EVANSTON, IL — On March 4, the McGaw YMCA hosted its second Mission Impact Series live panel discussion, “At Home At 1000 Grove.” Community members, friends, and supporters gathered on Zoom to listen to panelists discuss the critical role of the McGaw’s Men’s Residence program and the vision for expanding supportive housing solutions at the YMCA.
The live virtual panel discussion featured McGaw YMCA Leadership, Nicole Woodard, Chief Operating Officer; Roland Fouché, MPA, Senior Director of Residence/Housing; Allie Payne, Advancement Committee Member and Board Member; Peter Morris, Finance Committee Member, and former Board Chair; and Jodi Wickersheimer, Chief Development Officer.
The Men’s Residence program at McGaw has offered a supportive housing community for men in the heart of Evanston for more than six decades. The panel conversation was a chance to share details about McGaw YMCA’s long-standing role in housing, introduce the faces and experiences of our Resident Members and share plans for enhancing the physical space and the program.
According to Monique Parsons, McGaw YMCA President and CEO, “The McGaw Men’s Residence program has gone from just a space and place for men to live, to us really getting to know our men and building relationships with them and helping them receive any services that they may need.”
Especially amid the COVID-19 crisis, the Men’s Residence program has played a role in providing a safe space for men in the community as residents in the program have faced feelings of isolation, wellbeing concerns, and economic insecurity.
“I think community means keeping each other safe,” Woodard said. “And the first thing we had to do when COVID-19 hit was figure out what we needed to do keep the people in our building safe and to keep our men safe. We also needed to figure out how to keep connections alive – and we couldn’t have done it without the existing relationships we built and without the men really stepping in to take care of each other. I can’t say enough about the way the staff and our men responded in the moment.”
Highlighting the connection between housing and stable employment, financial planning and comprehensive health, the Men’s Residence program responds with safe, reliable, affordable housing with wrap–around services and programming.
“Our residents are the ones that guide our program,” Fouché said. “When they come to us with ideas and input, if there’s a common thread, that puts up the flag for us to visit the commonalities. Their feedback helps guide us in decision making.”
Additionally, McGaw plans to improve the physical space for the Men’s Residence program, starting with construction to expand the social space on the ground level in 2021, followed by renovations to the living space. Thomas F. & Susan P. Moran Family Foundation have underwritten the development phase of the Residence Renovation and were preparing to launch the fundraising effort in March 2020. Lessons learned through the pandemic have fine-tuned the vision and McGaw YMCA will start sharing details about the project scope to formally launch the fundraising effort in spring 2021.
“These days, people are looking at their homes more and more as a place that they enjoy themselves, they work, they do more things in the home now – since COVID, especially.” Payne said. “To have another space that’s pleasant to cook, to hang out, and to not have to be in your enclosed room all the time is important. It’s not just a place to crash for a little while, it’s really your home.”
For more information about McGaw YMCA’s Men’s Residence Program, visit our website: www.mcgawymca.org/adults/mens-residence.
To learn more about how the McGaw Men’s Residence program addresses housing insecurity in Evanston, view our “At Home At 1000 Grove” video or read our recent feature story here.
Watch “At Home At 1000 Grove” Video
Mission Impact Series: Community Health
The Mission Impact Series events are free to attend and will take place throughout McGaw’s fiscal year (Sept. 1-Aug. 31). The next Mission Impact Series event will focus on community health. The series is designed to highlight the people and the programs that embody this work and will feature individuals and organizations who fund that work.
The series is expected to culminate in June through an evening of philanthropy by way of a virtual, live event, or a smaller in-person event, as allowed by state and local health guidelines.
To learn more about the McGaw YMCA’s Mission Impact Series, to become a sponsor, or to donate items or funds to the programs that are featured, please contact Jodi Wickersheimer, Chief Development Officer, at [email protected].
Every Contribution, at Every Level, Makes a Difference.
To support the McGaw YMCA’s work with a one-time donation of any size, or to set up a recurring donation, please visit our online donation system at the link below.