Youth Pride Services ( YPS ) , a national organization engaging LGBT youth of color, aims to feed low-income Chicagoans with the Homeless for the Holidays food drive.
Community members are being asked to collect non-perishable food items, grocery-store gift cards and monetary donations from friends, family and co-workers. ( Once the items have been gathered, participants should call 773-977-8051 to schedule a free pickup by YPS. ) The organization is trying to collect all donations before Dec. 15.
YPS began in Chicago as the Youth Pride Center, a South Side organization predominately serving LGBT youth of color. YPS reaches out to LGBT youth of color in cities and towns where they do not have access to an LGBT center. More than 1,500 young people have joined YPS through the organization's website.
Via conference calls, a board of youth leaders from across the United States discusses plans for YPS. While hammering out an upcoming fundraising campaign, members expressed concern that government agencies would not be able to fulfill the demand for food by homeless and low-income people during the holiday season.
"The youth decided it wasn't fair for us to do our traditional fundraising program, taking in a whole bunch of money when others needed food," said Frank Walker, director of YPS. "They decided to add another part to our traditional end-of-the-year fundraising campaign that is Homeless for the Holidays, trying to collect food from the towns and cities we operate in."
Many people who utilize YPS resources and the Chicago Youth Pride Center are themselves homeless or displaced LGBT youth of color.
"There are a lot [ of youth ] that are displaced, meaning they were put out by their families for LGBT reasons, but they are sleeping on somebody's couch or staying with somebody temporarily," said Walker.
YPS will assess the Homeless for the Holidays donations and try to create a complete meal basket, utilizing grocery store gift cards and monetary donations to fill in any holes. In Chicago, baskets will be delivered to homeless people on Lower Wacker Drive, as well as LGBT youth who are displaced or whose families need food.
"Over Thanksgiving, we went down to Lower Wacker Drive," said Walker. "There were about 50 or 60 homeless people and families down there, so we want to go back there again for Christmas as well."
Fifty-seven Chicago families have asked for assistance through the Homeless for the Holidays program, as of the press deadline.