Hope is cool.......exactly where she needs to be. As Executive Director of the food bank and soup kitchen, Care for Friends, she and her team specialize in providing services for the homeless without documentation and without barriers. Raised in the South suburbs of Chicago, she majored in international studies and spend time in China teaching children, before working for the Marriott Foundation and their youth with disabilities program at Chicago public high schools. After going to grad school to study conflict transformation and human trafficking, she went to Taiwan to work with victims there, before returning home and finding a position with Care for Friends in 2019. Originally a space for refugees, the soup kitchen has become a community hub where locals in need can find opportunities for affordable housing and stable jobs. Hope has learned the valuable skill of grant writing, and has been expanding the reach of the center with grocery programs and other partnerships. With a $3 million dollar capital projects grant from the state of Illinois on the way, she is preparing to rebuild a whole new center and set up the program for long term success. Get involved by checking out Careforfriends.org, and don't be afraid to become a regular monthly donator, if you live too far away to come volunteer. It is pretty fun if you can make it.