CHA nonprofit announces $45,000 in grants to organizations focused on quality-of-life for youth

Press contacts:
Office of Communications – Chicago Housing Authority
Karen Vaughan: (312) 786-6666; (312) 656-0743; kavaughan@thecha.org
Matthew Aguilar: (312) 935-2646; (312) 523-7067; maguilar@thecha.org

CHICAGO (May 28, 2021) – CHA's non-profit, Chicago Housing Consulting Services (CHCS), has announced grant awards totaling $45,000 to seven community organizations that provide important programs with a focus on embracing youth opportunities.

One of the many purposes of CHCS, a 501(c)(4), is to enrich the quality of life for youth ages 5-19 through program expansion, capacity-building and program implementation. Categories for doing so include child and youth development, youth education and learning and, two new additions, social justice and economic development.

Margaret Jones, CHA’s Director of Revenue and Partnerships for the Investment Division, said: “This year’s grant awardees are not only serving the participants, they’re building stronger communities and deeper relationships. We look forward to them inspiring innovation and developing solutions that better CHA and our youth, as well as the entire City of Chicago.”

The grants from the 2020 grant award cycle will be for work during 2021.

Grantees include:

MUSIC BOX FOUNDATION ($10,000)

Mission: Music Box Foundation provides music education, mentoring and workforce development programs to underserved youth, young adults, and students with disabilities including visual impairments. Students receive instruction and resources in general and instrumental music, summer music camps, visual and sound recording techniques and dance.

TRUE BELIEVERS COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS ($10,000)

Mission: True Believers Community Connections takes pride in empowering clients through education and training as a leadership development institution. Its vision is to become a primary resource and service provider for emerging leaders in mentoring, youth development, leadership development and workforce development.

REFLECTIONS FOUNDATION – POLISHED PEBBLES ($5,000)

Mission: Reflections Foundation creates communication competencies that ensure the employability of young women in the future workplace. It does this through a continuum of programming from elementary school to high school graduation.

GLOBAL GIRLS, INC. ($5,000)

Mission: Global Girls provides a platform for African American girls, ages 5-18, to voice and stage their authentic stories and create positive change in their communities. Through rigorous theatre and dance training, participants develop essential life skills, including self-awareness, resilience, tenacity and grit – skills that help them succeed on stage and in life.

ORGANIC ONENESS ($5,000)

Mission: Organic Oneness is a grass roots, social justice organization that co-creates with communities to mobilize systemic change, healing and wellness, foregrounding Black, Indigenous and People of Color. Through programs and events, Organic Oneness achieves its mission by building capacity for racial understanding and liberation from oppression and racism.

CHAMPS MALE MENTORING ($5,000)

Mission: CHAMPS Male Mentoring aims to educate, empower, and expose African American and Latino young men beyond the four walls of the school to help them achieve their dreams and goals. CHAMPS envisions a safe environment for every young man by developing their mindsets through culturally relevant conversations and interactions that will help them develop the skills and habits necessary to navigate life in a positive and productive way.

FATHERS, FAMILIES AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES ($5,000)

Mission: Other grants awarded include: Fathers, Families and Healthy Communities confronts poverty and public policy that limits relationships between low-income, non-custodial fathers and their children. Through training, partnerships and advocacy based on a theory of change that promotes the embedding of promising practices, scalable strategies and sustainable efforts, FFHC creates new pathways for men to connect with their children, their families and their communities.

####

ABOUT THE CHICAGO HOUSING AUTHORITY (CHA)

The CHA’s vision is to foster strong, vibrant communities throughout Chicago by increasing affordable housing choices for low-income families. The CHA is also the largest rental housing owner in the City of Chicago. It serves more than 133,000 people in 63,000 households across the city through our Public Housing, Housing Choice Voucher, and Project-Based Voucher programs. For more information, visit www.thecha.org.