A woman and her son stand at the bottom of their front steps at their new home of five months. — Fatima and her son outside their apartment building before they run errands together on a Thursday morning in Cicero, Ill., on February 22, 2024. Family Focus helped Fatima secure an apartment for her and her son. April Alonso/ Cicero Independiente.

By Leslie Hurtado

Fatima and her son have been living in their new home made in a Cicero apartment for five months since she was approved through Family Focus in October 2023. April Alonso / Cicero Independiente

During last year’s holiday season, Family Focus, an organization located in Cicero dedicated to family advocacy, gave grocery gift cards to recent arrivals.

The intention behind the gift cards was to offer migrants a feeling of home and comfort during the holidays, a period often marked by distance from family. This is just one example of how Family Focus works to support migrants into the local community.

Fatima, a Venezuelan migrant residing in Cicero, endured a significant wait of three months in Matamoros, Mexico, for her U.S. immigration process to be approved before arriving at the police station in Chicago's 15th district last July. Upon settling in Chicago, she looked for stable housing and community assistance. She found crucial support from local church leaders committed to aiding migrants. This support was crucial in her settling into the community.

“I am super grateful for [Family Focus] because during the time that I needed help – when I was desperate, they supported me and gave me a helping hand,” Fatima said.

Family Focus Initiatives

In response to the growing needs of migrants, especially during the colder months, Family Focus has been a pillar of support. They assisted over 25,000 migrants in finding housing, healthcare and employment resources last year alone. As part of the Chicago Alliance for Collaborative Effort, a coalition of 48 nonprofits, Family Focus operates 11 centers across diverse communities, from Belmont Cragin to Cicero, addressing the increased demand for shelter and other necessities.

Since 2022, Family Focus has assisted migrants arriving from the southern border. They provide essentials like sleeping bags and bus cards, and the organization’s case managers help migrants apply for benefits, such as rental assistance and healthcare.

Collaborating with four of its Welcoming Centers set up by the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), the organization focuses on low-income families and prioritizes healthcare for children under 18, postpartum mothers (who are eligible for Medicaid up to one year postpartum) and certain visa holders who can access public benefits without a one-year waiting period.

About 60% of applicants seek healthcare assistance. Since July, the Cicero location has processed eight apartment rental applications. Migrants seeking assistance can apply in person, but must earn less than half than the average income and secure a landlord's agreement. Applications require ID, residency and income proof. Shelter residents are already verified for residency.

Maria, one of the applicants for the rental program, originally from Venezuela, moved to Colombia in 2016 due to hardships, selling snacks and drinks for five years near the San Antonio and Cucuta border.

When pandemic restrictions impacted her business, she relocated to Ecuador in 2022 under challenging conditions. Maria and her family arrived in Chicago in July last year. She was introduced to Family Focus shortly after by a community organizer at a police station near the 63rd district, recommending that she seek housing and other types of support from the organization.

“It's not easy,” Maria said. “One has to believe in God and learn that there are many people who want to help you. There are people that you can trust.”

Wave of Newcomers and Policy Response

Diptych (two photos side by side).The North entrance of Family Focus St. Frances of Rome Church, located on 59th Court in Cicero, Ill. Patty Escareno/ Cicero Independiente

The work of Family Focus has grown more important as they've seen a big increase in migrants arriving in Chicago and Cicero. Since August 2022, Chicago experienced a significant influx of over 30,000 migrants, mainly from countries facing economic and political turmoil, like Venezuela, and from various countries across Africa and the Middle East.

Cicero, known for its high migrant population, nearly 40%, has also felt the impact of this increase, leading to added pressure on its resources, including shelter availability.

Chicago spent about $138 million and Illinois contributed an additional $160 million to assist migrants. With more than 14,700 migrants in 27 Chicago shelters, the need for more support has grown, leading to calls for additional help from the federal government and organizations such as Family Focus.

“A church in Oak Park that is close to Cicero. The Calvary Memorial Church is currently housing 19 individuals,” Darrin Johnson, Regional Vice President of Centers at Family Focus, said. “These are individuals that largely came from New York. So they then came to Illinois and [IDHS] reached out to us and Cicero and said, ‘Hey, we would love for you to come over and provide more Intensive case management.’”

In November, Mayor Brandon Johnson proposed a 60-day limit on shelter stays to manage space for new arrivals. This policy was postponed three times since its announcement in November due to winter weather, health issues among migrants and other factors.

Mayor Johnson also adopted strict measures on bus transportation, which includes impounding buses and fines, if bus drivers break migrant drop-off protocols.

To avoid these penalties, some buses diverted to the Cicero Metra station in November, quickly unloading migrants and departing. This has led to several incidents where migrants were left stranded.

Cicero responded by imposing a fine of $750 per person left stranded by these buses, according to documents Cicero Independiente obtained through FOIA.

The City of Berwyn also took measures to manage unscheduled bus arrivals, establishing an ordinance last year specifically to address the issue and a similar fine of $750 per passenger. The policy states that it aims to protect passengers who are arriving in Berwyn without prior coordination from the town, according to documents from the City of Berwyn.

Cicero Independiente requested comment about the policy from Town of Cicero’s spokesperson Ray Hanania, but received no response.

Housing Assistance

The conditions at Chicago's shelters caused concern for Maria. At the police station where she stayed with her children, an 8-year-old daughter and a 6-year-old son, she said she faced poor and inhumane conditions. Her rental application was approved in early January and then moved near Chicago's South Side.

"We had to go to bed by eight at night, and since we slept inside, we had to reserve a spot or it would get full and we would end up without sleep, having to sleep outside sometimes in the rain and cold,” Maria said. “And dealing with the police, because sometimes they would close the bathrooms and the children would go to school without being able to bathe.”

In the wake of the city's shelter crisis and the hardships faced by migrants like Maria, Family Focus has been providing solutions such as rental assistance. The organization connected families to a program provided by the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), offering three to six months of rental support.

The application requires migrants to find an apartment, which Family Focus would assist with. Following changes in eligibility, Family Focus launched its initiative by offering one month's rent and a security deposit to continuously support migrants in securing stable housing.

When Fatima was told she was moving to an apartment in the suburb of Cicero, she didn’t know what a “suburbio” meant. Fatima said she was glad to have found a place to live in Cicero. April Alonso/ Cicero Independiente

“As case managers, we started calling the apartments, talking directly with property managers and landlords regarding this financial assistance,” Jennifer Jimenez, a case manager at the Family Focus Welcoming Center in Cicero, said. “We would advocate for the participants to help them out get them an apartment and also receive assistance from [IHDA].”

Fatima was approved for an apartment rental in Cicero by October, following her in-person application with Jimenez in September. She expressed gratitude for the financial support during her difficult transition in the U.S.

“Thanks to God, I was approved,” Fatima said. “A month before we [submitted my application], [Jennifer] called me and said, ‘Fatima, they approved [the application]!’ It was a complete joy for me because obviously, I didn't want to stay where I was. I slept on the floor, on the street and on the sidewalk. It was a difficult situation.”

Despite this initial success, she continues to face financial challenges.

On a Friday morning before the holidays, Cicero Independiente reached out to Fatima again. During the conversation, Fatima shared her concerns about adapting to life in the U.S. as the New Year approached and the difficulties of finding work during the colder months.

“I feel very sad because I still haven't found a job, and Christmas is coming. I haven't been able to send money to my family in Venezuela," Fatima said.

Seasonal jobs, crucial for many, are scarce in slower economic periods, particularly in winter. This scarcity undermines migrants’ abilities to meet rental requirements, such as consistent income proof and credit checks, which are often out of reach for migrants, according to Johnson.

“We have individuals that might be doing landscaping during the summer months, but then obviously there's little of that,” Johnson said. “They might be able to do some snow removal, but that typically requires much more sophisticated equipment. So, then they might struggle during the colder months to have a job. In that case, there's been some challenges with being able to continue the rent.”

Family Focus is strengthening its rental support for migrants by working with non-profits like Catholic Charities and Onward House to provide extra rental funds and help with work permit applications. Their focus is on collaborating with community-based organizations to address housing and mental health needs to support the migrant population.

“They want to work,” Jennifer Jimenez said. “They're ready to work and provide for themselves and their families. They're seeking education. A lot of families that come over have degrees from their country, and they're seeking to continue that education. And they're looking for safe housing as well – safe and secure housing where they and their families can be safe.”

Fatima said she is hopeful about her future work prospects and plans to stay in her current apartment long-term. She mentioned that Family Focus programs are helpful for new arrivals in the U.S.

“I am unemployed, but I'm sure the opportunity will soon come for me to get back to work," she said.

Leslie Hurtado is a contributing reporter with Cicero Independiente. She graduated with a B.A. in Communications at Northeastern Illinois University. She worked at several news rooms including WBEZ, WTTW, Telemundo and City Bureau.