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5-13-10 Marillac Social Center Beacon of Hope Ball: An Evening of Hope The 3rd Annual Beacon of Hope Ball was held on Saturday, May 1, 2010 at the Chicago Marriott Magnificent Mile helping to support the children and families at Marillac Social Center. It was an evening of overwhelming generosity, as over 200 supporters and friends of the Center filled the Chicago Ballroom to help raise over $56,000 dollars towards the programming and activities at the Center.
Guests dined on luscious creations and amazing libations while dancing to music provided by the Bob Filler Orchestra and bidding on trips to Vegas in the live auction.
This year’s honorees included Mrs. Maggie Daley, Mrs. Lucy Gavin and the Weber Stephen Product Company whom are devoted advocates, volunteers and sponsors of the Center. All proceeds from ticket sales, live/silent auction and raffle will benefit Marillac Social Center’s programs. Mark your calendar now for next year’s event to be hosted the last weekend of April 2011.
To view and purchase photos from the event please click here.
3-29-10 Social Skills Development the Focal Point of Six Week Program for School Age Children at Marillac On February 3, 2010, the Social Services Department presented a six week social skills group titled “How to Handle Anger” with 21 kindergarten and first graders in the School Age Department’s after school program. The group met once a week for 30 to 40 minutes and was facilitated by TaMia West, Community Counselor. The goals for this group were to help students understand their anger, the behaviors associated with these emotions, and to introduce effective coping strategies students can use to handle anger in various contexts (e.g., school, home, and community).
The majority of activities and lessons chosen for the group were significant to the concept that anger is neither good nor bad, but there are acceptable and unacceptable ways to express it. Role playing, positive reinforcement, behavior rehearsal modeling, interactive activities, and the use of personal stories were applied as methods of teaching for this social skills group.
The children were very receptive and enjoyed each session and to celebrate their success the children were given a pizza party upon completion of the program. Each child was presented with a portfolio of all the work they completed over the course of the six weeks and also included additional feelings worksheets included for the children’s leisure.
3-16-10 Proposed State Budget Cuts Threaten Statewide Funding for Early Childhood and Human Services Programs Recent proposed budget cuts include reducing current funding for education by $1.3 billion and would also put human services organizations in a very difficult position financially. Please visit the Ounce of Prevention website for more information on the proposed cuts and what you can do to help! Click here to access their website.
2-16-10 Learning About Science with a Fun and Interactive Hands on Approach "Mad Science of Chicago” returned to Marillac this year on Feb 11 with their fun and fascinating activities. As in years past, the response was very enthusiastic as kids happily learned about rocks and minerals (phosphorescence, volcanic pressure, tectonic plates), simple machines (pulleys, simple pinchers), and alternative energy sources (solar and wind power). A good time was had by all and many new things were learned by all of the children.
2-16-10 Marillac Seniors Celebrate Valentines Day at the Center On Thursday February 11th the Marillac House Senior program gathered to celebrate Valentines day with lunch, an opportunity to visit with each other and hear from guest speaker Judge Charles Burns. The group is always enthusiastic about learning new things and coming together as a group.
1-29-10 Marillac Hosts Faith Leadership Breakfast on Teen Violence On Wednesday, January 13, 2010, Marillac Social Center hosted a Faith Based Leadership Breakfast focused on the all too relevant issue of Teen Violence. In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, the goal of the event was to connect leaders in the community in an effort to create working partnerships to curb violence.
Keynote speaker, Sheriff Tom Dart, spoke on the efforts he and his office have been making to improve the processes in place at the cook county jail and how agencies and community leaders can work with his office to develop rehabilitation and support systems for those being released from his custody and prevention activities to stop the inmate population from growing. In addition to Sheriff Dart, the panel assembled included Superintendent Jody Weis, Azim Ramelize, Assist. Deputy Commissioner Family & Support Services, Ruby Taylor of Taproots Inc. and two Hope Junior participants, Jalesa Haggard and Deshon McKnight, who have seen the first hand effects of violence in their community.
The day’s event provided suggestions, thought provoking questions and, ultimately, a timeline to create change. Only together will we truly be able to solve this extremely important issue, which will shape the youth of today……and the leaders of tomorrow. 1-22-10 Marillac Supporters Prove that Christmas Truly is the Time for Giving Thank you to all of our donors during this very special time of year!
Throughout the Christmas Season we have been very blessed as our donors proved to be extremely generous in helping our children and families to have a wonderful Christmas. With this amazing generosity we were able to help over 1000 families in their celebration. Our supporters not only donated, food, clothing and toys but many of them also gave their time helping out with special parties and programs.
1-20-10 Wildcats Boys Basketball Team Advances to the Playoffs After Close Win On Tuesday night the Marillac Social Center Wildcats were tested up until the last minute and were able to come away with the win. The game was very close but ended with Marillac ahead 41-38. With this win the boys have made it into the playoffs with their first game on Saturday January 23rd at 10:00am at San Miguel.
UPDATE: With the season now complete, the team finished in 4th place. The boys played hard all season and did very well playing as a team. This was the their first year together and they look forward to next year to come back even stronger. Congratulations on a great season and thank you to the players and all of their supporters!
1-14-10 Marillac Food Pantry Makes Christmas & Thanksgiving Dinner a Reality for Area Families During the 2009 Holiday Season the Marillac Food Pantry, with the help of numerous benefactors and volunteers, served over 1,500 households all the holiday fixings and meal items needed to prepare Christmas and Thanksgiving dinner for their families.
Over 500 turkeys, can goods and other essential items were provided to families on Chicago’s west side with assistance from several very generous churches, businesses and families.
The Marillac Food Pantry is open to help families needing assistance with day to day food items such as cereal, bread, meat and other assorted non-perishable items. With the help of the Greater Chicago Food Depository and Americorp interns Marillac has been able to enhance the selections now available to families who lack available, affordable and healthy options for food in the neighborhood.
The food pantry’s hours are Monday and Friday 9:00-11:30am and Wednesday 5:00-6:30pm. If you are interested in donating items or making a donation to the food pantry please contact Sr. Catherine Marie Lowe in Family Services by calling 773-584-3204.
12-9-09 Hope Junior Lady Warrior Basketball Team Takes the Championship Congratulations to the Marillac House Lady Warriors on their success this season! The team entered last Saturday’s playoff game undefeated and continued their winning ways into the final weekend capturing the title with a 28-27 win against St. Malachy. “The girls really pulled together as a team and displayed the kind of dedication and leadership that is needed to succeed on and off the court,” said coach and Hope Jr. alum, Jalesa Haggard.
Thank you to everyone that has supported the team throughout the season! To find out more about the Hope Junior program please click here.
12-4-09 UPDATE: Video and Discussion on Teen Violence a big success!! "H.O.O.D., Heroes on our Doorsteps" gets the Conversation Started. On Monday November 2nd, Marillac Social Center’s Hope Junior program was the proud host of Stand UP - Speak OUT - Stop the VIOLENCE. The event was an open discussion surrounding the all too relevant topic of Teen Violence on the west side of Chicago. The night started out with the world premiere of the video “H.O.O.D., Heroes on our Doorsteps”, an original production by area teens who deal with these challenges day in and day out. The video was very honest and powerful and lead to a great discussion around the room as to how the community as a whole can work together to bring change.
These young people are the leaders of tomorrow and their dedication and drive to their cause showed through. To find out more information about the Hope Junior program click here.
12-4-09 Weber-Stephen Products Co. Provide Generous Donation towards Hope Junior Program Through the generous support of the Weber Stephen Product Company, Marillac Social Center will be able to continue offering its Hope Junior program over the next three years. When asked about the recent funding, Chief Executive Office Bart Winters said, “We are fortunate to have great friends like the Weber Stephen Product Company. Not only do they believe in our mission, but they demonstrate that belief by partnering with us so that we can continue to make a positive difference in the lives of children and families on Chicago’s west side.” The donation will allow the program to continue to provide over 65 children and teens with academic, social and cultural arts programming on a daily basis. With the increased violence within the community and the current economic conditions this support allows these children and teens a safe, positive environment all year long. In July 2009, the program faced major cuts due to the state budget crisis and economy. This generous gift couldn’t have come at a better time!
Project Hope Program Continues Excellent Service at Marillac.
Though on hiatus for two months this summer, the Project Hope program, working to serve over 65 teen mothers between the ages of 12-21 on Chicago’s West Side, is back up and running at the Center. To learn more details about the program or how you can help get involved click here.
After School Matters Teens at Marillac Produce Original Alice in Wonderland Thirty After School Matters Teens at Marillac worked tirelessly all summer to produce an amazing, original work of Alice and Wonderland which had shows all across the West Side of Chicago the week of August 3, 2009. To find out more about Hope Jr. and the After School Matters program click here. |
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Marillac Social Center |
