Advancing Access to Health Care Across the Chicago Region

Across Illinois, a significant number of adults report delays in getting medical care—or going without it altogether—because of cost, difficulty accessing providers, and gaps in the quality of care they receive. This is a reality that continues to shape health care access and financial vulnerability for many across Chicago’s South and West Side neighborhoods.

At The Chicago Community Trust, we know that access to consistent, culturally responsive care is foundational to community well-being. The Trust is providing support to longstanding partners whose work has been essential to helping residents meet their basic health care needs. Three organizations, Enlace Chicago, The Firehouse Dream, and Center on Halsted, are just three organizations that demonstrate how community-centered approaches can remove barriers, build trust, and respond to community needs.

Meeting Communities Where They Are: Enlace Chicago

In Little Village, Enlace Chicago operates at the intersection of health care access, food security, and community trust. Serving a neighborhood designated as a Health Professional Shortage Area, a federally designated area that does not have enough health care providers to meet local needs, Enlace’s Community Health Workers, or Promotoras de Salud, help residents navigate complex systems that often feel out of reach. Through this work, they connect neighbors to health insurance, primary and preventive care, and essential resources like housing and food assistance. The program also integrates community gardens, where residents grow fresh produce while building healthier habits and strengthening social ties. Trust funding will allow Enlace Chicago to continue supporting community members with health insurance enrollment, referrals for services such as cancer screenings and mental health care, and access to fresh, locally grown food, ensuring families can both access care and address the conditions that shape their health.

Expanding Culturally Responsive Mental Health Care: The Firehouse Dream

For young people in Maywood and surrounding communities, access to mental health services can be limited by cost, stigma, and lack of culturally responsive care that respects, validates and integrates cultural backgrounds, beliefs and values. The Firehouse Dream (TFD), a creative arts center serving area youth out of a decommissioned firehouse, is working to change that by removing financial, transportation and cultural barriers that often prevent underinvested communities from accessing mental health support. In response to a youth suicide crisis in the community, the organization has developed trauma-informed mental wellness programming that blends therapy with creative expression. This includes healing workshops, art-based therapy sessions, and free one-on-one counseling connections with licensed therapists. With support from the Trust, TFD will distribute mental health kits, host community healing spaces, and expand access to therapy for youth who might otherwise go without care. By meeting young people in spaces where they already feel safe – in schools, community centers and creative environments – TFD is helping reduce stigma and making mental health care both accessible and affirming.

Delivering Affirming Care Across Chicago: Center on Halsted

Center on Halsted serves as a lifeline for LGBTQ+ individuals across the Chicago region, offering a comprehensive range of health and social services designed to affirm identity while addressing immediate needs. From behavioral health services and routine health screenings to youth programming and support for older adults, the organization provides care across multiple stages of life. This support from the Trust will help sustain operations across its three locations, enabling Center on Halsted to deliver thousands of behavioral health service visits, expand medical screening and prevention, and provide food assistance and case management for older adults. Equally important, the funding helps maintain a workforce that reflects the community it serves, ensuring care is not only accessible, but culturally competent and affirming.