Our Partners

Children Up (Uganda, Africa):
Children Up provides full scholarships for needy students in Northern Uganda with the aptitude and work ethic to succeed. Started by Elmhurst resident, Charles Laliberte’s daughter, Children Up provides qualified students with tuition, supplies, and transportation to and from boarding schools. Visit www.childrenup.org to see how helping one child at a time can change our world. 

Hearts to Art Summer Camp (Local): This charity aids healing for kids who have suffered the death of a parent. Roosevelt University’s Auditorium Theatre provides a performing arts two-week day camp for 7-14 year-olds in the Chicago area. This unique experience is free to these children through Hearts to Art 501c3. Dance, theatre, music, and professional counselors help the children express and share feelings with others who experienced similar loss. Campers make friends from diverse city and suburban neighborhoods. Visit www.auditoriumtheatre.org/education/hearts-to-art-summer-camp

El Fuego del Sol (Haiti):
Bethel member, Kevin Adair, started an organization to improve the environment, economy, and public health of Haitians by building and promoting cookstoves that use clean-burning briquettes made of recycled consumer waste products. Not only does the traditional burning of charcoal contribute to respiratory illness in children, but it leads to deforestation (10# of wood is needed to produce 1lb. of charcoal). Visit  www.FdSHaiti.com to learn how Kevin’s vision could help this troubled country recover from recent disasters.

Re-Member (South Dakota, USA):
Since 1998, this inter-denominational nonprofit has served the Ogala Lakota Nation in South Dakota to address the desperate need for housing. Volunteers insulate and skirt trailer homes, build bunk beds, wheelchair ramps, and outhouses. Re-Member challenges volunteers through advocacy and in solidarity with the Native American people. Visit www.re-member.org to see why Bethel Youth have been so inspired by past mission trips to Pine Ridge. 

PADS Gift Cards for Children's Holiday Gifts (Local):
DuPage PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter) purchased and repurposed a hotel in Downers Grove, IL which now provides 130 units of emergency housing to individuals and families. 35% of DuPage County’s homeless population are children, and this new model of emergency housing provides safety, privacy, and some stability to families.  Your donation allows homeless parents to buy holiday gifts for their children.   Visit www.DuPagePads.org to see how this charity helps break the cycle of homelessness.

Bethel Shoe Fund (Local):
The Bethel Shoe Fund was established in 1971 to provide shoes and boots to needy children from birth to 21 years who live in or attend school in District #205. This school year, the fund has dispersed almost $9,000 to serve 118 children from 58 local families. Vouchers are provided for $50, $70, or $80 based on the age of the child.  

Erie Neighborhood House (Chicago):
This nonprofit in Chicago has provided programming and services to communities on the West Side for 152 years and has evolved to meet the needs of legal immigrants and low-income families. Recently Erie House has met migrants bused from Texas to Chicago to greet them with respect and to collaborate with community partners to meet their basic needs. Visit www.eriehouse.org to see how this organization empowers immigrants and low-income families.

Elmhurst-Yorkfield Food Pantry (Elmhurst, USA):
This all-volunteer non-profit food pantry serves food-insecure families from 8 western suburbs. Both the number served and the cost of food have increased dramatically due to the pandemic. Visit www.eyfp.org