Hope’s Front Door honors community partners for 25 years of support

Celebrating 25 years this year, Hope’s Front Door is already looking ahead to the next 25 years.

However, the local nonprofit, which offers both emergency assistance and long-term programs to help those most in need in DuPage County, is taking some time out to honor two of its community partners that help make what the organization does possible.

The Downers Grove Junior Woman’s Club and the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Downers Grove were honored as recipients of the 2025 Stars of Hope Award.

The awards were presented April 29 at a luncheon, sponsored by GreenState Credit Union and Midwestern University, at Seven Bridges Golf Club in Woodridge.

“On our 25th anniversary, we want to acknowledge these two groups who saw the value of Hope’s Front Door,” said Janell Robinson, the organization’s executive director.

“They have gone above and beyond. They were among the first to support us with money and volunteer time,” she added.

For a quarter of a century, both organizations along with a long list of other community partners and individual volunteers have been instrumental in supporting the mission of Hope’s Front Door to provide hope and vital resources to individuals and families facing financial and health crises in DuPage County.

It’s an undertaking that it is set on continuing into future especially because, “we are seeing more people come through our doors” in need of assistance, Robinson said.

In fact, during the last several months, Hope’s Front Door has added 45 new households to its list of those in need.

“It is still a tough time for folks” in terms of food, medication and transportation, she said.

“The Downers Grove Junior Woman’s Club is proud to continue supporting Hope’s Front Door and the amazing work they do for those in greatest need in our community,” said Meghan Jacobson, club president.

“Every summer, our members look forward to jumping in to help with their Back-to-School Drive — collecting supplies and volunteering at the event to help families get what they need for the school year,” Jacobson said. “It’s always a meaningful reminder of the real impact we can make when we come together. We love giving back and teaming up with nonprofits like Hope’s Front Door who are truly making a difference.”

Last fall’s school supply drive helped about 340 DuPage area children.

The event was created after a mom came to the Hope Front Door’s office nearly 20 years ago looking for school supplies, Robinson said. Without any on hand, the staff gave the mom their own office supplies.

A founding member of Hope’s Front Door, First Congregational Church, was pivotal in establishing the organization in 2000.

Laura Hoglund, a First Congregational Church pastor, served as the first Hope’s Front Door chairperson.

The Rev. Scott Oberle, senior pastor at First Congregational Church, said prior to Hope’s Front Door those in need would go from church to church for assistance.

The idea was to work together and have a place where those struggling could go, he said.

From that, Hope’s Front Door was born.

When it opened, Robinson said, the organization quickly found the level of need in the community was higher than anticipated.

People in need in DuPage County can go unnoticed, she said.

“There is a feeling that DuPage County is affluent, but we do have neighbors struggling with food insecurity and housing stability,” Robinson said.

Since DuPage County is “so spread out” transportation is a “lifeline,” Robinson said.

“Without access to a bus card or a gas card you can’t find or maintain work or your health,” she said.

Today, Hope’s Front Door provides safety net services including emergency assistance to individuals in need.

The organization also provides food and transportation vouchers, medication assistance, toiletry items, infant care items and access to dental and eye exams.

It also provides assistance to individuals through “pathways” programs that address long-term issues such as financial skills, employment and physical and mental well-being.

Financial literacy is important because between 40% to 50% of people across the country don’t have $500 in savings for an emergency need such as car repairs or an increase in utilities, Robinson said.

“About 40% of our clients have a chronic illness such as diabetes or high blood pressure,” she said. “We do a lot of education on what it’s like to eat healthy on a budget or how to be active without the finances to belong to a gym.”

“We see firsthand if people are sick,” Robinson said. “They can’t work, and it becomes a slippery slope of becoming unhoused or unemployed.”