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African American Heritage Festival at The Center of Englewood
Greetings!
It is 2022. Shepherd’s Hope opened its doors in March of 2009 after 2 years of praying and planning.  No matter what the underlying circumstances or results, we’ve stayed the course, making our share of mistakes along the way, while staying focused on JESUS CHRIST.
You’ve watched us grow, touching lives in numbers I can’t fathom. Our food pantry provides groceries 3 times a week. The feeding center serves hot meals 8 times a week. 17 other ministries residing in our building offer a myriad of services. Close to 6,000 lives are touched at The Center of Englewood every week.
Community Growth
The Mark of GOD is the relationships and trust HE has developed (through Shepherd’s Hope) with our Englewood neighbors. Our integrity, transparency and the services we provide have made The Center a well-known entity in Englewood and the surrounding communities.
The most important change that has taken place
is the number of children & teens that are involved.
➢ 30% more children are eating hot meals at our feeding center since we began our dinner program.
➢ 25% increase in Basketball by Blue clinic participation (M-F) in our gym over past 2 yrs.
➢ Saturday morning baseball practices began 2 months ago with 22 young men participating under Coach Dennis Butler.
➢ The Street Ministry of Precious Blood will oversee weekly afternoon open basketball gym time beginning on Saturday, March 19 as well as on Monday open gym beginning on March 14.
➢ Jeff Maxwell (Chicago Peace Initiative) began over a month ago holding open basketball sessions from 5-8 pm on Saturdays.
➢ In April a 40+ Double Dutch women’s group will bring double dutch and hula hooping to The Center of Englewood!
Celebration: An evening of fun, food, entertainment
African American Heritage Festival
On February 23 from 4:30-7:30 pm Shepherd’s Hope and its ministry partners held the African American Heritage Festival at The Center. (view full program). The event included artistic painting and games in the gym & a games truck in the parking lot, all for the kids. Each ministry hosted an exhibit table in the hallway promoting their program. In the auditorium a wide array of entertainment was presented. Guest speakers read poetry by Marcus Garvey and author Sylvester Boyd spoke about the history of Africans in America. Students from Wentworth Elementary School entertained with an African dance. The highlight of the evening was a fashion show presented by Crystal Peck (ministry partner Rip’n & Sew’n). A gospel singer closed out the show. Throughout the entire evening, a great buffet meal was provided by 5 different cooks who worked together to create a menu of African and Soul Food. They served over 400 meals!

The neighborhood came out to support the event – approximately 195 adults and 140 children & teens. Many expressed their gratitude for the evening. Thank you, LORD! This event was supported by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust and by the contributions of the ministries at The Center of Englewood.
For more photos click here
Fashion show
Artist at work
Fashion of all ages
Are you a member of Thrivent?
Shepherd's Hope recently became a Thrivent grantee. Thrivent Choice® can have a tremendous impact on organizations like ours. Eligible Thrivent clients with membership, please consider directing your Choice Dollars® by the March 31 deadline to us. You can make a profound impact on our efforts to meet the needs of our Englewood neighbors. Learn more at https://thrivent.com/thriventchoice today! Note: Search for Shepherd's Hope Ltd.
Challenges: Increased Need & Fewer Resources
These last 2 years in ministry have been a test of our trust in our LORD and of our perseverance. During COVID, private donations have been down; grants helped a little to fill the gap, but we ended our fiscal year in the red. Grants are very important in growing a ministry, but they are geared more toward new programs and that is a plus, especially if it is filling a need that the people of Englewood require to better their lives. But in essence it supplies resources for a period of time that the grant is issued. When that period ends, we either need to find another grant or rely on gifts from our donors to continue to meet the need.
 
From 2019 when COVID started to today we have more than doubled the number of neighbors we are serving. Most of the food is free but the ancillary items and the staff/volunteers we need to serve the people have also more than doubled, and in turn so have our operating expenses. Given the current economic state, our numbers continue to increase weekly. We are in a catch 22 situation. We cannot abandon our neighbors and at the same time we cannot operate losing money every year. 
 
There are very few grants that provide operating capital. That is why we have turned to you, the individuals that for 13 years have provided the resources to meet the needs of this community. There are many of our original donors that we haven’t heard from in years.
 If every one of our donors could share $75 twice a year
(& perhaps more from those who could afford it),
Shepherd’s Hope & our neighbors would be very grateful.

It would help us to be able to take care of the increasing need in our community. Thank you, LORD!
 
This season has taken its toll on many families, both spiritually and financially. Our prayers are with you, and we feel your pain if your family is one of them. After all the LORD has done through Shepherd’s Hope to develop relationships and trust with this community, HE is not just going to walk away. HE is testing the people in the ministry and its donors to see if we are in it for the long haul. 
Please, we are asking for your prayers and any resources you can afford to share with Shepherd’s Hope. We are ready to continue what we have been doing for 13 years, but we need your financial support to MAKE IT HAPPEN!
I want to thank all of you who have supported us all these years. As we begin our 14th year, we are more excited than we have been in years because of how the LORD has shined HIS light on Shepherd’s Hope and The Center. The last 6 months has seen more new believers than in any other time in our ministry’s history. ONLY GOD!
 
Please consider coming to The Center on a Saturday morning and see what the LORD is doing through this ministry. Take some time to meet the people we serve. Feel free to call 773-351-3336 and I will meet you at the building – or we can ride down together. If you join us on a Saturday, be ready to have a great breakfast on us!
 
We love you and thanks again for all you have done and are about to do. We sincerely hope to see you soon!
 
Brian
Executive Director, Shepherd's Hope
Your help is always appreciated!
Click the image to donate through our secure website. You can designate your gift to a specific area or donate in honor of a loved one.
If you would like to visit and serve this community, we would love to have you! Just click image or
call 773-756-3535
Send your check to:
Shepherd's HOPE
PO Box 21013
Chicago, IL 60621
Thank you for your support!
Your support brings HOPE to those in need...