Organization Provides Resources For Those Experiencing Homelessness

Photo provided by North Side Housing and Supportive Services.
Photo provided by North Side Housing and Supportive Services.

Organization Provides Resources For Those Experiencing Homelessness

By Tia Carol Jones

The North Side Housing and Supportive Services (NSHSS) was founded in 1983 by residents and churches in the Lakeview neighborhood to address the rising number of people experiencing homelessness. It began in a church basement and more than 40 years later, the North Side Housing and Supportive Services has served hundreds of the Chicago population by providing emergency shelter, permanent supportive housing, health care and other wraparound services. Peter Marchese, Board President of North Side Housing and Supportive Services, took time to answer questions about NSHSS, which has grown into a $3 million organization.

Citizen Newspaper: ‎How does the work that the North Side Housing and Support Services benefit the community?

Peter Marchese: The mission of NSHSS is to end homelessness by providing housing and comprehensive supportive services with dignity, respect, and care. For over 40 years, we have been a critical piece of the city’s housing safety net, helping thousands of individuals transition from sleeping on the street to finding security and safety in their own apartments.  In 2024, we served over 500 people who were homeless or vulnerable to homelessness.  We work with our clients to find permanent solutions to their homelessness and transition them into stable, permanent housing. 

With our new 70-bed homeless shelter in Rogers Park, NSHSS is the largest provider of shelter and supportive services to homeless men on the north side of Chicago.  It’s open 24-hours a day, 7 days a week, meeting the immediate needs of homeless men, providing three meals a day, showers, laundry and other basic living needs.

We are also committed to offering the best combination of supportive services, too.

Twice a month, bankers from two local banks lead financial literacy classes, in English and Spanish. Many of our clients have never had a bank account. Now, they’re learning to receive paychecks and pay bills.

In April, we launched a weekly art therapy program with the Evanston-based Open Studio Project. Art therapists work with clients to express themselves through drawing, painting, or writing, as a non-verbal way to heal from the trauma of homelessness, especially among those with mental health challenges.

We bring recovery from substance abuse into the shelter with weekly Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

But every person’s journey out of homelessness is different. Shelter clients will work with dedicated case managers to develop a customized plan to successfully transition our clients into permanent housing.  Some of our clients are overcoming economic hardship. Others are battling physical or mental health challenges. We don’t put time limits on a person’s successful transition to living independently in stable housing. Clients are welcome to live in the shelter for as long as they are making forward progress in the plan to transition to permanent housing.

Citizen: Why is an organization like North Side Housing and Supportive Services important when it comes to providing trauma-informed shelter for those experiencing homelessness?

Marchese: Many people ask us why we only house homeless men in our shelter ? That's because 60% of Chicagoans experiencing homelessness are men -- BUT only 25% of the shelter beds available are for men. The vast majority of homeless men in Chicago are men of color, so the need for our services is critical. In December, we opened Chicago’s first homeless shelter for men with a "2-men-per-room," dorm-like floor plan and a trauma-conscious interior design. It’s a space rooted in human dignity, stability, and healing—and a new solution to end homelessness in Chicago.

Why is this shelter special? The project was funded with a partnership with the Chicago’s Dept. Of Housing.  With a budget of $7 million, everything is new: a new kitchen, roof, HVAC system, laundry room, and a medical exam room.  It has a floor plan which is more like a college dorm, with two residents sharing each of the 35 sleeping rooms. The shelter’s floor plan and interior design were approved by the City, so it will be the model for new shelters in Chicago for many years.

The architects designed the interior to be a “healing, trauma-conscious” environment, with lighting, paint colors, flooring patterns, and even bedding that is comfortable and calming to the homeless male residents, to promote healing from the trauma of living on the streets.  The floors and the walls are colored with warm, earth-tones and shades of green. The community room and sleeping rooms have only soft lighting with no fluorescent lights.

Citizen: How can the community support the work North Side Housing and Supportive Services is doing?

Marchese: Volunteers are welcome to prepare lunch and dinner at the shelter with our kitchen managers from Monday through Friday.  Volunteers are also welcome to collect non-perishable food items and men’s toiletries for the 70 men who live in our shelter. 

North Side Housing and Supportive Services is located in Ravenswood, For more information about the organization and its services, visit www.northsidehousing.org or call 773-244-6401.

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