‘Hidden Figures’ is a must-see movie that reveals the heroic women who helped overcome race and space

By Tom Siebert

Mary Jackson, Katherine G. Johnson, and Dorothy Vaughan were three African American women who rose above racism and sexism to help launch white male astronauts into space in the segregated 1960s and bring them safely back to Earth. In the astonishingly great movie "Hidden Figures," this trio of NASA mathematicians is played with humanity and humor by Janelle Monåe, Taraji P. Henson, and Octavia Spencer, all of whom deserve Oscars. I shed tears of anguish at the cruel indignities that these women endured but quietly wept with joy as they overcame with brains and bravery. I give "Hidden Figures" four E’s for edification, education, entertainment, and excellence.

Horror meets heroism in riveting film ‘Patriots Day'

By Tom Siebert

“Patriots Day” is a painful film to watch. And you can’t get through it with the assuring mantra “it’s only a movie.” Because it is not. It happened. This riveting docudrama recreates the horrific Boston Marathon bombings in April 2013 and the subsequent manhunt for the two terrorists who murdered four people, maimed many more, and injured hundreds. I had to remind myself that I was not watching a trailer for another mindless action film during the harrowing scene in which the terrorists blow up pursing police cruisers with pipe bombs that were intended for perhaps a far deadlier attack on New York City. “Patriots Day” humanizes both the victims and heroes of an unspeakable American tragedy. We should do all we can to prevent a sequel to this must-see movie.

The Broken Baton

By Tom Siebert

When you were just a guileless child, was a broken baton passed to you? The broken baton of alcoholism, addiction, or abuse? Jesus Christ can reverse your curse. “He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our inequities. The chastisement for our peace was upon Him. And by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

Attacks on Beatles draw deadly difference between US and UK

By Tom Siebert

There is a life-and-death difference between our gun-crazed country and countries that strictly regulate access to firearms. For instance, on Dec. 8, 1980, former Beatle John Lennon was shot six times in his back by a deranged fan outside his apartment building in New York City. On Dec. 31, 1999, John’s ex-bandmate George Harrison was stabbed in the chest by an insane intruder in his Oxfordshire, England, mansion. George survived his attack. John did not.

 

 

Harvest New Beginnings Church in Oswego set to host Celebrate Recovery Chicago One-Day Seminar

By Tom Siebert

Celebrate Recovery, a worldwide Christian ministry in more than 30,000 churches, will hold its Chicago One-Day Seminar from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5, at Harvest New Beginnings Church, 5315 Douglas Road in Oswego.

Celebrate Recovery helps people with hurts, habits, and hang-ups–pretty much everyone during some seasons of their lives. “CR,” as its members fondly call it, is based on the 12-step concept with biblical comparisons. The primary purpose of the one-day seminar is to equip other churches to start Celebrate Recovery at their church, according to Lynn Schilling, ministry leader for Celebrate Recovery at Harvest New Beginnings.

“We are your ‘church neighbor’ and want to personally invite you to this event in Oswego,” Ms. Schilling said.  “There hasn’t been a CR conference in this area for four years and it may be another four years before there is one here again. We have had Celebrate Recovery at Harvest for 14 years and we would love to see more churches in our area offer it because many people would like to go to more than one meeting a week.”

There will be two training tracks at the seminar. “The Journey Begins” teaches church leaders how to start Celebrate Recovery at their church and provides a 90-day kick-off plan to launch the ministry. The second track, “The Journey Continues,” provides advanced training for Celebrate Recovery ministries already up and running.

Celebrate Recovery was started in 1991 at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. The co-founder is Saddleback pastor Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, which has sold more than 60 million copies. CR’s other founder, John Baker, will be teaching the second part of the Chicago-area seminar at Harvest New Beginnings. Participation in Celebrate Recovery helps people overcome addiction, anger, codependency, depression, overeating, loss of a loved one, pornography, and other issues.

Those wishing to sign up for the Celebrate Recovery Chicago One-Day Seminar may do so at celebraterecovery.com. Walk-in registrations are available on the day of the event from 7:30-8:30 a.m. However, only pre-registered guests are guaranteed seats. A video about CR one-day seminars may be viewed at https://vimeo.com/143131022. For more information on the event or the ministry of Celebrate Recovery, please contact Lynn Schilling at (630) 373-3366 or harvestrecovery@yahoo.com.

Heroic “Sully” soars above factual flaws

By Tom Siebert

As a young newspaper reporter, I covered the National Transportation Safety Board hearings into the worst single-airliner disaster in U.S. history, when 273 passengers died in the crash of American Airlines Flight 191 near Chicago’s O’Hare Airport in May 1979. So I know that the highly professional NTSB were not the villains who were portrayed in “Sully,” the otherwise truthful movie about Capt. Chesley Sullenberger’s heroic emergency landing on New York’s Hudson River that saved “155 souls on board” US Airways Flight 1459 in January 2009. As always, director Clint Eastwood films in you-are-there realism. And Tom Hanks, who plays Sully, should win the Best Actor award for every movie that he stars in.

We can prevent gun violence while preserving the Second Amendment

By Tom Siebert

Gun violence is as American as apple pie. Growing up, all of my heroes were shot to death: John F. Kennedy,  Martin Luther King Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, and John Lennon.

One of the first mass shootings in modern times occurred on Aug. 1, 1966, when Charles Whitman killed 14 people and wounded 32 at the University of Texas at Austin. Since then, the names of the places where these gun massacres have occurred are a bloody blur: San Ysidro, Killeen, Long Island Railroad, Columbine High School, Virginia Tech, Fort Hood, Northern Illinois University, Aurora, Tucson, Sandy Hook, Charleston, San Bernardino, Orlando, Dallas.

During the past 50 years, millions of Americans have been killed or injured by guns, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Easy access to guns gravely exacerbates nearly every major problem that America faces: crime, terrorism, racism, bigotry, mental illness, police brutality, and domestic violence.

This half-century epidemic of gun violence will continue to spatter blood all across the nation until we surviving Americans demand the only antidote: strict, national gun-control laws. These include trigger locks on all guns; universal background checks on all gun purchases; limits on gun and ammunition purchases; a ban on all semi-automatic weapons; long, mandatory prison sentences for gun crimes; and gun detectors in all workplaces, stores, restaurants, theaters, and churches––as well as on all public transportation.

No one’s Second Amendment rights would be violated by these common sense gun-safety measures. You don’t need war weapons to shoot a burglar or Bambi.

Good guys with guns are not the answer to America’s half-century of rampant gun violence

By Tom Siebert

During the past 50 years, millions of Americans have been shot by their fellow citizens. The pro-gun people say “good guys with guns” will stop gun violence. They are dead wrong. On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was surrounded by good guys with guns but that did not prevent a deranged man with a cheap handgun from shooting him and three others. And the 14 police officers shot in Dallas recently were all good guys with guns but that did not stop a madman with a weapon of war from killing five of them and wounding nine. Private ownership of firearms was ruled constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court only as recently as 2007, in a 5-4 decision. God permitting, President Hillary Clinton will fill the vacancy on the court with a sane judge who will cast the vote to overturn that ungodly ruling.

This half-century epidemic of gun violence will continue to spatter blood all across the nation until we surviving Americans demand the only antidote: strict, national gun-control laws. These include trigger locks on all guns; universal background checks on all gun purchases; limits on gun and ammunition purchases; a ban on all semi-automatic weapons of mass destruction; long, mandatory prison sentences for gun crimes; and gun detectors in all workplaces, stores, restaurants, theaters and churches as well as on all public transportation.

God is not like us but we can be like Him

 
By Tom Siebert

God is not like us. He loves everyone equally, whether they live on Park Avenue or park bench, whether they went to Penn State or state pen, whether their name is John Wayne or John Wayne Gacy. As one apostle put it: “My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, ‘Here’s a good seat for you,’ but say to the poor man, ‘You stand there’ or ‘Sit on the floor by my feet,’ have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” (James 2:1-4). And Jesus not only did not judge those who nailed Him to a cross but He forgave them (Luke 23:34). The Bible also tells us that “the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead” dwells in us (Romans 8:11). So we, too, have the power to forgive others and not judge them. We can be like God.

With God, three strikes and you’re not necessarily out

By Tom Siebert

In Game 2 of the American League Championship Series in 2005, A.J. Pierzynski of the Chicago White Sox struck out swinging with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim apparently won the game. However, A.J. realized that he had not been called out, so he ran safely to first base, and the umpire ruled that the Angels catcher had not legally caught the pitch. The White Sox went on to win the game and eventually the World Series.

Mobsters aren’t the only ones who need God’s mercy

By Tom Siebert

During the warmer months here in the Chicago area, my mother and I visit the grave sites of our departed loved ones at Mount Carmel––a predominantly Italian-American Catholic cemetery located in suburban Hillside. Our family monuments are near the grave of the infamous mob boss Al Capone. There is always a steady stream of visitors at the burial ground of the notorious man who was known as “Scarface.” I sometimes wondered if God was sending a message to these graveside gawkers. So during one visit, I walked over to Mr. Capone’s grave and read the epitaph on his headstone: “MY JESUS, MERCY.” Then I realized that there was indeed a divine message––and it was meant for me, too.

Van Gogh’s bedrooms reveal artist’s yearning for a home

By Tom Siebert

Vincent Van Gogh painted several self-portraits in his brief but brilliant career. But none are as revealing as his three versions of “The Bedroom,” now on dazzling display for the first time in North America at The Art Institute of Chicago. The paintings evoke Van Gogh’s yearning for stability in his life and, perhaps, his mind. These Post-Impressionism masterpieces left an impression on me that will last for many a starry night.

‘Concussion’ delivers helmet blow to NFL coverup

By Tom Siebert
“Concussion” will make you think twice about letting your kids play football, let alone continuing to observe the National Football League on Sunday as if it were a holy day of obligation. Will Smith is astonishingly good as Dr. Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who successfully fought efforts by the NFL to suppress his research on the brain damage suffered by its players. Go see this profoundly important film.

‘Spotlight’ shows why we need newspapers

By Tom Siebert 

“Spotlight” is a profoundly important film about the Boston Globe’s Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into the child abuse scandal in that city’s Catholic archdiocese. Spotlight’s portrayal of journalists is spot-on: flawed idealists who care deeply about the truth and its consequences. Michael Keaton heads a cast of Oscar-worthy performances.

‘Bridge of Spies’ is a history lesson from the past and for the present

By Tom Siebert

Steven Spielberg’s Cold War thriller “Bridge of Spies” is one of the most educating and edifying films ever made. Spielberg is a virtuoso of verisimilitude, flawlessly recreating late 1950s Brooklyn and early 1960s East Berlin. Tom Hanks is even better than he was in his Oscar-winning performances, “Forrest Gump” and “Philadelphia.” This taut, true story is a cautionary tale for today’s existential war on terror, asking us to find the humanity in our enemy if we wish to survive as a world.
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We’ll always have Paris––in our hearts and hopes to end both foreign and domestic terrorism

By Tom Siebert

In the aching wake of the Paris terrorist attacks, we must continue the global fight against terrorism and protect our homeland against this inexplicable, horrific violence. My prayer  is that we will also take note as a nation that since 9/11, 50 U.S. citizens have been killed by terrorists, a terribly tragic number. But in that same period, more than 400,000 Americans have been shot to death in this country. That is terrorism, too.

‘Love and Mercy’ is a redemption song

By Tom Siebert

The other night I saw an inspiring movie, “Love and Mercy,” a biopic about Brian Wilson, the creative genius behind The Beach Boys. The film traces the life of Brian from his abusive childhood to the making of his magnum opus, “Pet Sounds,” to his near-death from drugs––both illegal and prescribed. The soaring soundtrack is easy to listen to, but the scenes of self-destruction are hard to watch. Ultimately, though, “Love and Mercy” is a redemption story. And God only knows how much I love those.

Forgiveness Is a Double Play

By Tom Siebert

From 1902–1912, Joe Tinkers, Johnny Evers, and Frank Chance formed the most famous double-play combination in baseball history. The Chicago Cubs trio was poetry in motion, and in fact, a now-fabled poem was written about them. “Tinkers to Evers to Chance” became part of the American lexicon, meaning workmanlike precision.

But shortstop Tinkers and second baseman Evers did not play well together off the field. In 1905, the two were involved in an on-the-field fistfight, after Evers had taken a cab to the ballpark and left Tinkers behind in the hotel lobby. Following the fight, they refused to speak to each other, even as the duo played brilliantly side by side for the next seven seasons, helping the Cubs to win four pennants and two World Series. This silent feud lasted until 1938, when they reconciled as guest radio broadcasters during the World Series that fall.

Jesus said, “If you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:15).

Don’t wait 33 years to forgive someone. Make that double play today.

Pauper or Poet?

By Tom Siebert

Carl Sandburg was a three-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for his poetry. One day Carl showed up unannounced at the high school bearing his name in Orland Park, Illinois. The principal thought the shabbily dressed man was a vagabond and asked him to leave. When the famous poet returned later with an ID, the principal cancelled classes for the day and held an assembly in his honor. The Bible states, “If you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors” (James 2:9). Perhaps an assembly should have been held to honor the “vagabond.”

'Home Run' touches ’em all

By Tom Siebert

Home Run is a small-budget film featuring mostly unknown actors. So I wasn’t expecting Citizen Kane or The Godfather Part II. But Home Run hit home with me like no other film I have ever seen. It is the story of a pro baseball player whose alcohol-fueled destructiveness lands him in a Christ-centered, Bible-based, 12-step program called Celebrate Recovery. Home Run insightfully touches the bases of big hurts, homecoming, and healing. Two thumbs up for this edifying masterpiece and both hands held high in praise of the redemptive grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Bad News and Good News

By Tom Siebert

When someone says, “I have some bad news and some good news,” it is probably human nature for us to ask to hear the bad news first. Perhaps that is why the apostle Paul phrased this Bible verse accordingly: “For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). That is indeed the worst news you will ever read followed by the best news you will ever read.

Curiouser and Curiouser

By Tom Siebert

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” the title character ages in reverse. Who among us middle-aged would not want to grow younger, especially if we were as good looking as Brad Pitt, who played Benjamin in a 2008 film adaption of Fitzgerald’s novella. Actually, we Christians are aging in reverse, at least in the spiritual sense. The Bible states: “Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). And if you are not a Christian, you can receive God’s ageless gift of eternal life by receiving His Son Jesus as your resurrected Savior.

In the Big Inning

By Tom Siebert

Pat Kelly, an outfielder for the Baltimore Orioles in the late 1970s, once said to his manager Earl Weaver: “Skip, it’s great to walk with the Lord.” To which the fiery Weaver quipped: “I’d rather see you walk with the bases loaded.” Many Christians struggle with the dual desires to succeed in the world and to do God’s will. Jesus resolves this conflict when He enjoins us to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your soul” and to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:30-31). When we follow His command, we find that our most- satisfying success is attained by helping others to grow and prosper in Christ.

True Trickle-Down

By Tom Siebert

Trickle-down economics is predicated on the theory that if the wealthy are given tax incentives, they will create jobs so that the less affluent can provide for themselves and their families. To the ancient Israelites, trickle-down was not theoretical but theo-reality. In Exodus 16:4, God said to Moses: "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day." God's economy is still flourishing today. As the apostle Paul promised: "My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19).

Culture Creep

By Tom Siebert

The culture of addiction has crept into the Church on little cat feet. And like all felines, this culture cat owns the place. We Christians routinely refer to the sins of gluttony as a “food issue,” fornication as a “purity problem,” and drunkenness as a “disease.” And when we return to these besetting sins, we call it “a relapse,” rather than the way the Bible graphically puts it: “As a dog returns to his own vomit, so fools repeat their folly” (Proverbs 26:11). I am not denying the brain chemistry or body pathology of these self-damaging behaviors. But if I want to be cleansed in the priceless, precious blood of Jesus, I must call a sin a sin.

Women’s philanthropic group gives lift to local homeless

By Tom Siebert 

Assistant director for community relations 

Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, IL

The homeless have many hardships. In sprawling Kendall County, west of Chicago, there is no public transportation. So the toughest challenge can be just getting to the temporary housing shelters that are provided during the colder months by area churches.

However, transportation will continue to be available to overnight guests of Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, thanks to a $2,200 donation from the local chapter of a worldwide philanthropic organization.

“Congratulations to Kendall County PADS, who was the chosen charity this quarter!” said Amber Dillbeck, president of 100+ Women Who Care of Greater Will County, which meets four times per year to hear five-minute presentations from three local charities.


“After presentations, a private vote is taken and the charity receiving the most votes is given a donation of one hundred dollars on the spot from each member,” explained Ms. Dillbeck, who heads one of the more than 400 global chapters of 100+ Women Who Care.


Karen Allred, a member of 100+ Women Who Care of Greater Will County, and Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Kendall County PADS, display blowup of check representing the donation that the philanthropic group recently gave to the homeless organization.

Last October, Kendall County PADS began its seventh season of providing meals and overnight housing to the homeless at seven churches on different nights of the week.

The shelters are open at 7 p.m. through April 15 on Sundays at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays, Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego; and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

The overall travel distance from site to site is 57 miles. Moreover, the distance between churches ranges from 5 to 12 miles, making it difficult for anyone to walk the routes, especially in winter weather, and carrying a backpack or duffel bag. About half of PADS guests do not own vehicles, and in past years, some have traversed the treacherous routes on bicycles.


But with the new funding from 100+ Women Who Care, PADS will be able to continue its contract with Yorkville Express, a local taxi service that has been transporting the guests to and from the shelters. Yorkville Express provides rides nine times per week, some days in the mornings. Four nights per week, the taxi brings guests directly to the sites.


“The driver, Rob, really believes in the program,” said Barb Johnson, assistant director for transportation at Kendall County PADS.

Executive Director Anne Engelhardt expressed her great gratitude to the local chapter of 100+ Women Who Care. “This organization truly demonstrates their name through their support for people in need. Their generous financial donation to PADS will go a long way to providing needed transportation to and from the shelter sites for homeless people without vehicles.”

Overnight guests at PADS receive a hot meal, safe place to sleep, breakfast, and a packaged lunch to go. They also receive assistance with employment, social services, and housing referrals.

Kendall County PADS is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded by donations received through grants, gifts, private donors, organizations, and businesses. Those who wish to donate or volunteer may call (331) 207-8903 or visit the website at http://www.kendallcountypads.org.

Ms. Engelhardt added: “PADS is very fortunate to be supported by the greater community through financial contributions and by the gift of time from hundreds of volunteers who are the hands and hearts of the shelter program. Each intentional act of kindness connects the giver and the receiver.”

No room at the inn: Kendall County PADS needs more volunteers to keep homeless shelter sites open

By Tom Siebert 
Assistant director for community relations
Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, IL

A poignant part of the Christmas story is a couple needing a safe place to stay for the night.
On Wednesday night, just four days before Christmas, men and women will be seeking shelter at the United Methodist Church of Plano. However, four more volunteers are needed to keep the temporary housing shelter open, according to Diane Morris, a site coordinator for Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, west of Chicago.

“I stood up in church yesterday and all but begged,” Ms. Morris said Monday. “Actually, I did beg for help.”

In October, Kendall County PADS began its seventh season of helping the homeless at seven churches that hope to continue opening their doors on designated nights of the week through April 16, 2017.

But this season the nonprofit organization has been consistently short of volunteers on four of those nights, according to Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Kendall County PADS.
“I am trusting that we will have more volunteers,” Ms. Engelhardt said. “They are slowly filling in.”

Each season PADS needs nearly 600 volunteers, at least 18 years’ old, to provide overnight shelter, nourishing meals, and caring hospitality to homeless guests. Some volunteers serve two or more times each month, in 4½-hour shifts. And some of the site coordinators serve every week.

At United Methodist Church of Plano, there is a need for male volunteers on the second and third Wednesdays of the month, a male on the third shift on the first and second Wednesdays, and a female on the third shift on third Wednesdays. Those wishing to volunteer may call Ms. Morris at (630) 552-3985 or email her at dkaymorris@aol.com.

Overnight guests at PADS receive a hot meal, a safe place to sleep, breakfast, and a packaged lunch to go. They also receive assistance with employment, social services, and housing referrals.

PADS nights and sites throughout the shelter season are as follows: Sundays at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays, Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego; and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

PADS of Kendall County is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded by donations received through grants, gifts, private donors, organizations, and businesses. Those who wish to donate or volunteer may call (331) 207-8903 or visit the website at http://www.kendallcountypads.org.
Kendall is a relatively small county of 120,000––half of whom are adults––meaning that PADS must tap into two percent of that population to staff the seven shelter sites, Ms. Engelhardt stated.

“I really believe that PADS is as much about the volunteers as it is the homeless guests,” she said. “A volunteer brings people together in the large circle of life. I have learned that we are more alike than different.”

Homeless women shatter myths, share hopes for future

By Tom Siebert
Assistant director for community relations
Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, IL

The face of homelessness is often female.

Three women were recent dinner and overnight guests at Harvest New Beginnings church in Oswego, Illinois. Harvest is one of seven area churches that open their doors and hearts to the homeless, in partnership with Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, in west suburban Chicago.

“They’ve been very nice here,” said Rebecca, who asked that her age not be disclosed. “It's a blessing to have a safe place to spend the night.”

The well-groomed women did not exactly fit the image that many people have of those without permanent housing. All had attended college, had held professional jobs, and had done volunteer work––including, coincidentally, for PADS.

“There is often a stereotype that we’re scary to be around. Well, none of these people are scary to be around,” Rebecca said, smiling and circling her finger around a dinner table, at which also sat two male PADS guests.

One woman, who preferred to remain anonymous, said people whom she encountered were often surprised to learn that she did not presently have a place to live. “I’ve had the response that ‘you don’t look like one of those women with a shopping cart.’”

The former healthcare specialist is willing to work as a waitress in order to pay the rent for the subsidized apartment for which she has applied.

“I wouldn’t even ask for a salary,” she said. “Just let me work on getting my tips.”

All three women had been homeless for a short time, had solid leads on finding stable housing and––most importantly in sprawling Kendall County––owned automobiles. Thus, they have been been able to drive themselves each night to one of the seven churches that houses PADS sites.

Transportation to and from the churches has been a challenge this fall for PADS guests without vehicles. Barb Johnson, PADS assistant director for guest services, said she has been in contact with the public Kendall Area Transit (KAT) as well as the private Kendall County KAB, and both have offered to assist with transportation.

“We are hoping that Kendall KAB will be able to pick up our guests in the evening and deliver them to PADS sites, and that KAT will be able to pick them up in the morning and deliver them to a designated drop-off point,” she said. “We are also still working with Oswego Senior Services and Cross Lutheran Church to provide transportation on Sunday. Our future plans include trying to have a vehicle donated.”

Information about donations or volunteering at a local shelter may be obtained online at www.kendallcountypads.org or by calling 331-207-8903.

The Sunday night PADS shelter is at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays are at Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego; and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill. The sites are open from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. through April 16, 2016.

Vicky, 68, is hopeful that she will be able to return to her condominium long before that date. She said she was forced to abandon the condo on account of a combination of financial issues and problems with her neighbors. “I have a lot of things at home to get straight,” said the former floral arranger and store manager.

Dinner was fresh salad, ham sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, potato salad, and pumpkin pie. One woman was allergic to certain foods, so Harvest New Beginnings prepared her a special meal of glucose-free noodles and sliced almonds.

After dinner, Vicky led the group in prayer, thanking God for the provisions of the evening and humbly asking that all would soon be blessed with a home.

PADS of Kendall County seeking volunteers as season of housing homeless guests nears

By Tom Siebert
Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County, IL

Ron Parrish is a retired executive from two food-seasoning companies. Today, Ron’s life is seasoned with “love, peace, and happiness” because he volunteers for Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, west of Chicago.

“When God has been good to you, you want to give back by helping people in need,” said Ron, a Yorkville resident who has served as a site coordinator at Harvest New Beginnings in Oswego since 2010, the first year that Kendall County PADS began feeding and providing temporary housing to the area’s homeless.

PADS volunteers serve a hot, tasty meal

Another longtime PADS volunteer at Harvest New Beginnings is Lynn Schilling, ministry leader for Celebrate Recovery, a Christian 12-step program with chapters in more than 30,000 churches worldwide.

“In Celebrate Recovery, we deal with hurts, habits, and hang-ups. So why wouldn’t we be there for our brothers and sisters?” said Lynn, whose ministry hosts an outreach night once per month for PADS guests during the shelter season.

She explained: “Part of our CR ministry is giving back. And serving together is a great way to serve and work through our struggles together.”

PADS is looking for volunteers like Ron and Lynn––men and women, at least 18 years’ old––to join at any time during the shelter season, which runs from October 16, 2016, through April 16, 2017. Most PADS volunteers serve just once per month for about four to five hours.

Nearly 600 volunteers each season give their time to provide safe, overnight shelter, nourishing meals, and caring hospitality to their homeless guests. Some volunteers serve two or more times each month. And some of the site coordinators serve every week.

Kendall County PADS will hold a volunteer training session on Monday, October 3, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, located at 409 Center Parkway, on the northwest corner of Illinois Route 34 and Route 47. Advance registration is not required.

The two-hour training session will present an overview of PADS––how it operates each night and the role of volunteers. Attendees will learn the responsibilities of the various volunteer positions, the importance of hospitality for guests, health and safety issues, dos and don’ts for volunteers, and general operational procedures.

New volunteers will also receive a PADS volunteer manual and will be assigned to an experienced volunteer who serves as a mentor to them. The hope is that each person attending will be informed and feel comfortable with their role in Kendall County PADS, should they be inspired to serve. The program is free and there is no obligation to sign up as a volunteer.

As the shelter season nears in mid-October, a new volunteer will be notified by a site leader to confirm the week and time slot he or she will be serving at PADS. After the volunteer receives confirmation for day and time, he or she will be encouraged to view a training session through a link on the Kendall County PADS website.

The PADS board of directors thanks those who are returning to help as well as new volunteers. There will also be review sessions held for returning site coordinators and other volunteers at each of the seven area churches that host shelter sites.

PADS nights and sites throughout the shelter season are as follows: Sundays at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays, Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego; and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

Overnight guests at PADS receive a hot meal, a safe place to sleep, breakfast, and a packaged lunch to go. They also receive help with employment, social services, and housing referrals.
PADS of Kendall County is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded by donations received through grants, gifts, private donors, organizations, and businesses. Those who wish to donate may call (331) 207-8903 or visit the website at www.kendallcountypads.org

During the 2015–16 Kendall County PADS season, guests stayed overnight a total of 1,162 times and received 3,486 meals. Several guests stayed for a night or two, some for a week or more, and others stayed over for several months––or even the entire season. Men stayed 616 nights; women stayed 545 nights. The 2015–16 season, for the first time, had no children using the shelters. In addition, the evening meal was served 114 times to dinner guests who did not spend the night. Since PADS began in the area in 2010, the organization has sheltered 346 individuals (men, women, and children), translating into 6,957 overnight stays and 20,972 meals.

Hospitality to the guests is a priority at PADS. In addition to providing food and shelter, the most important provision is a safe, caring, and respectful environment for PADS guests. The spirit of hospitality not only calls for physical nourishment and protection from the outside elements, but also includes the concept of mutual equality between guests and hosts. It is PADS’ desire to provide an atmosphere that removes the stigma of “charity,” which can be damaging to human dignity.

Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Kendall County PADS, noted that volunteering for the organization is a sacrifice. “You give up a favorite television show, surrender some time with your children or spouse, and you lose a few hours of sleep each month.”


Anne expressed gratitude that PADS volunteers “give selflessly” to their shift, food tasks, and laundry exchange, adding that site coordinators provide even more by ensuring that the shelters are well stocked, volunteers are lined up each week, and problems are solved.

“At every site, I feel the positive energy pouring out in the form of smiles, kind words, focused attention, listening and talking with our homeless guests,” she said. “We rejoice when we learn that one of our guests has finally been hired, made her appointment with her counselor, or has secured a permanent place to live.”

Ron Parrish hopes that the rewards of being a PADS volunteer will be even longer lasting. “The most important thing is for the Lord to someday say to me: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’” 

PADS bridges aching gap between affordable housing and homelessness in rustic county west of Chicago

By Tom Siebert Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County, IL

“Eight days a week is not enough….” So goes the refrain of the classic Beatles song. Well, eight days a week of work would not be nearly enough for a minimum wage worker to afford a two-bedroom apartment in Kendall County, west suburban Chicago.

“Basically, it’s almost impossible,” said Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, a nonprofit organization that helps bridge the huge gap between homelessness and affordable housing in the area.

She was lamenting the results of a recent study entitled “Out of Reach 2016,” which found that a worker earning the Illinois minimum wage of $8.25 per hour would have to labor for 102 hours per week in order to pay the average $1,093 monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment in bucolic Kendall County.

“It’s an unacceptable situation,” said Bob Palmer, policy director of Housing Action Illinois, which conducted the study, along with the National Low Income Housing Coalition. “Housing should be affordable enough that a family can pay rent and still put food on the table. Instead, minimum wage workers in our state face unaffordable rates, whether they live in Chicago, Bloomington, or Cairo.”

Kendall County has the highest housing wage among all 102 counties in Illinois, the study showed.  Renters in Kendall, which comprise 17 percent of the county’s residents, must earn $21.02 per hour to afford a two-bedroom home. However, the average Kendall County renter makes only $10.02 per hour.

Anne Engelhardt, executive director of PADS Kendall County

Ms. Engelhardt is hopeful that developers will eventually build more affordable housing in the sprawling county. But in the meantime, PADS will soon be starting its seventh year of providing temporary homeless shelters at seven area churches.

From mid-October until mid-April 2017, food and shelter will be available on the following days at these sites:  Sundays at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays, Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego; and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

Those who wish to volunteer or donate may do so online at http://www.kendallcountypads.org or by calling (331) 207-8903.

Overnight guests at PADS receive a hot meal, a safe place to sleep, breakfast, and a packaged lunch to go. They also receive help with employment, social services, and housing referrals.
“Sometimes, our guests will ask another guest if they would be interested in sharing an apartment so they can both afford the rent,” said Ms. Engelhardt, who has headed PADS since the organization began serving Kendall County in 2010. She added that many of the more than 350 guests whom PADS has served have since found permanent housing.

One of those is Darrell McGhee, 36, who was a shelter guest at Cross Lutheran Church in Yorkville throughout the 2014–2015 PADS season. Now that he has a job and permanent place to live, Darrell is a PADS volunteer at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Boulder Hill.
“Those people really helped me out a lot,” Mr. McGhee said. “So I wanted to give back.”

Residents of Chicago suburbs are finding creative ways to help their homeless neighbors

By Tom Siebert
Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County IL

Site coordinators for Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, in west suburban Chicago, recently held their mid-season meeting at the Yorkville Public Library.

The main topic of discussion was mental illness, recognizing its signs and symptoms, and suggesting appropriate responses for volunteers, according to Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Kendall County PADS.

“PADS is operating very well overall, thanks to the strong leadership skills of the site coordinators,” she said. “This year we have been very aware of the mental health conditions of our guests.”
Speakers at the meeting were counselor Rose Romero and Jason Andrade, director of mental health at the Kendall County Health Department. PADS board members were also in attendance.

“In an organization this big, with more than 520 volunteers, covering more than 25 percent of the hours in a year, we can expect to experience a few hiccups or bumps,” Ms. Engelhardt stated. “I’m always amazed and appreciate how well PADS functions.”

Through April 16, Kendall County PADS is providing homeless shelters from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. at these sites on the following days: Sundays at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays, Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego; and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

Overnight guests at PADS receive a hot meal, a safe place to sleep, breakfast, and a packaged lunch to go. Since this PADS season began last October, the nonprofit organization has provided more than 500 overnight stays. Those who wish to volunteer or donate may do so online at http://www.kendallcountypads.org or by calling (331) 207-8903.

Some PADS guests own cars and are thus able to drive themselves to the shelter sites. But for those without transportation, Yorkville Express taxi service has been picking up and dropping off PADS guests at eight locations throughout wide-open Kendall County.

Many other county residents have found creative ways to help the homeless. Suzy’s Pizza of Yorkville has been donating “care bags” of food to PADS. The Fox Valley Flyers girls’ gymnastic team collected 138 items of cold-weather clothing. Salon Giovani in Plainfield donated coats, boots, scarves, gloves, mittens, and sweatshirts.

In addition, Cub Scout Pack 348 of Oswego will be making and bringing cookies to the PADS site at St. Luke’s church this Saturday night. And 15-year-old Sydney Gonzales of St. Patrick Parish in Yorkville is heading up a drive for donations of “care kits” for PADS guests.

“As a group of caring and compassionate people, we continue to work as a team for our mission to provide shelter, food, and warm hospitality for our homeless guests,” executive director Engelhardt said. “I am honored to be among the dedicated, loving leaders and volunteers.”

Local couple looking forward to again hosting area homeless

By Tom Siebert

Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County, IL

Steve and Karen Allred are greatly looking forward to the next several months, when their church will be providing meals and overnight stays to the homeless. The Allreds are site coordinators at Harvest New Beginnings in Oswego, one of seven area churches that will again be hosting the homeless from mid-April to mid-October in partnership with Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, in west suburban Chicago.

“We have been blessed and this is a great way to give back,” said Steve Allred, who has been volunteering for PADS along with his wife since the shelter sites began operating in Kendall County in October 2010.

“It’s very fulfilling,” said Karen. “I always look forward to PADS night at the church.”


About 600 volunteers will be needed to operate the seven shelter sites, according to Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Kendall County PADS. Each volunteer is asked to serve 4 1/2 hours one day per month, as part of an overnight shift or by serving on the food team.

Kendall County PADS will be holding a new volunteer training session at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, September 28, at Yorkville Congregational Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway.
 

Several presenters will provide an overview of the local picture of homelessness; describe how the shelter program operates; talk about the roles and responsibilities of various volunteer positions; and cover the topics of safe food handling and safety in general.

“People may come and listen, without making a commitment,” Engelhardt said. “All interested men and women, ages 18 and older, are invited to find out what it means to be a volunteer with PADS.”

For Karen Allred, it means living out her Christian faith. “We know the Lord loves us so we want to show His love to others.”

Adds her husband Steve: “You want to give back––and what a better way to do it! It’s at your church. It’s a safe place to volunteer.”

The Oswego couple have been married for 37 years, have three adult children and four grandchildren, and own their own business. Serving at PADS is a labor of love for them.

“I don’t consider it a sacrifice,” Karen explains. “It’s doing something very important for people. We get so much out of it.”

PADS also helps to solve the long-term challenges of homelessness, offering counseling, employment assistance, and referrals to local social services.

Since 2010, Kendall County PADS has assisted more than 300 men, women, and children, Engelhardt stated. That translates into 5,794 overnight stays and 17,369 meals served to the program’s “guests.”

From Oct. 18, 2015, through April 16, 2016, Kendall County PADS will provide homeless shelters from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. at these sites on the following days:

Sundays: Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville.
Mondays: Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville.
Tuesdays: Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego.
Wednesdays: United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano.
Thursdays: Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville.
Fridays: Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego.
Saturdays: St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

Overnight guests at PADS receive a hot meal, a safe place to sleep, breakfast, and a packaged lunch to go.

Volunteers may register in person at the training session or online at http://www.kendallcountypads.org. For further information, call 331-207-8903.

Former shelter guest gives help and hope to the homeless

By Tom Siebert
Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County, IL

Darrell McGhee used to stay at a local homeless shelter. Now he volunteers at one.
Darrell, 35, was a guest last winter and early spring of Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County, Illinois. Today, he has an apartment and a job as a forklift truck operator, thanks to the help of the nonprofit organization that serves west suburban Chicago.

“It feels like a lot of weight has been lifted off my shoulders this time,” he said, comparing a recent, cold December night to the one last year when he first sought food and shelter at the PADS site at Cross Lutheran Church in Yorkville.

“Every volunteer group needs someone who has been in the same situation as the people they are helping,” he asserted, after passing out clean white towels to three male and three female guests of the PADS site at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Boulder Hill, unincorporated Kendall County.

“Anybody can volunteer but it’s nice to have a few people who have been here.”
Ron Freeman, the PADS site coordinator at St. Luke’s, said “it feels pretty good” to see Darrell coming back to the church to serve. Ron, who is in his sixth year as a volunteer, recalled that Darrell availed himself of the programs that PADS offers, particularly employment assistance. “I could see then that he was going to give back.”

Darrell was one of the more fortunate PADS guests because he owned a car. So every night that he was homeless, he was able to drive himself to the PADS sites operated throughout the week by local churches: Sundays at Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville; Mondays, Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville; Tuesdays, Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego; Wednesdays, United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano; Thursdays, Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville; Fridays, Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego;  and Saturdays, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

Lack of transportation is the biggest obstacle to finding a job and even finding a way to a PADS shelter site, according to Sidney Williams, who has been a guest of St. Luke’s, off and on, for three years. Sidney, 67, lamented the discontinuation of a Pace bus route that serviced nearby Oswego.
“It’s hard to get here without a vehicle,” said Sidney. “Instead of getting better, it’s getting worse.”

He was able to get to St. Luke’s on this night by first taking a Metra train to the Aurora station, where Ron picked him up and then drove him to the church. Sidney said he usually stays at PADS sites in DuPage County, which operates shelters year-round.

In Kendall County, PADS sites are open only from mid-October until mid-April, due to limited funding and volunteers. Information about donating or becoming a volunteer at a local shelter may be obtained online at www.kendallcountypads.org.

Ron, the site coordinator, said St. Luke’s has hosted as many as 18 PADS guests on Saturday nights, mostly during the Great Recession. He sees the lower number of guests as a sign that the economy is improving.

“People were losing their jobs and then they were losing their homes,” he said. “Hopefully, we were able to get them in the right direction. But even today, many people are only two paychecks away from being homeless.”

Dinner on this Saturday night at St. Luke’s was salad, meatloaf, corn, scalloped potatoes, rye bread, soda, coffee, and candy cane cake.

“The food is excellent,” said guest Wilbur Hines. “And you get a chance to stay clean. This is like being in a presidential suite.”

Each PADS “suite” featured a light-green plastic mattress, clean sheets, two blankets, a toothbrush, toothpaste, towel, bar of soap, and access to a shower––which St. Luke’s is able to provide because its shelter site is the school gymnasium.

Wilbur, 61, also had high praise for the hospitality of the volunteers. “This is not an act. This is who they are.”

He does not expect to be homeless for long because he has a car and a job as a meat cutter at a packing plant in Aurora. Wilbur even has higher hopes of saving enough money to place a down payment on a house. In addition to his meat-cutting job, he says he has applied for more work at a movie theater complex and a fast-food restaurant.

He had been living in Chicago with his sister but had a falling out with his employer, also a meatpacking firm. Wilbur prefers living and working in the western suburbs as opposed to the gang-ravaged neighborhood where he had been residing.

“You don’t want to stay in Chicago,” he cautioned. “It’s a helluva place. Anything can happen there.”
Darrell grew up three blocks away from St. Luke’s and now attends nearby River’s Edge Fellowship church. He was looking forward to taking Sidney to a potluck meal at his church the next day. And he was hopeful that all of the night’s guests would eventually become PADS volunteers like he has.
“They all have to find their own way.”

Former homeless man wants to volunteer at shelter site

By Tom Siebert
Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County, IL

Darrell McGhee knows what it’s like to be homeless, and now he wants to help those who are in the same situation that he once was.

Darrell, 35, will never forget how he felt on that cold December night last year when he walked into a homeless shelter site at Cross Lutheran Church in Yorkville, west suburban Chicago.

“That’s when everything hit home,” he said. “That’s when I found out everything was realistic.”

(Photo by Lisa Sharpe)

Darrell had been living with his girlfriend in Aurora, hanging out in bars, and not trying too hard to find work. He says he had “burned bridges” with his family, so when his girlfriend broke up with him, he had no place to live.

That’s when his grandmother told him about Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County. A quick call to the local police station led to a referral to the nearest PADS shelter site. So Darrell spent that first night, a Sunday, at Cross Lutheran.

Unlike most PADS guests, Darrell was fortunate enough to own a car. Therefore, he could drive himself to the six other area churches that host PADS shelter sites in Kendall County throughout the week from mid-October to mid-April.

As the PADS season was ending last spring, Darrell realized that he needed to get serious about finding a job, lest he wind up homeless again. So that’s he when he contacted Manpower, which landed him a job with a local farm equipment company.

Shortly thereafter, Darrell was able to save enough money to rent a room from an Aurora homeowner for $500 per month. He was recently laid off from his job but Manpower found him a new one, as a forklift operator. “They’ve been really kind,” he said of the employment agency.

In addition to becoming gainfully employed, Darrell has made other changes in his life. He attends The Edge Church in Aurora as well as meetings of Celebrate Recovery, a Christian 12-step program. “I’m hanging out with better groups of people.”

He realizes, however, that not everyone becomes homeless on account of making “bad decisions” like he did. “Some people are just a paycheck away from losing their homes.”
Darrell is looking forward to the upcoming PADS season, but for a different reason than the one he had last fall. He plans to be a volunteer, helping others who are in the same predicament that he was in.

He says PADS “needs people like me who have been homeless, who know what it’s like to have no place to go.” Since he works during the week, Darrell will most likely be volunteering on Saturday nights at the PADS shelter at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Montgomery.

Besides Cross Lutheran and St. Luke’s, the other participating PADS churches this year will again be Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ; Harvest New Beginnings in Oswego; United Methodist Church of Plano; Trinity United Methodist Church, Yorkville; and Church of the Good Shepherd, Oswego.

Since 2010, Kendall County PADS has assisted more than 300 men, women, and children. That translates into 5,794 overnight stays and 17,369 meals.

Information about becoming a volunteer at a PADS shelter site may be obtained online at www.kendallcountypads.org.

Kendall homeless face toughest time finding housing in Illinois

By Tom Siebert
Assistant director for community relations
PADS of Kendall County, IL

The homeless face more financial challenges in securing permanent affordable housing in Kendall County than in any other metropolitan area in Illinois, according to a recent statewide study.

The average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Illinois is $977, said Bob Palmer, policy director for Housing Action Illinois, which conducted the study.

“In order to afford this level of rent and utilities––without paying more than 30 percent of income on housing––a household must earn at least $39,067 annually,” Palmer asserted. “Assuming a 40-hour work week, 52 hours per year, this level of income translates into a housing wage of $18.78.”

In Kendall County, however, that projected housing wage rises to $22.52 per hour, the highest of 15 metropolitan areas in the state, the study, entitled “Out of Reach,” found. A Kendall worker making the state minimum wage of $8.25 per hour would have to work 93 hours in a week to afford a two-bedroom apartment in the county.

Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) of Kendall County is sensitive to the often out-of-reach housing costs in the community, said Anne Engelhardt, executive director of the nonprofit agency.

That’s why Kendall County PADS is committed to another season of providing temporary, safe shelter and nourishing food to the men, women, and children within the county who are homeless or just in need, Engelhardt said.

Since 2010, Kendall County PADS has assisted more than 300 men, women, and children, she stated. That translates into 5,794 overnight stays and 17,369 meals served to the agency’s “guests.”
From Oct. 18, 2015, through April 16, 2016, Kendall County PADS will provide homeless shelters from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. And once again, seven churches have graciously offered to host PADS guests at the following sites.

Sundays: Cross Lutheran Church, 8609 Route 47, Yorkville.
Mondays: Yorkville Congregational United Church of Christ, 409 Center Parkway, Yorkville.
Tuesdays: Harvest New Beginnings, 5315 Douglas Road, Oswego.
Wednesdays: United Methodist Church of Plano, 219 North Hale Street, Plano.
Thursdays: Trinity United Methodist Church, 2505 Boomer Lane, Yorkville.
Fridays: Church of the Good Shepherd, 5 West Washington Street, Oswego.
Saturdays: St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 53 Fernwood Road, Boulder Hill.

Tax-deductible donations may be made online at http://www.kendallcares.org or by mail to Kendall County PADS at P.O. Box 1136, Yorkville, Ill. 60650. Caring volunteers are always needed, valued, and greatly appreciated.