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Khadijeh: Determined to Give her Children a Better Future

When Khadijeh couldn’t afford to pay for the hospital delivery room, a stranger offered to buy her newborn son. As a 33-year-old Afghan living in Iran, she was incredibly vulnerable. Her husband had just passed away, and she alone was caring for their three children and her sick mother. Even her extended family let her down, encouraging her to accept the stranger’s offer so she could support her other children. Khadijeh couldn’t bring herself to part with her son and sever the tie with her late husband.
Read more of her story.

Teenagers Enlist their Community
to Welcome a Refugee Family

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For Ben Matejka’s 16th birthday, he received a colander and mixing bowls. These are unusual gifts for most teenage boys, but he didn't want them for himself. Ben and his next-door neighbor, Maggie Taaffe, are collecting everything they need to co-sponsor a refugee family.

Two teenagers collecting enough furniture and donations to set-up a home for refugees is a very impressive feat. Usually co-sponsors are larger community groups – a congregation, school, alumni association, or three or four families – who furnish an apartment, raise funds for the family’s rent and groceries, and mentor them during their first six months in Chicago.
Read more of their story in our most recent newsletter.

Save the Date

Join us for our annual Many Voices. One Vision. gala on Saturday, April 18, 2015, at a new location: Venue One in Chicago's West Loop neighborhood. The gala features a silent auction, dinner, and dancing with live music by Gentlemen of Leisure.