By HM staff

Healing and recovery have been the focus of The Community House staff and board throughout 2021. Despite the pandemic, The Community House remained the center of community involvement and activity as we focused on helping provide safe outlets for individuals of all ages to engage. Even though we are masked and distanced, we are still finding ways to provide human connections and a sense of normalcy when families need us most. Through the arts, athletics, summer camps, science classes, and more, we brought people together to live full and healthy lives. Our community rallied around the legacy and the love for theater of the late Dick Johnson, a Life Trustee, and raised more than $50,000 for theater improvements for the next generation of performer to enjoy. We needed the support of our donors during this challenging time of reduced services and through the annual fund, the Walk for Mental Health, and the Holiday Ball, donors and friends stepped up to support our mission because the pandemic reminded people how important connection and engagement truly can be.

This support allowed us to serve over 100 counseling clients on a sliding scale, with 70% of those clients being under age 23 and without adequate health insurance. The generosity of our donors also allowed us to flex our day care programming to the low-income and unincorporated Willowbrook Corner neighborhood to be full day, half day, or after school as the school schedule rapidly changed. One Willowbrook Corner parent shared, “Without The Community House offering day care when the school schedule kept changing each week, there is no way I could have kept my job.” We’ve listened to the residents in Willowbrook Corner and in 2022 we are planning to expand our services to include equitable access to both youth mental health services and recreation, athletic, and arts programming. All families, regardless of their income level or zip code, want the same things for their families and with the support of donors, we can provide bright futures for our neighbors in unincorporated DuPage County.

*Photo provided by The Community House