Kendall County PADS keeps shelters closed but vows to continue helping unhoused community

 

Yorkville United Congregational Church of Christ housed one of the seven temporary homeless shelters that Kendall County PADS operated since 2010, offering meals, overnight stays, and social services.

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

For the second straight year, the Kendall County PADS board decided to keep its temporary homeless shelters closed during the upcoming colder months, citing health concerns over the worsening COVID-19 crisis.

But members of the homeless support group pledged to continue offering the alternative assistance that it has provided to the unhoused community, since the coronavirus forced the shutdown of the shelters in March 2020. 

“The homeless have been cared for,” said Anne Engelhardt, executive director of Kendall County PADS. “Nobody has been left on the street.”

At a board meeting earlier this month, Ms. Engelhardt gave credit for the ongoing help to both  the Kendall County Health Department and the Daybreak Center in Joliet, which has been accepting the local homeless into its shelter, operated by Catholic Charities.

RaeAnn Van Gundy, director of the Kendall County Health Department and a PADS board member, said her agency has been able to use COVID-19 federal relief funds to temporarily house area homeless citizens in local motels and assign them social workers from Community Action of Kendall and Grundy counties.  

“If there was a silver lining to COVID, it was getting them all into one place to stay,” Ms. Van Gundy said. “Because of that we have been able to expand our program for client services.”

She added that some clients were able to receive housing vouchers to rent their own apartments while others were referred to Daybreak, which provides food, shelter, and social services including “intense case management” 24 hours per day.

Since 2010, PADS had been providing nutritious meals and overnight housing at seven shelters  that were open one night of the week between mid-October and mid-April.

Those seeking shelter had to either drive their own vehicles or receive private transportation to travel to and from each site, often spending their in-between time at fast-food restaurants, the Oswego and Yorkville public libraries, and designated warming centers throughout the county such as the Montgomery Village Hall.  

Sheriff Dwight Baird, also a PADS board member, said he and his deputies continue to offer any unhoused person transportation to Hesed House, a full-service homeless shelter in nearby Aurora. And Kendall Area Transit (KAT) has also provided rides when needed for those without vehicles. 

Some PADS site managers at the meeting stated their willingness to reopen the temporary shelters, which were located at six area churches and a Christian academy.

But a majority of the board members agreed that the health of the shelter guests and volunteers could not be guaranteed, particularly with the so-called delta variant of the coronavirus causing COVID-19 cases to recently double in the county.

“The numbers don’t look good,” Ms. Van Gundy said. “And they aren’t expected to improve until we have better vaccination rates.”

Every year the homeless support group needed more than 500 volunteers, most of whom served once or twice per month, to staff the seven overnight temporary shelters, working four-hour shifts.

Ms. Engelhardt expressed her gratitude to the thousands of area residents who have volunteered at PADS during its eleven shelter seasons and suggested the following service opportunities:

·      The Caring Hands Thrift Shop in Yorkville https://facebook.com/CaringHandsThriftshop

·      Kendall County Community Food Pantry https://kccfoodpantry.org

·      Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) http://casakendallcounty.org

·      Yorkville, Kendall County Senior Services, call (630) 553-5777; or email Deborah Sheppard at dsheppard@seniorservicesassoc.org

 

“We will continue to explore other ways to help the homeless in Kendall County,” Ms. Engelhardt vowed.

 

 

 

From a Bush to a Kennedy, Judson University bridges political divide with diverse speakers

 

Dr. Gene C. Crume, president of Judson University in Elgin, speaks at a recent World Leaders Forum, which the Christian college founded in 2011 to host public policy discussions. (Photo by Robb Davidson)

By Tom Siebert

During the past politically divisive decade, the World Leaders Forum at Judson University has served as a civilized oasis of public policy debate among heads of state from around the globe.

The small Christian college, with a student body of about 1,300, began the forum with a big bang in April 2011 when it hosted former President George W. Bush as the event’s first keynote speaker, followed the next year by Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union.

“My decision to say yes to Judson had a lot to do with the success of the World Leaders Forum,” said Dr. Gene C. Crume, who became the Elgin university’s sixth president in 2013, after serving at St. Mary’s University in Minnesota, the Peru State College Foundation in Nebraska, Midland Lutheran College in Nebraska, the Indiana State University Foundation, and his alma mater Western Kentucky University.

“It’s not about partisanship or advocacy,” Crume said of Judson’s now-globally known and highly esteemed speakers series. “We want there to be thoughtful dialogue. And the audiences are always very receptive and very engaged.”

Subsequent guests of the university were ex-British Prime Minister Tony Blair; former Mexican President Felipe Calderón; Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan; author, attorney, and diplomat Caroline Kennedy; and jointly, former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and ex-Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who also served as chair of the Democratic National Committee.

The keynoters are not required to share Judson’s faith views nor are there any restraints on what they can discuss, Crume said.

For instance, when the daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy, Caroline, appeared before the forum in October 2019, she chose to veer far away from politics.

“I don’t wish to contribute to the divisiveness in our country at this time,” Kennedy told an audience of more than 500 at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel.

She then proceeded to regale the crowd by reciting poetry, playing trivia, and telling stories about her famous family.

“As a Christian university, we know who we are,” Crume explained. “But the Scriptures are really clear about this––we do engage in the world.”

The forum has also drawn speakers from the realm of entertainment such as Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team and star of ABC-TV’s “Shark Tank,” and last month, actor Terrence Howard, who spoke about his newly invented drone technology, even demonstrating an unmanned aerial device on the campus grounds.

Moderators of the annual event have included conservative commentator Eric Metaxas; TV news reporter Lisa Chavarria of NBC 5 in Chicago; and business/political consultant Mark Vargas, the forum’s president and a 2004 graduate of the university.

Proceeds from the World Leaders Forum fund Judson’s leadership scholars program, innovative entrepreneurial activities, and ongoing operational purposes.

Located in northwest suburban Elgin since 1963, Judson University offers a Christian, liberal arts and sciences education through its Bachelor of Arts degrees for more than 60 majors, minors, graduate, and online programs, as well as certification and accelerated adult degrees. For more information, visit www.JudsonU.edu.

The speakers series is held mainly at Judson’s Herrick Chapel, but when ticket demand exceeds the seating capacity of that venue, the event is relocated to the larger convention center in nearby Schaumburg.

That will be the case on Nov. 5 when retired U.S. four-star Gen. David Petraeus will speak at the forum, after the COVID-19 health crisis led to the postponement of his scheduled appearance last year.

Crume asserted that Petraeus is a perfect pick for the nonpartisan event because he served under both Republican President George W. Bush and Democratic President Barack Obama.

Petraeus, who led U.S. troops in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, will no doubt be asked to discuss President Joe Biden’s decision to conclude America’s combat missions in those countries later this year.

“The timing is very interesting,” noted Crume. “There should be some unique and compelling questions.”