As a young boy growing up on the South Side of Chicago, Rasheed Sami faced struggles that no child should. Some days, there wasn’t food on his table. Today, Rasheed, who’s almost 30, uses those struggles to empower others who face similar circumstances. Most recently in his journey to healing, Rasheed attended an educational symposium designed to teach South Chicago residents about trauma, how it can manifest in your life and tips to better respond to its effects.
Copayments. Deductibles. Premiums. The complex world of health insurance coverage can be confusing for even the most informed patients. But for immigrants, refugees and other underserved populations, our country’s healthcare system is particularly daunting. In a city where 10.5 percent of people lack health insurance coverage, United Way of Metro Chicago community partners are turning to healthcare navigators to help reduce barriers to healthcare access.
When Dave and Jana Jenkins decided to return to the United States in 2012 following 19 years of missionary work in Africa, the pair expected to face challenges. What the parents of five didn’t foresee was healthcare being a costly barrier to their assimilation back into American life.
Hosted by the Marshall Square Resource Network (MSRN), participants of the 5th Annual Peace March sought to commemorate the lives of individuals who’ve been killed in acts of violence and unite neighbors on a peaceful front. The march is an extension of the Little Village Neighborhood Network’s goal to reduce violence in the neighborhood, which frequently experiences both domestic and community violence.
In an old, brick-walled gym flooded with morning sunlight, dozens of women sporting colorful workout clothes were breaking a sweat in Miguel Murillo’s Latin dance class. Following his lead, the women danced the Salsa, Mambo and Cha-Cha, mixed with Zumba and other hip-hop moves, as drum beats pulsed through the speaker system.