Resources in our Network

Legal Aid Chicago provides free civil legal representation to residents of Chicago and Suburban Cook County (statewide for migrant and human trafficking) who have limited income or special legal needs in the following areas:

Family & Safety: Legal Aid Chicago focuses on cases where personal safety and financial stability are at risk, including:

• Orders of Protection and No Contact Orders for victims of domestic or sexual violence and elder abuse
• Custody and Divorce (but not simple, uncontested divorce)
• Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) Investigations of Parents and Caregivers
• Special Education and School Discipline

House & Apartment: Legal Aid Chicago focuses on cases that protect safe and affordable housing for tenants and homeowners, including:

• Preventing eviction or termination from subsidized housing and the Housing Choice Voucher Program
• Challenging discrimination, and enforcing rights for tenants in subsidized housing or with special legal needs, such as domestic violence victims
• Foreclosure defense and other protections for homeowners
• Maintaining and restoring essential utility services (gas, electric, water)
• Transfer on Death Instruments to pass a home to a designated beneficiary

Money & Debt: Legal Aid Chicago focuses on cases that protect income and assets from unfair collections and fraud, including:

• Bankruptcy
• Student loans
• Car title and payday loans
• Unfair debt collection
• Consumer fraud
• Driver’s license restoration for debt-related suspension
• Financial exploitation of older adults
• Power of attorney for financial/property

Work & Employment Rights: Legal Aid Chicago focuses on protecting the rights and benefits of workers and reducing barriers to employment including:

• Unemployment Insurance benefits
• Wage claims
• Employment discrimination, and enforcement of employee protections such as FMLA (family medical leave) and VESSA (for victims of domestic or sexual violence),
• Expungement and sealing of adult and juvenile criminal records
• The legal needs of migrant agricultural and landscape workers throughout Illinois
• Comprehensive services for victims of human trafficking throughout Illinois
• Legal Aid Chicago does not handle workers’ compensation cases

Health, Disability, and Basic Needs: Legal Aid Chicago focuses on accessing and protecting benefits for basic human needs, including:

• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
• Medical Assistance (Medicaid, Medicare)
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security
• Veterans Benefits
• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
• Crime Victims Compensation from the State of Illinois
• Rights of long term care residents in suburban Cook and Lake County
• Healthcare Power of Attorney and Living Wills

Immigration: Legal Aid Chicago focuses on obtaining protected status for victims of crime including U-visa, VAWA (for victims of domestic violence), and T-visa (for victims of human trafficking).

Metropolitan Family Services Mpowers families to learn, to earn, to heal and to thrive. Part mentor, part motivator, part advocate, since 1857 Metropolitan Family Services has been the engine of change that empowers families to reach their greatest potential and positively impact their communities.

Domestic Violence services help survivors find strength, resources, and opportunities to maximize safety for themselves and their families. Services are client-centered, culturally sensitive, multilingual (English, Spanish, and Polish) and respect survivors’ rights to self-determination. Services are trauma-informed and evidence-based, combining clinical expertise, research, and clients’ values to provide quality care.

Neopolitan Lighthouse is a non-profit domestic violence organization that provides emergency shelter and comprehensive support services for survivors of abuse and their children on the west side of Chicago. The organization works to assist clients in securing safety, working on self-identified goal/objectives, gaining self-sufficiency, working to overcome trauma, and breaking the cycle of violence. Since 1984, Neopolitan Lighthouse has served over 40,000 abused women, men, and children. Available Services:

24-Hour Crisis Line – (773) 722-0005

Neopolitan Lighthouse operates a 24-hour crisis line which provides callers with crisis intervention counseling, emotional support, information/referrals, assistance in identifying possible options and safety strategies, and intakes into the agency’s On-Site and Walk in Program. The crisis line takes calls 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

On-Site Domestic Violence Shelter Program

Emergency Shelter

Neopolitan Lighthouse’s On-Site Domestic Violence Shelter Program provides emergency shelter services for survivors of abuse and their children in a 25-bed shelter facility. In addition to receiving room and board, clients in this program receive crisis intervention, intakes and assessments, trauma-informed, client-centered individual counseling, group counseling, case management, service planning, safety planning, housing advocacy, Illinois Domestic Violence Act (court) advocacy, benefit/systems advocacy, on-site healthcare and economic assistance, life skills, information/referrals, comprehensive children’s services, etc. The program operates 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.

Children’s Project

The Children’s Project provides comprehensive support services for children in the agency’s On-Site and Off-Site Shelter Programs in order to assist them in addressing their physical, emotional, psychological, practical, and educational needs. These services include trauma-informed individual and group counseling, case management, advocacy, information/referrals, group activities, educational assistance, and developmental evaluations. The Children’s Project also provides parenting classes for adult clients, as well as childcare assistance for parents who are participating in the agency’s job training project.

Economic Development and Employment Project

Neopolitan Lighthouse created the Economic Development and Employment Project (EDEP) in 2003 to assist adult clients in establishing financial stability and self-sufficiency so that they would be able to support themselves and their children. The EDEP offers a variety of support services to help clients obtain and maintain employment, enroll in GED and vocational programs, and acquire financial literacy. Some of these services include career assessments, assistance with resume writing, cover letter writing, and job application completion, basic skills testing, mock job interviewing, internet and Microsoft Word instruction, professional email creation, school enrollment, budgeting assistance, childcare assistance via Day Care Action, economic assistance, and educational group sessions on work, school, and finances. This project is open to clients in the agency’s Shelter Programs and Outreach Program.

Legal Advocacy Project

Neopolitan Lighthouse provides legal advocacy services to survivors of domestic violence through the Legal Advocacy Project in order to educate them about their legal rights and recourses as outlined in the Illinois Domestic Violence Act. Clients in this project are accompanied to the Chicago Domestic Violence Courthouse and are assisted in filing and upgrading Civil and Criminal Orders of Protection so that they may become safer from abuse. Clients are also provided with VCVA services. This project is open to Shelter Program and Outreach Program clients, as well as walk-in clients at the courthouse.

On-Site Health Services

Neopolitan Lighthouse partners with Lawndale Christian Health Center in order to provide free on-site healthcare services for clients at the agency’s domestic violence shelter facility. These services include physical examinations, TB tests, immunizations, medical information and referrals.

Outreach Program

Walk-In Project

Neopolitan Lighthouse’s Walk-In Project provides support services for survivors of domestic violence and children who do not require shelter services. Clients receive trauma-informed, client-centered individual counseling, case management, job training, educational assistance, advocacy, information/referrals, etc. For former shelter residents, this project provides follow-up services. The Walk-In Project also facilitates an six to eight-week domestic violence class to assists survivors of abuse in fulfilling their court and/or DCFS mandated domestic violence counseling requirements. Individuals who are interested in receiving walk-in services may contact the organization at (312) 964-5056.

Outreach Legal Advocacy Project

The Outreach Legal Advocacy Project serves to assist survivors of domestic violence who self-identify at court and wish to file a Civil or Criminal Order of Protection but are in need of assistance and support with the process. Clients receive court accompaniment, information about their legal rights and recourses per the Illinois Domestic Violence Act, VCVA services, assistance in completing court documentation, and assistance in filing petitions for Orders of Protection to help them become safer.

Domestic Violence Awareness and Education

Each year, Neopolitan Lighthouse participates in various events and speaking engagements throughout the Chicagoland area in order to provide domestic violence education and awareness to the public. Presentations may be conducted at resource fairs, schools, federal offices, social service organizations, and other public and private locations. The main purpose of this community outreach is to educate the public about domestic violence and its impact on the community, the services that Neopolitan Lighthouse provides, additional resources for survivors, and ways to get involved. To inquire about Neopolitan Lighthouse’s domestic violence awareness and education services, please contact us at (312) 964-5056.

We have offsites that clients have access to in Melrose Park, Cicero and Chicago, as well as have legal advocates located at the Chicago Domestic Violence Courthouse and the Maybrook Courthouse in Maywood. We also provide partner abuse intervention services, which are offsite, though are being done virtually currently.

Available resources that new clients can access – clients can access all of our services – 24-hour crisis line; individual and group counseling; advocacy; legal advocacy; partner abuse intervention services

Services:

• Counseling for survivors and their families
• Training towards Economic self-sufficiency
• DV support groups

We also offer referrals to:

• Emergency shelters
• Medical, social & legal support
• Help obtaining restraining orders
• Divorce, immigration status, child support, etc.

YWCA offers a full range of support services to residents of our shelter and longer-term housing as well as to those in the community who have experienced or are living with abuse. These services include:

24 Hour Crisis Line:

Our hotline provides emotional support and information and referrals 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Legal Advocacy: Housed at the District Two Courthouse in Skokie, our legal advocates assist survivors with obtaining orders of protection and safety planning, as well as with accessing other legal remedies as part of a larger safety plan. This is provided in English and in Spanish.
Counseling: Counseling in English and Spanish helps survivors and their children to address the impact trauma has had on their families, as well as to secure long-term therapeutic interventions.

Affordable Housing Support:

Lack of affordable housing is a big obstacle for survivors. We offer referrals to affordable housing programs, and assistance with applications and the coordinated entry process.

Financial Education:

Financial education and coaching enables survivors to secure greater stability by learning about budgeting, credit and debt issues, and developing the skills and resources needed to work towards independent financial futures. This is provided in English and in Spanish.
Workforce Training and Employment Assistance: We help clients secure stable employment, providing support with job readiness skills and securing job training and placement, developing resumes, completing applications and preparing for interviews. Partner Abuse Intervention Services: Alternatives to Violence is a 26-week program providing men with the opportunity and skills to change the behavior, beliefs, and attitudes that support their use of violence against intimate partners. We accept self and court-referrals and are approved by the Illinois Department of Human Services for the provision of court mandated services.