State Rep. Julie Hamos, D-Evanston, took time Wednesday night to listen to the concerns of families who participate in an after-school program for Evanston youth.
Although parents at the monthly dinner Wednesday weren’t forthcoming with questions for Hamos, she said it was a good opportunity to show support for Family Focus Our Place, 2010 Dewey Ave. Hamos said the program exemplifies her statewide initiatives for after-school and violence-prevention programs.
“I’ve been a supporter (of Family Focus) for a long time,” Hamos said. “It’s a way you can involve families before things happen.”
Now in its 27th year in Evanston, Family Focus houses an after-school tutoring program for third through ninth-graders in Evanston, said Crawford Richmond, interim director of Family Focus. But unlike similar youth programs, its mission goes beyond just being a place for kids to stay.
“We want to offer assistance that’s vital to their development as families, as individuals and ultimately as citizens,” Richmond said.
Hamos’ long-time support of Family Focus has made a difference in the program, said Special Events Coordinator Kim Ross.
“She’s good to the center,” Ross said, “and she’s good to this community,”
Ross, who has worked at Family Focus for 14 years, said it has been a model for similar community groups throughout the nation. Following Evanston’s example, there are now six locations in the Chicago area, including centers in Aurora, Lawndale and Englewood.
“We have relationships with the community,” Ross said. “We work as advocates in schools, courts and all throughout town.”
Ross said this involvement in the community has brought second and even third generations of families in the program. And when students finish their years at Family Focus, they often return as volunteers or just as friends.
Claude Lemond, a junior at Evanston Township High School, said he plans to volunteer at Family Focus for a volunteering project sponsored by his school. His tutors, he said, made the biggest difference in his academic life.
Along with helping students, teachers at Family Focus try to generate healthy relationships with the students’ families. Parents are in constant contact with teachers and staff members at Family Focus, said Evanston resident April Jackson.
“They let us know what’s going on,” said Jackson, whose three children attend the program. “Sometimes they’ll just come knock on our door. The teachers are great.”
