Chicago Cares
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Chicago Cares mobilizes volunteers to build a stronger, more unified Chicago.
Chicago Cares envisions a city where we’re all active participants, fully invested in the city we call home and the success of all of our neighbors. Our city does not give us many natural opportunities to connect across lines of difference, so Chicago Cares cultivates volunteer experiences to challenge Chicagoans’ pre-conceived notions while contributing directly to neighborhood revitalization plans. With 200 monthly volunteer programs, Chicago Cares bridges divides and helps all of us see that every neighborhood has assets and challenges. Volunteers from diverse communities come together to meet critical community needs while learning about each other and the neighborhood.
09/28/2026
Celebrate with us at our 2026 Chicago Cares Bank of America Chicago Marathon Cheer Zone! 🎉
Join the Team Chicago Cares Spirit Squad at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 11! We’ll be cheering, dancing, singing and celebrating in the Chinatown neighborhood (600 W Cermak) from 9AM to 2PM to cheer on thousands of runners.
We’ll be creating posters, capturing photos and video, and keeping up the energy during peak runner traffic. Whether you can stay for two hours or the full shift, sign up today to secure your spot—and feel free to reach out to our Cheer Zone Captain Rosie ([email protected]) with any questions! 🏃🏽♀️
Sign up here to join the Chicago Cares Marathon Spirit Squad!
https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/BDJDR1ypHJ
P.S: We have Chicago Cares Spirit Squad gear! Order through the link below.
https://chicago-cares-shop.fourthwall.com/collections/all
09/23/2026
: Extra, extra! Read all about us!
Hi, Neighbors! Welcome to the latest issue of The Civic Pulse, the new name of Chicago Cares' quarterly newsletter.
We were booked and busy this summer welcoming interns and new teammates, co-designing and participating in service projects, conducting professional development trainings, curating community conversations, collecting 35th anniversary reflections, and having a ball at our 35th birthday party in July.
Take a look and listen here: https://polo.feathr.co/v1/view_email?cpn_id=6aa4a67c1fb5e2e3d6f9960c&t_id=6aa4a67c1fb5e2e3d6f9960d&preview=1
Happy Reading! And let us know your thoughts below.
👏🏾 Join us in giving a hearty welcome to our new teammate, Macklin Luke (she/they), Coordinator of Volunteer Programs!
🫶🏼 In addition to having the coolest name ever, Macklin will be doing cool things for our organization and our volunteers.
📖 Read on to learn more about what she'll be doing in her role, as well as which historical figure she'd like to have dinner with. You'll never guess.
09/21/2026
Hi, Neighbors! This week's Mission Moment is inspired by our service experience last week at Hyatt's World of Care Day, a global expression of what it means to advance care - for the planet, people, and responsible business.
The day was a beautiful reflection of our mission in action. We mobilized over 400 volunteers in service, built 10,000 kits, mulched 63 trees, and landscaped 3,000 square feet of land across four sites- Carpenter Street Farm, Jean Carter Hill Garden, Ogden Park, and Wolcott Street Farm. We also picked up over a dozen bags of garbage, and demolitioned multiple planter benches and boxes. But we did so much more than that.
We connected colleagues across lines of difference. We built bridges between volunteers and our community partners. We ensured that strangers who showed up on buses left feeling like they were friends. And, most important, we showed up for each other. At all of the sites, our team was smiling, laughing, instructing, pivoting, and caring. We were all glowing.
Many thanks to our corporate partner Hyatt, for creating this meaningful initiative, and to Chicago Cares' Programs Team for their planning and preparation and for pulling off a multi-site event like it was a regular day. A huge thanks as well to our Advancement Team for securing the means to make the mission come to life and to everyone who supported the event and managed the group of volunteers expertly and with an abundance of civic love.
: 35 Stories for 35 Years: Jesse's Story | Story #12
"Serve today, shape tomorrow...it really is about investing in our communities, investing in our neighborhoods, and then reaping the benefits of those investments for the future," says Jesse Green, Executive Director of North Lawndale Community Coordinating Council.
We were delighted to grab a word with Jesse at Chicago Cares' Annual Leadership Breakfast this spring. His commitment to equitable investment and community-led advocacy, especially on Chicago's South and West Sides, is unwavering. And so are his steadfast leadership and partnership.
Take a listen for more of his reflection on Chicago Cares' 35th anniversary.
: 35 Stories for 35 Years: Lyana's Story | Story #11
"I am my ancestor's greatest dream, and I intend to make my ancestors proud," said Lyana Funches, Director of Programs at Chicago Cares. For Lyana, her work is not only a job or career, but a deeply personal calling. Her grandfather's commitment to people and community made an indelible mark on her life and shaped her own commitment to a life of service.
Take a listen as Lyana shares the favorite part of her job and something she really wants to drive home about Chicago Cares.
Lyana, you are indeed making your ancestors and grandfather- and us- very proud.
: 35 Stories for 35 Years: Hina's Story | Story #10
Volunteer service isn't just about "giving back" to others; it's also about giving to yourself by strengthening your life through connecting and being in relationship with others.
Hina Jefferson, Chicago Cares Associate Board Member, has loved volunteering since childhood. In fact, volunteer service is how she found community as a child in a military family. She shared, "So, we've always been moving around. I never quite found a place that felt like home until I moved to Chicago. And so, I thought that maybe working with Chicago Cares would give me not only a good opportunity to explore neighborhoods that maybe I wouldn't visit on my own, but, you know...to give back to the city that's welcomed me warmly and shared great memories with me."
Hina, we are so happy you have found and nurtured community in Chicago. And we're honored that Chicago Cares played a meaningful role in making Chicago your home.
Here's to civic love, community-building, and friendship in Chi-town!
08/21/2026
👋🏼 Happy Friday, Neighbors! This week's Mission Moment is inspired by the importance of checking in with others. And not just those we know, but those we don't.
🫠 Our teammate, Darren, observed how this summer's intense heat and humidity have brought people together. He mentioned that the book he's reading includes a case study shows that suggests that the most connected neighborhoods, regardless of race and socio-economic make-up, are places where neighbors call each other, visit each other, and share resources. Although this is unsurprising, it can be easy to get mired in the daily grind and ups and downs of our own lives, that we ourselves check out. And we might assume that people are okay if they don't say otherwise.
🚿📲 Simple acts like calling that neighbor we haven't seen in a while, scheduling in-person time with that family member or friend we haven't seen in ages but keeps crossing our mind, and offering water to our mail carrier, delivery driver, or technician in our home and workplace can mean a lot.
💜 It's the small gestures of care and recognition that can make a big difference in someone's life. So, let's remember to come up for air, check in, and show up.
: 35 Stories for 35 Years | Natasha's Story | Story #9
Our work at Chicago Cares sits at the nexus of organizational partnerships, volunteer service, and neighborhood communities. Collaboration is integral to living our mission every day. Natasha Mijares, our Associate Director of Community, Strategy & Innovation, echoes this.
"Where we [Chicago Cares] sit in the social impact space is a very interesting space. We are bridgers and weavers, so we get to be in a lot of rooms and sitting at a lot of different tables. How we move with our partners is really how we're making change in the city."
Take a listen as Natasha shares what's guiding our conversations in this moment as the Chicago Cares team works alongside our partners towards being Chicago's civic engagement hub and building for the future.
: 35 Stories for 35 Years: August's Story | Story #8
The first image of a development professional that comes to mind for some people is an aloof person in a suit who attends snazzy events and only hobnobs with people who have deep pockets. Well, this couldn't be further from the truth for Chicago Cares' Advancement Team and our organizational culture.
For August Bishop, our Director of Corporate Philanthropy, the favorite part of her job is the diverse community of people inside and outside of the office that she gets to work with and meet. "Chicago Cares works hard and plays hard. We're out in the field on the weekends and we're in the office when we need to be. We get everything done while filling our own cups up so that we can fill others' [cups] up as well."
Take a listen for August's reflections on the critical role Chicago Cares plays in cultivating civic love and civic action, and on what her 35th anniversary wish is for Chicago Cares.
P.S. She mentions in the video, which was recorded in April, that she has been with us for two months. It's now four months. Goodness, time flies!
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1200 W. 35th Street, Unit 302
Chicago, IL
60606
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