COVID-19 emergency funding for suburban Latinos in the works

An initiative to gather emergency funding for Latinos most in need across the state, particularly those left out of government relief programs, is being spearheaded by the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus Foundation.

Foundation co-chairs state Sen. Omar Aquino of Chicago and state Rep. Elizabeth Hernandez of Cicero, both Democrats, announced in English and Spanish the creation of the COVID-19 Solidarity Fund, to be managed by the Chicago Community Trust.

Grants will be awarded to Latino-serving organizations "with deep roots in the community" that can disburse the money quickly for people to cover necessities like rent, utilities, food and health care. The effort targets areas that have high concentrations of Latinos, the legislators said.

"Many Latino families in our community who were barely getting by before the COVID-19 crisis are now struggling for their very survival," Aquino said. "Worried about how they will pay their rent, get back to work, keep their family healthy, and feed their children."

There are an estimated 2.2 million Latino residents in Illinois, comprising 17.5% of the population and 26% of K-12 students in the state. Latinos were more concerned than other groups about the health and financial repercussions of COVID-19, according to a survey through the Pew Research Center last month. Many Latinos work in the leisure, hospitality and other service industries, and are less likely to have health insurance.

In general, immigrants without permanent status - such as the undocumented but also some with temporary visas - are excluded from COVID-19-related assistance from the government, said Megan McKenna, director of the nonprofit Mano a Mano Family Resource Center in Round Lake Park. That includes families with mixed immigration status, such as U.S. citizens married to undocumented immigrants, and people who file taxes with Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers, she said.

"It's wonderful," McKenna said of the Latino Caucus Foundation initiative. "I think this is a really good example of people in influential positions stepping up to leverage their networks to get everybody involved to help those who need it."

The foundation has been reaching out to corporate and foundation donors and has launched a GoFundMe page. Aquino and Hernandez said the effort has secured funding but wouldn't say how much. More information, including how to apply, will come next week, and the first round of funds is expected to be disbursed in about two weeks, they said.

Mano a Mano launched its own Tanda Emergency Fund initiative two weeks ago, with $210,000 pledged so far by donors such as charitable and family foundations, McKenna said. The money can be used for food and urgent medical costs and is available to residents of Lake and McHenry counties who have lost their jobs or their work hours cut due to the pandemic and are not eligible for government benefits. "We are really trying to get to those who have no other option for assistance," she said.

The nonprofit received more than 500 calls about the emergency funding and set up about 90 phone screening appointments in the last three days. One caller said he was in self-quarantine with a COVID-19 diagnosis and had only a box of crackers left to eat, McKenna said.

Jaime Garcia, executive director of Centro de Informacion in Elgin, said there's been an increase in phone calls from people who've lost their jobs and need financial assistance. The Elgin area has a good number of food pantries, including a small one at Centro, so that doesn't seem to be a pressing need, Garcia said.

The Elgin nonprofit is asking for donations during the pandemic and is applying for grant opportunities, but it hasn't launched a large-scale fundraising effort, Garcia said.

"We will certainly look into that," he said about the Latino Caucus Foundation's new initiative. "Up to now we have been a service-driven organization; we have not really had funding to disburse to people for rent or medical assistance."

Health and human services nonprofits in the greater Chicago region also can apply for funding from the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund.