most recent endeavor consists of a literacy program aiming to help guests improve their reading and writing skills.

Other HELP benefits include: drug rehabilitation, job training programs and homeless shelters.

For more information on HELP, call (312) 861-1700.