La Casa Norte- Chicago Day 1

By: Libby Casey

Today we went to La Casa Norte, which was on the North Side of Chicago. La Casa Norte is shelter for youth homeless that will help provide emergency housing, transitional housing, and a place to stay around the Chicago area. La Casa Norte’s mission is to serve youth and families confronting homelessness. They “provide access to stable housing and deliver comprehensive services that act as a catalyst to transform lives and communities.” Their vision is a world where everyone belongs, communities thrive, and all people have dignity.

Service

When we got to the building, the two people helping us were Jasmine and Roberto. They told us about themselves and how they got involved in La Casa Norte, and they told us the history of La Casa Norte and the statistics of homelessness in Illinois and Chicago. They told us that at one point there was around 25,000 homeless youth that were in the public school system, which was a shock factor to me since that is about the number of students that attend Missouri State University.

We then divided ourselves into groups after our coordinators told us what we were going to be doing that day. Some of us went to the kitchen to make desserts, some of us sorted clothes, and some of us (including myself) stayed in the main room to make decorations. While making decorations, I got to chat with Jasmine about how impactful what we are doing really is. Even things, such as making decorations, seem so small to us, but will mean so much to the youth who come in the rooms everyday and see that people actually care.

After our groups finished these tasks, we all went to the outside of the building to pick up trash around the building and down a couple of blocks. This makes the building and area seem nicer and cleaner, so there won’t be a stigma that homeless shelters are “gross” or people who go to the are dirty. We then went upstairs to organize kits that go to over 40 kids and teenagers. The kits included items from socks to snacks to deodorant. These will mean so much to the youth who have nothing and we were so happy to organize and make the kits for them.

Reflection

At the reflection we were asked for one word that came to mind after the day we just had. The word that immediately came to my mind was grateful. I was extremely grateful to be able to spend my day at La Casa Norte and to provide them with all the help that I could. Knowing more about the statistics and overall facts about homelessness in Chicago, it made me grateful that I had the family, housing, support system, etc. that I have. I am grateful for the school I am in and to be able to serve on trips like these.