Category: CCO Residents

Government Funding Gap

Posted on by Beth

“The shelter gave me a place and helped with doctors, food, and clothes.
The team helped me with everything.”

– Sheila found refuge, training, employment, and permanent housing while at CCO

Dear CCO Supporter,

Each year, Cornerstone Community Outreach faces a gap in government funding for direct services, and this year is no exception. In 2024, we supported 592 individuals, offering safe refuge and wrap-around services to help reduce the devastating impact of poverty on the lives of CCO guests. While we continue to welcome and assist each person who comes through our doors, we need your support to extend our efforts during this ongoing funding delay.

This year the need is immediate for unique reasons.  While we always rely on your gifts to close the gap in government funding, we are facing both a cash flow issue and a larger-than-normal budget deficit. Payments from the city and state have been delayed, and we have not yet been fully reimbursed for 2024 services.  On top of that, city reimbursement rates have not kept pace with inflation. Recent political uncertainty in Washington, DC has put our current state and federal grant applications at risk.

Please consider making a gift in support of CCO’s critical work. Your partnership is vital to our efforts to address the urgent barriers unhoused people encounter. In order to ensure continuity of services for our population experiencing homelessness, we have set an ambitious goal to raise $500,000 by July 1. Your financial gift directly improves the lives of CCO residents like Sheila (pictured above), who found a safe place and strong support so her employment and housing dreams could become a reality.  

Below is an example of the impact you can make with a gap-bridging gift to CCO:

$26 1 day’s housing, meals, and care for an individual (total cost: $52

$364 Two weeks’ housing, meals, and care for an individual (total cost: $728)

$1092 Two weeks’ housing, meals, and care for a family (total cost: $2,184)

$2,400 Average quarterly cost for one person at CCO (total cost: $4,800)

$4,400 Average quarterly cost for a family at CCO (total cost: $8,800)

Your gift will allow us to continue our mission of meeting unhoused people where they are, assisting with comprehensive support, and helping them find a home. Thank you in advance for your contribution.

If you would like to make a gift, below are the ways you can donate. Please reach out to me personally if you would like to discuss CCO and other ways to support our work. 

  • Donate online by clicking the Donate button above
  • Call us at (872) 246-5324
  • Send a check to: Cornerstone Community Outreach, 4615 N. Clifton Ave., Chicago, IL 60640

Thank you again!

Sincerely,

Andrew Winter, Executive Director
Cornerstone Community Outreach
awinter@ccolife.org

Happy Thanksgiving

Posted on by Beth

Happy Thanksgiving from the staff, volunteers, and shelter guests at CCO!

We are deeply grateful for your support, financial generosity, involvement, time, energy, and efforts on behalf of CCO’s mission and shelter guests. CCO families and individuals will be enjoying a turkey dinner with all the trimmings. CCO staff and volunteer groups make this holiday delicious and unforgettable for guests. You’re involvement helps provide safe shelter, nutritious meals, and essential wrap-around services to those who find refuge at CCO. Many thanks!

Would you like to read a CCO Success Story? Click here.

Would you like to learn more about Team CCO & the Bank of America Chicago Marathon? Click here.

Would you like to read the CCO 2024 Christmas Letter? Click here.

Run the 2025 Bank of America Chicago Marathon with Team CCO

Posted on by andrew

Applications for the 2025 Bank of America Chicago Marathon have just opened and we have Charity Guaranteed Entries!

Each year runners challenge themselves to achieve their marathon, and bring others along in support of them and their passion! As a Team CCO charity runner, you make it possible to help a family end their cycle of homelessness.
Our fundraising goal will provide 1,500 nights of shelter for people experiencing homelessness.

Find out more on our 2025 Team Page

Fund Forward Campaign Letter

Posted on by Beth

$2,400 will cover the cost of one person for an entire shelter stay.

$520 will cover the cost of one person for 20 days and nights of shelter and care. 

$260 will cover the cost of one person for 10 days and nights of shelter and care

$130 will cover the cost of one person for 5 days and nights of shelter and care.

$26 will cover the cost of one person for 24 hours of shelter and care.

Click the button below to donate to provide shelter and transform lives!

Download the 2024 FU

Back-to-School Party Photo Album!

Posted on by Beth

The CCO Back-to-School Party was a hit! Children at CCO enjoyed games, art projects, new books, high-energy dancing, face painting, and academic motivation! Parents and children alike were thrilled the kids got new backpacks, shoes, school supplies, and support to start the academic year off right. Each year, staff, volunteers, and donors go all out to make the B2S party memorable. Scroll down to enjoy the 2024 Back-to-School Photo Album & Sponsorship logos!

Sponsorship is an integral part of making CCO events remarkable. This year’s generous sponsors were Baird & Warner, Tiny Giants Early Learning Center, Twinkling Stars, and Lakefront Roofing Supply. Thank you to these fabulous local businesses who put their time, energy, and financial support behind kids sheltered at CCO! We couldn’t do it without you!

Thank you!

Do you want to learn how CCO cultivates every child’s potential? Click here to learn more.

Many thanks to our generous and dedicated donors!

Click on the logos below to learn more about these generous local business that support CCO’s mission, shelter guests, and events.

Click the link below to give a gift that will improve the lives of unhoused children while supporting CCO’s mission to Address Homelessness, Provide Shelter, Accept People,
and Help them find a Home.

Child at CCO to Medical Technician!

Posted on by Beth

This story is from the CCO Archives.

When Lillian’s* family came to CCO, she was 12 years old, but she wasn’t new to the homeless experience. For years, she and her family had shuffled from one extended family member’s house to another. At each new destination, disputes erupted, and she and her family were again displaced, forced to move on to the next couch, floor space, or basement. Lillian grew up with a front-row seat to the destabilizing effects of homelessness but she found hope.

“It was always the same, every day after school. I would make up a story to tell my friends why I was walking the other way. ‘I’ve got to go to my uncle’s house.’ I didn’t want them to know I was homeless. I was ashamed of it. I never shared it with anybody, and they never knew.

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Cultivating Every Child’s Potential

Posted on by Beth

In 2023, 244 children called CCO home; over half were school-aged. Education has a powerful influence on the life of a child. CCO aims to equip children with confidence and support to begin and maintain an exceptional school year. The Back-to-School Party and its Sponsors ensure children receive backpacks, supplies, and other essentials to start the year right. Academic support is part of each child’s experience at CCO. Through one-on-one tutoring, specialized family support, dedicated open-air play spaces like the CCO Rooftop Playground and Garden, computer labs, and advocating for children’s academic rights, we work to ensure children at CCO have every opportunity to learn and grow.

In the 2023-24 school year, Chicago Public Schools identified 26,800 students as experiencing homelessness, a more than 50% increase from the previous year. The data reflects a shocking acceleration in homelessness among school-aged children. Research studies in the U.S., U.K., and beyond say that homelessness leads to adverse educational outcomes.

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Your 2023 Annual Report!

Posted on by Beth

“Cornerstone gave me the chance I needed. It was so hard to find a decent job
when I was sleeping in my car every night.
I had no place to wash up, no rest, nothing to eat.
I couldn’t get past the first interview. 
Thank you for everything!
You helped me get my life back!”
– Former CCO Guest

Your support has paved the way for many CCO success stories! The 2023 CCO Annual Report offers information about the good things that have happened at CCO in the lives of shelter guests. We thank you for ensuring shelter residents access shelter beds, enjoy nourishing meals, and get individualized professional care leading to housing.

Your donation will guarantee stabilizing opportunities and housing for those experiencing homelessness.

Click Here to Donate Today!

Wrap-Around Services Fight Poverty!

Posted on by Beth

Wrap-around services are a daily extension of the care shelter guests experience at CCO. Most shelter guests arrive with no income, support, and limited resources. Once guests enter CCO, immediate needs are met, such as meals, clothing, bedding, and hygiene items.

However, CCO’s wrap-around services go far beyond the immediate needs of families and individuals. The support needed for success is different for each person. A young mother with two children will have different needs than a senior with a chronic health condition. Case managers work alongside guests to create an individualized plan to link shelter guests with practical assistance that brings income, health, and housing stability.

Cornerstone needs your financial support to continue to provide services and shelter. Click here to donate today and make a difference in the lives of families and individuals experiencing homelessness.