by Alex Morales Published: October 15, 2009 In March 2009, The Resurrection Project embarked on the construction of a new state-of-the-art living facility for Chicago’s independent seniors, Casa Maravilla. Located in the Pilsen neighborhood and less than 5 minutes from the downtown area, Casa Maravilla will help meet the need for affordable senior living in the lower southwest side of Chicago. This $20 million project will be the first affordable senior housing development in Pilsen and will offer 73 affordable units—a mix that includes studios, one and two-bedroom apartments.  Depending on income, rents will fluctuate between $350 to $900 monthly (including heat).

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE – City of Chicago Mayor’s Press Office Published: September 1, 2009…

Published: August 31, 2009 Pilsen continues its trend towards green growth: early in July, a new community garden was built and planted at W 21st street and S. Sangamon.  The garden sits nestled amongst the native plants of the Paseo Project, a newly rejuvenated green space adjacent to the Alivio Medical Center and the newly opened Casa Morelos (The Resurrection Project’s latest building, offering 45 new units of affordable rental housing to the neighborhood). This once overgrown and abandoned lot is now a lively pathway where residents take evening walks with their dogs, bicycle, jog, and garden in the Growing Stations Community Garden, where raised beds and planters overflow with dozens of varieties of vegetables and herbs.  The garden was initiated last February by a small group of local gardeners, artists, and designers who wanted to create a shared gardening space for the residents and contribute to the greening of Pilsen.

by Alex Morales Published: August 26, 2009 On August 22nd , during the Hoops in the Hood Cross-City Final at Seward Park, The Resurrection Project was recognized for pioneering a successful initiative, the Resurrection Basketball League (RBL).  For the past 10 years, RBL has provided provides neighborhood youth with safe alternatives to gang activity during Friday nights in the summer. In 1999, The Resurrection Project initiated this program designed to engage the youth in healthy, teach them about leadership and sportsmanship, and prevent them from engaging in gang violence. The effort gave birth to the Resurrection Basketball League (RBL), an initiative whose goals are to build relationships within the community and directly impact the youth by providing a safe space for them—and their families—to have fun and learn team-building in an environment that usually is reserved for gang activity.  During Friday nights, RBL youth discover, on the blocks they are taught to avoid, that they have alternatives to the guns and violence that dominate those areas.

by Alex Morales Published: August 26, 2009 Last Friday August 21st, 2009, Tarde en El Zócalo—The Resurrection Project’s annual celebration of Mexican culture and heritage—took place on the Zócalo plaza in Pilsen (18th Street & Paulina Street). 700 neighbors spent a fun evening enjoying festivities that included music, film and faith.

Jane DeRonne for LISC/Chicago Published: July 22, 2009 Four neighborhoods are bridging the digital…

by Alex Morales Published: July 9, 2009 The proposed Illinois State budget cuts will have severely detrimental effects on services that are crucial for children, youth, and families. Programs for families in need are in jeopardy of being cut in half, if not eliminated. These devastating cuts would translate into a lack without educational support, lack of counseling/therapy for mental illness, abuse and neglect.

Kiran Sood - Medill News Service Business Reporter Chicago Published: July 1, 2009 For Cicero resident Leticia Franco, a single mother, a typical day includes working as a part-time cashier, caring for her 10-year-old son, and preparing for the GED exam she hopes to take this summer and that, once passed, will bring her closer to her long-term dream of becoming a registered nurse. Franco, 27, took another important step toward achieving her goals earlier this year when she signed up for financial counseling sessions as part of a pilot program, Mujer Avanzando, that's aimed at raising the financial literacy levels of single Latina mothers.

Published: July 1, 2009 The Resurrection Project (TRP) is honored to be a recipient of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) 2009 Family Strengthening Awards.  NCLR is the largest national Latino civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States and is hosting its annual conference in Chicago from July 25-July 28.  TRP will be presented with the Award during the conference’s National Affiliate Luncheon. “By connecting families to critical social service networks and key support services, our affiliates empower them to become active and contributing partners in the development of stronger American communities,” stated José A. Velázquez, NCLR’s Deputy Vice President of Affiliate Member Services.  NCLR, in partnership with the Annie E. Casey Foundation, presents the Family Strengthening Awards to three outstanding community-based member organizations (from a national network of nearly 300 Affiliates) whose programs have made a measurable impact in the advancement of Latino families.

Published: June 22, 2009 On Wednesday, June 24th, 2009 at 3:30pm, The Resurrection Project, in partnership with its financing partners Bank of America, the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), and the City of Chicago Department of Community Development, celebrated the completion of Casa Morelos—the newest affordable rental building and the first State of Illinois Low-Income Housing Tax Credit project in the community of Pilsen—with a ribbon cutting ceremony at the site located directly north of the Alivio Medical Center in Pilsen. The economic climate and depressed housing markets have increased the communities’ need for affordable housing, especially for renters. Casa Morelos will provide 45 units of high-quality housing at affordable rates to Chicagoland families at a prime location easily accessible to health care, transportation, local schools and parks, and the Pilsen Industrial Corridor.