After a long winter Easter baskets and gardening are welcome signs of change. Thanks to volunteers from Charter One, Chase, and St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, spring is off to a great start for Mercy Housing Lakefront children and youth.

Each year St. Anthony’s Catholic Church from Frankfort, IL provides Easter baskets to the children living in Mercy Housing Lakefront’s Roseland buildings.  This year they provided 52 baskets for kids aged 2 to 13 in the Holland Apartments, Wentworth Commons, and Roseland Village Grandfamily Apartments.  Thanks to their generosity, Easter was full of joy in Roseland.

Spring is also the time to renew the gardens and launch a healthy summer for the youth living in Chicago’s Austin community.  The summer garden provides food for a healthier diet, introduces new vegetables and fruits, teaches youth and families how to cook new veggies, and, most importantly, provides youth with a strong, structured program of guidance and mentoring throughout the summer. Anyone can buy vegetables from the garden; we charge on a sliding scale to make the veggies affordable to all.

More than 15 volunteers from Charter One worked with kids and Mercy staff to move 10 tons of high-quality organic soil into the garden beds, prepping them for planting. Charter One volunteers worked alongside youth involved in the afterschool program, sharing experiences through conversation.

Fifteen volunteers from Chase came to spread mulch between the garden beds and plant seedlings for the vegetable gardens. Chase also provided funding to defray the cost of garden supplies and equipment.

If your organization is interested in partnering with Mercy Housing to enrich the lives children and youth, please contact David Hays at dhays@mercyhousing.org.