Presenting views from staff, guests, and supporters of the Lincoln Park Community Shelter
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Thanksgiving at LPCS
On this Thanksgiving Day, we here at LPCS would like to offer up thanks to all of our volunteers, board members, and the surrounding community for all that they do for the Lincoln Park Community Shelter and its guests. Every time you make a meal, teach a class, or simply drop off a donation of books or clothes, you are touching someone's life who is need. For that reason, LPCS would like to thank all of our supporters. You make this community what it is.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
LPCS at night
On Thursday night, September 10th, I did my first overnight volunteer shift at the Lincoln
Park Community Shelter. It was a fascinating experience and I could go on about it for hours.
The dinner prepared by volunteers smelled great. Chili for dinner, with apple crisp for
dessert. The first game of football season was on that night. Watching a great game between the
Steelers and the Titans with about a dozen of the guests was like watching it with anyone
else. We even stayed up a bit past "lights out" in order to see the end of the game. They
thanked me for letting them stay up to watch it, but I told them that it was more fun to
watch a game with company than by myself. It was a good time.
One guest asked if he could stay up a bit later to take his new clothes out of their packaging (removing tags, paper wrapping, etc) because he would need them in the morning. He had purchased the clothes with his first social security check. He had a bunch of stuff; it took him about an hour.
The shelter typically runs at full capacity (35 beds)and currently has 24 male and 11 female
"guests." It is a very clean and professionally run facility. I'm pretty sure that if any of us would meet the guests on the street that we would not be able to identify most of them as homeless. If you want to learn more about LPCS or get on the email list, visit http://www.lpcsonline.org/. It's a great organization.
Park Community Shelter. It was a fascinating experience and I could go on about it for hours.
The dinner prepared by volunteers smelled great. Chili for dinner, with apple crisp for
dessert. The first game of football season was on that night. Watching a great game between the
Steelers and the Titans with about a dozen of the guests was like watching it with anyone
else. We even stayed up a bit past "lights out" in order to see the end of the game. They
thanked me for letting them stay up to watch it, but I told them that it was more fun to
watch a game with company than by myself. It was a good time.
One guest asked if he could stay up a bit later to take his new clothes out of their packaging (removing tags, paper wrapping, etc) because he would need them in the morning. He had purchased the clothes with his first social security check. He had a bunch of stuff; it took him about an hour.
The shelter typically runs at full capacity (35 beds)and currently has 24 male and 11 female
"guests." It is a very clean and professionally run facility. I'm pretty sure that if any of us would meet the guests on the street that we would not be able to identify most of them as homeless. If you want to learn more about LPCS or get on the email list, visit http://www.lpcsonline.org/. It's a great organization.
--Gil Matar, LPCS Board Member
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Thousands of bras collected for the needy
Check out this article about a man who collects bras form homeless girls and women: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-bras-city-zone-02oct02,0,3810524.story Last winter, LPCS recieved a donation of bras from him!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
New Website!
Has it been awhile since you visited LPCS' website? Well now is the time to revisit it! LPCS' website recently received a face lift and is now new and improved. Check out our upcoming events! Read stories about guests, graduates, volunteers, and funders on the "Faces of LPCS" tab. New quick and easy access to the volunteer calenders! Check it out at http://www.lpcsonline.org/ and let us know what you think!
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