MILWAUKEE — Hope House is known for providing food and shelter to Milwaukee's homeless population, many of whom are families with children. So, with the holidays around the corner, a case manager is 'hoping' to bring smiles to kids' faces.
"Happy Holidays" starts with the word happy, an adjective that shows pleasure or contentment. But for some families experiencing homelessness, it's not a word they often feel.
Hope House Case Manager Chelsea England wanted to change that.
Her typical work day consists of helping place families in permanent or temporary housing.
"When I actually get them into housing, it's amazing. There's some children that have never had their own room," England said.
Case managers at Hope House work with nearly 450 families a year. That's roughly 2-3,000 people.
Now, although England's main job is to find housing for her clients, she saw another need.
"They don't necessarily have monetary value to buy gifts for their children, especially during the holiday time," England said.
"When you're not sure if you're going to be living in this place where you slept last night for another week, it's hard to think about Christmas," said Jim Farrell, Hope House Development Director.
So, England set up a GoFundMe page to help alleviate some of the burden parents face during the holiday season.
As of Monday afternoon, England is already at half of her goal. But, this goal means so much more than just toys.
"I want all my clients and their children to feel like normal people, because they are," England stated. "If we can help provide a little gift for our clients for their children and take that stress and burden off of the parents, that's great."
England smiles as she see's the fundraiser is doing well. She told us she hopes that every child will wake up and have a gift to open on Christmas.
One gift that shows them hope is still alive and better days will come.
If you would like to donate to the GoFundMe, click here or you can donate directly to the Hope House here.
