Although we are saddened that we will not be able to gather together for the Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) Annual Awards Dinner this year to celebrate our 43rd Anniversary, we are grateful for your support, and the support of local businesses and organizations that are represented here in our 2020 Adbook.
For the last 43 years, CCHCC has been in the forefront of working to improve our community’s health, improving access to care, dealing with emerging issues in health care, fighting for justice, and making concrete improvements in people’s lives. And we could not have done it without you!
Although we cannot gather for our annual celebration, CCHCC staff are still working very hard every day to serve our community during the coronavirus pandemic. We have had an increase in the number of clients we are serving as a result of community members losing employment and income, and needing extra resources during our state’s Shelter-in-Place order. And, clients turning to us are also in greater distress and have more complicated situations and require greater support from CCHCC’s staff – our Community Health Workers. More community members are turning to us for help in accessing public benefits for the first time in their lives, unaccustomed to navigating the public benefits systems.
I write this message with the heaviest of hearts. My beautiful mother – Marja-Liisa Lennhoff Eskelinen – died on Saturday evening, the 4th of July.
My family is all down in TX, and it is heartbreak on top of sorrow that I was not able to be with my mom when she died. The coronavirus pandemic has made travel complicated, treacherous, and at times, impossible. So many families around our nation, and the world, are going through the same thing – grieving at a distance, and unable to bask in the light of love that is sometimes possible and necessary at the end of life.
I want to tell y’all a little bit about my mom, and about her love for CCHCC and the work that we do. This is not an obituary for my mom, but a bit of a celebration of a beautiful life, and how that life contributed to the beautiful organization that we all have built – CCHCC.
Marja-Liisa Lennhoff Eskelinen My mom was a World War II baby, born on May 31, 1939 in Finland. Her father was a scout on horseback for the Finnish military, which was fighting Russia at that time. My mom’s father was killed when my mom was 2 years old. From then on, my mom had a very hard life – poverty, abuse when sent to live with another family, various illnesses including encephalitis, and more. But she was tough and resilient. She was a survivor.
Eventually, my mom was able to travel to the United States, the ward of a Finnish lady who was a domestic servant for a rich family in White Plains, NY. That Finnish lady is who I knew as my grandmother (she adopted the name “Mary Lake” to try to seem more American) when I was growing up. My mom arrived in the U.S. at the age of 15. She entered nursing school and worked as a domestic servant with her foster mom. Eventually, my mom became a nurse and worked at the White Plains, NY hospital, where she met my dad, Miguel Lennhoff. I treasure my mom’s gold pin that she received upon becoming a nurse.
My dad was doing his medical residency in White Plains, NY, where he arrived from Mexico. He grew up in Mexico after his mom fled Austrian Nazis. That’s a whole other story that I won’t get into now.
My parents fell in love and got married, and then had to move to Mexico so that my dad could finish his medical school. Both of my parents spoke English as a second or third language. That was the language they had in common. But then, of course, my mom had to learn Spanish when they moved to Mexico. And she did.
My parents had three children while in Mexico. I am the middle daughter in between two brothers.
Unbelievable, unprecedented, and inhumane. In the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic that is gripping the world and our nation, the Trump administration submitted a last-minute late-night filing urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Affordable Care Act (ACA) last week on Thursday night, June 25, 2020.
It is unprecedented in our nation’s history that the federal government, much less the president’s administration, would go to court to oppose and urge that a federal law like this be overturned and nullified. Normally, the role of the administration and federal government would be to support the law.
But, of course, we are talking about the Trump administration, which has repeatedly demonstrated that it has no regard for the nation’s health, or the institutions, policies, regulations, and laws that aim to protect our nation’s health. Efforts to overturn the ACA, especially when accompanied by no plan whatsoever to provide some other form of coverage, demonstrate that these moves are not about health policy, but about the ugliest and most dangerous of politics.
About the Trump administration’s Supreme Court filing The Trump administration submitted its last-minute filing on Thursday night for the ACA case that will be argued this fall in the Supreme Court. The Trump administration’s filing comes on the same day that the federal government reported that close to half a million people who lost their health insurance amid the economic shutdown to slow the spread of COVID-19 have gotten coverage through HealthCare.gov. (By the way, that number does not include individuals who have gotten coverage through state-run exchanges or through Medicaid.)
Amazingly, the Trump administration’s legal brief makes no mention of the virus or of American’s reliance on the ACA during the pandemic.
In the case before the Supreme Court, Texas and other conservative-led states argue that the ACA was basically rendered unconstitutional after Congress passed tax legislation in 2017 that eliminated the law’s unpopular fines for not having health insurance, but left in place its requirement that virtually all Americans have coverage.
After failing to repeal the Affordable Care Act in 2017 when Republicans fully controlled Congress – thanks to the activism of millions of Americans, including those in Champaign County – Trump has put the weight of his administration behind the legal challenge.
Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) and Promise Healthcare are the beneficiaries of a creative and beautiful musical tribute, put together by local musicians and singers, which is available to be seen and listened to today.
Donations from those who view/listen to the tribute will benefit both organizations. CCHCC’s Executive Director, Claudia Lennhoff said “We are deeply grateful to everyone involved in this amazing project. They donated their talents, their time, and their resources to put together a beautiful and moving music video that provides some solace in these challenging times, and that lets community members know that CCHCC and Promise Healthcare are here to help our community, and that together, as a community, we will get through these difficult times.”
The musical message: Champaign-Urbana Illinois has a great treasure its music and art community. In the face of change and pandemic, a remarkable group of 41 singers and 15 musicians have come together to elevate the spirits of their cities and beyond, with a recorded musical message and video: “Let It Be”. All proceeds from the recording will be donated to Promise Healthcare who work diligently to provide affordable and accessible high-quality health care and Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) who help provide quality affordable health care for all and environmental health and justice.
How to make your donation: A fund has been established with the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois and additional donations for these organizations can be through the Community Foundation’s website or to the Community Foundation at: 307 W University Ave, Champaign, IL 61820.
In order to ensure that the donation is dedicated to this project, donors should write in “CU Sings”, or CCHCC (or Promise Healthcare) in the “Designation” section of the donation form.
The novel corona virus pandemic has upended everything – everyone is trying to adjust to a “new normal.” Like everyone else, Champaign County Health Care Consumers has also had to find ways to adjust, while continuing to serve our community, and rising to the challenge of helping to meet an increasing demand for our services – more people need us now, and their needs are more complicated and challenging. Your support makes it possible for us to rise to the challenge of this moment, and to improve the lives of our community members.
No Annual Awards Dinner to celebrate our 43rd year. In the interest of everyone’s health and safety during the coronavirus pandemic, Champaign County Health Care Consumers has canceled our 2020 Annual Awards Dinner, which would have been held in May of this year. This year’s Annual Dinner would have marked our 43rd year, and would have been an important social and fundraising event for our organization. We very much miss the camaraderie and joy of being able to gather with our friends and supporters at our annual celebration.
Although we cannot gather for our annual celebration, CCHCC staff are still working very hard every day to serve our community during the coronavirus pandemic. We have had an increase in the number of clients we are serving as a result of community members losing employment and income, and needing extra resources during our state’s Shelter-in-Place order. And, clients turning to us are also in greater distress and have more complicated situations and require greater support from CCHCC’s staff – our Community Health Workers. More community members are turning to us for help in accessing public benefits for the first time in their lives, unaccustomed to navigating the public benefits systems.
Fortunately, CCHCC is a dedicated, dynamic, and nimble organization with highly skilled and experienced staff.
If you have lost work, you can apply for Unemployment benefits in Illinois. If your job loss is due to COVID-19, you may be eligible to receive additional unemployment benefits under the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program.
If you need to apply for Unemployment benefits, and/or if you’ve tried to applied but have had problems with the online portal, please read through this entire message to find information about how to apply online, or by phone, and when to apply – there is a filing schedule based on the first letter of your last name. To see the filing schedule, please see the bottom of this message.
Rental Assistance and Unemployment Many of the rental assistance programs available right now require proof to show that you have filed for Unemployment benefits. Whether or not you receive those benefits, having proof that you have filed for Unemployment can help you apply for rental assistance. For Rental Assistance programs in Champaign County, please visit here.
Applying for Illinois Unemployment During the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) has set up a process to help individuals gain unemployment benefits, should they experience loss of employment due to the pandemic.
If you visit the home page of IDES you will find several links. However, if you scroll down to the News and Announcements section, you can see updates from IDES. The IDES shared an announcement on May 6, 2020, that can help you understand how to apply for unemployment. Here is the link for the information.
IL Will Cover Low-Income Uninsured Seniors Regardless of Immigration Status
*Este mensaje se repetirá en español a continuación*
Thanks to your advocacy efforts last week, we have an Illinois victory to celebrate!
Illinois will be the first state in the nation to offer comprehensive health insurance coverage to low-income undocumented seniors!
This is an important first step toward achieving universal health coverage in the State of Illinois for all Illinois residents, including all immigrants. Not only will this help the particular individuals who will gain coverage, but it will also help ensure greater public health protections for all communities, as more people gain coverage and can seek timely healthcare without fear of unaffordable medical debt.
Support expansion of IL Medicaid to cover all seniors age 60+
May 21, 2020
Dear friends,
*Este mensaje se repetirá en español a continuación*
Champaign County Health Care Consumers is joining with Healthy Illinois to call on IL Governor JB Pritzker to support HB 4891 / SB 3703 – Healthy Illinois for All.
This bill creates a pathway to health coverage through the Medicaid program for all low-income seniors in IL, including undocumented immigrants. This expansion of coverage is critical for keeping all communities healthy in the face of COVID-19. (For more information on HB 4891 / SB 3703, please see further down in this message, after the Take Action section.)
Please take action TODAY by calling the Governor’s Office, and/or signing on to support this legislation:
What can CCHCC help with? CCHCC’s Community Health Workers are experts at helping people with health insurance, SNAP (food stamps), Rx assistance, and more!
Have you lost your health insurance? CCHCC can help! Many community members who have lost their jobs have also lost their employment-based health insurance. If you’ve lost your health insurance, CCHCC can help you apply for health insurance through the Medicaid program or through the ACA Marketplace. Our staff are federally-certified application counselors and they can help you figure out which type of health insurance you qualify for, and they can help you with the application process.
Have you lost income and can no longer afford groceries? CCHCC can help! Illinois has expanded its Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – also known as Food Stamps – and it has also increased the benefits of the program. Even if you’ve never used or qualified for SNAP before, if you are struggling to afford groceries, please contact CCHCC to see if you might qualify for SNAP benefits.
Do you need help affording your prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, and/or pharmacy-based medical supplies? CCHCC can help! Times are tough and many people are not able to afford their prescriptions or other medications, or medical supplies like diabetic test strips, etc. If you need help with the costs of prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, or certain medical supplies, please contact us for help.
If you need our services, please contact us! Our physical office is closed, so we have a different system for how we are working with our clients and community.
We at Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) know that times are tough for many of our community members – especially those who have lost jobs and/or income during the coronavirus pandemic.
We want to let you know about some resources and benefits that are available, and that have been expanded to help meet the need of individuals and families during these difficult and uncertain times.
Please see below for information on how to get help with utility bills, how to get new or expanded SNAP (food stamps) benefits – especially for families with children – how to get health insurance if you’ve lost it or can no longer afford it, and how to get your Stimulus payment if you do not file federal taxes. You can help CCHCC by sharing this information with everyone in your network.
In the interest of everyone’s health and safety during the coronavirus pandemic, Champaign County Health Care Consumers has canceled our 2020 Annual Awards Dinner, which would have been held in May this year.
Although we cannot gather for our annual celebration, CCHCC staff are still working very hard every day to serve our community during the coronavirus pandemic. We have had an increase in the number of clients we are serving as a result of community members losing employment and income, and needing extra resources during the Shelter-in-Place order.
Medicaid, SNAP, Rx help, cash assistance and more! Although we are working remotely, we are helping an increasing number of clients and community members to get the resources they and their families need during these challenging times. We have clients who have lost income and health insurance and who don’t know where to turn for other resources. We are here to help! We continue to help individuals and families gain coverage to health insurance, food stamps (SNAP), rental assistance, LIHEAP, prescriptions, and more. We have also successfully distributed cash assistance to numerous households as a result of CCHCC receiving a small grant from the United Way and Community Foundation’s COVID-19 Fund.
Even though we are canceling our Annual Awards Dinner, we still need your support! Here is how you can help us. Our Annual Awards Dinner, and our Adbook program for the Dinner, are major annual fundraisers for CCHCC. Although we have had to cancel our Dinner, we are not in a financial position to be able to do without the income that our Dinner and Adbook provides every year. So, if you normally contribute to our Dinner or Adbook, please consider doing so this year anyway. Here are a couple of ways you can help support CCHCC.
Have you filled out your 2020 Census? If not, please do so ASAP. A lot is riding on an accurate 2020 Census Count! The census tells us who we are and where we are going as a nation. The census provides critical data that lawmakers, business owners, teachers, and many others use to provide daily services, products, and support for you and your community for the next decade. Every year, billions of dollars in federal funding is distributed to local communities and federal programs. The results will show where communities need new schools, new hospitals and clinics, new supermarkets, new roads, and more resources for children, families, and older adults. And how federal funding will be allocated to more than 100 programs, including Medicaid, Head Start, block grants for community mental health services, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP. The data collected by the decennial census also determines the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives.
You have ALREADY received 3-4 mailings inviting you to respond to the Census online and by phone. The mailings you have received have a Census ID for your household. If you log on to the 2020 Census website, you will use this ID to complete your household’s Census. Likewise, if you prefer to do your Census by phone, you will call the number listed on your Census mailing, and provide your Census ID.
Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) wants to make sure you have the most up-to-date information on important resources during this challenging time with the Corona Virus pandemic.
The focus of this message is everything we know about the Coronavirus Stimulus Payments that are part of the federal government’s CARES Act relief package. We include information about who is eligible for these payments and who is not eligible, and how to get the payments if you do not file income taxes or do not have a bank account where you can receive a direct deposit payment.
Scroll through the sections of this message to find the information you need.
During this novel corona virus pandemic, many Illinois residents have lost their jobs – and also their health care coverage.
If you, or someone you know has lost health insurance recently, please contact Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) for help. Although our physical office is closed, CCHCC is still on the job, working with clients and community members remotely by phone and email.
Here is what you need to know: People who have lost their workplace health insurance during the coronavirus outbreak might qualify for private health insurance coverage – and subsidies to help make the insurance affordable – through the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Marketplace.
In Illinois, thanks to our expanded Medicaid program under the ACA, many low-income and no-income Illinois residents will qualify for free (no monthly premiums or deductibles) health insurance coverage through the Medicaid program.
CCHCC’s certified Community Health Workers can help you figure out which insurance program you will qualify for, and can help you with the application process. We are here to help! You can contact CCHCC by phone (please leave a voicemail message) at 217-352-6533, or by email at cchcc@cchcc-il.org.
We at Champaign County Health Care Consumers hope that you are all
staying safe and healthy, and that you are sheltering in place, if you
are able to do so. If you have healthcare needs that we can help with,
please don’t hesitate to contact us – we are still working, even though
our office is closed to the public.
We are profoundly grateful to all of the front line workers –
everyone from healthcare providers, store workers, sanitation workers,
first responders, truckers, postal workers, etc. – who continue to serve
our community and our nation during this novel corona virus pandemic,
and we hope for their safety and good health. Please, if you can, stay
home as much as necessary in order to protect yourselves and our fellow
community members.
Now, let’s talk about the 2020 Census. (Please get yours done by THIS Wednesday, April 1!) Despite the changes to our daily lives during the corona virus pandemic, we MUST still complete the 2020 Census! In fact, it is as important as ever to complete the Census, because resources for local communities depend on an accurate Census count. Read through this message to learn surprising and important information about why a complete Census count is so important!
Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) is still available to help serve our community during these challenging times, as we work together to try to “flatten the curve” of the novel Corona Virus (COVID-19).
If you need our
services, please contact us!
Our physical office is closed, so we have a different system
for how we are working with our clients and community.
Here is how you can
contact us, and what our process will be for working with you or anyone else
who needs our help:
We are closing our office, but we are
continuing to work with clients. Our office will be functionally closed,
but we will continue to help clients who contact us. We will do our best to
work with clients over the phone and/or email, to avoid in-person appointments.
If you need our services, please call or
email us. You can call us at 217-352-6533, or send us an email at cchcc@cchcc-il.org, and we will respond as
soon as we can, and we will work with you to find out what you need and whether
we can work with your remotely. Please
leave us a message, and please be patient – we will contact you as soon as we
can. Because we are working remotely, our Staff have a little more work to
do in order to communicate amongst ourselves and to coordinate our responses,
but we will get back to everyone who contacts us!
Our regularly scheduled meetings are or will be canceled. Please
stay tuned to our email and Facebook page for updates on cancelations
of meetings and/or alternate plans for carrying out the work of our task
forces and coalitions.
Now, we wanted to share some resources and articles with you, in case these can be helpful.
In response to the Corona Virus (COVID-19) situation and the need to try to limit the spread of COVID-19 and “flatten the curve”, CCHCC is taking certain measures that we wanted to inform you about.
We are closing our office, but we are continuing to work with clients. Our office will be functionally closed, but we will continue to help clients who contact us. We will do our best to work with clients over the phone and/or email, to avoid in-person appointments. However, if someone has to have an in-person appointment, we will accommodate them, while taking protective measures.
If you need our services, please call or email us. You can call us at 217-352-6533, or send us an email at cchcc@cchcc-il.org, and we will respond as soon as we can, and we will work with you to find out what you need and whether we can work with your remotely, or if you will require an in-person appointment.
Our Annual Awards Dinner is Friday, May 8, 2020 at the Holiday Inn Champaign. Support CCHCC by purchasing an ad in our 43rd Anniversary Adbook Dinner Program.
The Medicare Open Enrollment period for Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans has begun! Medicare Open Enrollment is from October 15 through December 7, 2019 for 2020 coverage.
Do you, or someone you know, need help with Medicare Open Enrollment, signing up for Medicare, or getting financial assistance to make Medicare affordable?
Many people find Medicare confusing. Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) is here to help! Check out our resources below, and/or contact us to schedule an appointment to get help (our services are free): call 217-352-6533 and ask to schedule an appointment, or email us at cchcc@cchcc-il.org.
We recently updated you on the problems that are plaguing the IL Medicaid system, and SNAP (food stamps) program, thanks to a glitchy program that Illinois purchased from Deloitte, and also thanks to understaffing of caseworkers in the IL Department of Human Services.
Coming soon! As we continue to work on this issue, we will keep you updated. Our co-worker, Ashley Buckley, has been doing deep research into this issue and how this situation came about, and what other states have experienced (hint: Illinois is not alone in its problems with Deloitte’s system). We will post that research soon. We’ll let you know when it is available.
Sincerely,
Claudia Lennhoff Executive Director Champaign County Health Care Consumers
Have you heard or read about this? There are serious problems with the Medicaid system in Illinois, leaving communities – and organizations like Champaign County Health Care Consumers – to pick up the pieces in order to help consumers who need their coverage, and access to care.
Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) celebrated 42 years of organizing for health care access and justice at our 2019 Annual Awards Dinner on Friday, May 3, 2019. With nearly 200 people in attendance, the Dinner was a great success and a wonderful time.
llinois patients and seniors need your help to lower prescription drugs. Drug companies are making huge profits by hiking up the prices on prescription drug
A recent poll showed that in Illinois, 27% of families said they had skipped filling a prescription in the last year because of the high costs of prescriptions.
In Illinois, we have an unprecedented opportunity to pass legislation that would create greater oversight and transparency on drugs, and that would help reduce the cost of drugs.
That is why CCHCC is joining the fight for affordable prescription drugs.
I write this message with the heaviest of hearts. My beautiful mother – Marja-Liisa Lennhoff Eskelinen – died on Saturday evening, the 4th of July.
My family is all down in TX, and it is heartbreak on top of sorrow that I was not able to be with my mom when she died. The coronavirus pandemic has made travel complicated, treacherous, and at times, impossible. So many families around our nation, and the world, are going through the same thing – grieving at a distance, and unable to bask in the light of love that is sometimes possible and necessary at the end of life.
I want to tell y’all a little bit about my mom, and about her love for CCHCC and the work that we do. This is not an obituary for my mom, but a bit of a celebration of a beautiful life, and how that life contributed to the beautiful organization that we all have built – CCHCC.
Marja-Liisa Lennhoff Eskelinen My mom was a World War II baby, born on May 31, 1939 in Finland. Her father was a scout on horseback for the Finnish military, which was fighting Russia at that time. My mom’s father was killed when my mom was 2 years old. From then on, my mom had a very hard life – poverty, abuse when sent to live with another family, various illnesses including encephalitis, and more. But she was tough and resilient. She was a survivor.
Eventually, my mom was able to travel to the United States, the ward of a Finnish lady who was a domestic servant for a rich family in White Plains, NY. That Finnish lady is who I knew as my grandmother (she adopted the name “Mary Lake” to try to seem more American) when I was growing up. My mom arrived in the U.S. at the age of 15. She entered nursing school and worked as a domestic servant with her foster mom. Eventually, my mom became a nurse and worked at the White Plains, NY hospital, where she met my dad, Miguel Lennhoff. I treasure my mom’s gold pin that she received upon becoming a nurse.
My dad was doing his medical residency in White Plains, NY, where he arrived from Mexico. He grew up in Mexico after his mom fled Austrian Nazis. That’s a whole other story that I won’t get into now.
My parents fell in love and got married, and then had to move to Mexico so that my dad could finish his medical school. Both of my parents spoke English as a second or third language. That was the language they had in common. But then, of course, my mom had to learn Spanish when they moved to Mexico. And she did.
My parents had three children while in Mexico. I am the middle daughter in between two brothers.
Our family moved to San Antonio, TX in 1974, when I was eight years old. We had the privilege of immigrating legally. We also had white-skin privilege. Racism was rampant in San Antonio at the time, especially against Mexicans. When schoolmates found out that my brother and I were from Mexico, they referred to us as “wetbacks”. They were parroting what their parents said. I had a heavy accent in English, having learned English from two parents who spoke the language as a second or third language. I was put in Speech Therapy to get rid of my accent. When my mom found out that I was put in Speech Therapy – which was so humiliating that I never even told my parents – she called the school and gave them the what-for. She explained to them (actually, she yelled, with cuss words) that I had an accent, not a speech impediment. This got me out of speech therapy… It is often a bewildering experience to be an immigrant, even though our path was considerably easier than that of most immigrants, because of our privilege. My family has deep sympathies with immigrants and understands that immigration is often about survival.
We grew up in a trailer park in San Antonio, TX. We made friends with other kids, and our home became the place where kids from all walks of life came to hang out. They loved and appreciated my parents because both my mom and dad were kind, and they were always interested in our friends and our friends would sit and have conversations with my parents over coffee and some baked goods that my mom had made. So many neighborhood people – whether kids or adults – landed at our home and always found acceptance, kindness, and baked goods.
My mom was no longer working as a nurse, but spoke four or five languages, and volunteered with the PTA, helped neighborhood families in various ways, rescued animals, and learned to drive a tiny Honda stick shift. She wasn’t great at driving a stick shift, but she was great at everything else.
Oh, I should also mention that, while growing up in the mobile home in TX, our home became the de facto community clinic, with people showing up with all kinds of scrapes, injuries, allergic reactions, mental health crises, etc., and on two occasions, my dad was called to the swimming pool in the neighborhood to help resuscitate a kid who had drowned.
My mom was an avid reader and she had an excellent political analysis. She had a love for justice that was based on love for people and compassion. Us kids grew up watching the national and world news, hearing our parents’ commentary along the way. They always favored justice and love and abhorred injustice in all of its forms.
My greatest regret in life, and what my mom had to say. Both of my parents were World War II babies – both their families devastated and diminished (killed) by the war, for different reasons. Our nuclear family felt almost miraculous – the fact that my parents survived to be able to create a family was nothing short of amazing. My greatest regret in life is that my path in life took me away from where my family lives down in TX and that I have been so far away. I wish that TX and IL were closer together! Even with regular trips to TX to see my family, it has always hurt me to be so far away, even though I love my life here in IL and with CCHCC.
The last time my mom visited me here in Illinois was in the early 2000s. She visited CCHCC, met my co-workers and friends, came to events, witnessed our work with clients and our community organizing work, and got a sense of our community.
After she got back home to TX, my mom wrote me a beautiful letter. She blessed my life and work here. She wrote me about the beauty, power and importance of CCHCC’s work, and about the quality of the friendships I had made – most through CCHCC. She told me that if friendships and the ability to have a positive impact are a measure of a person’s life, then, by all accounts, I was living a beautiful life and she was proud of me.
I am not saying this as a “humble brag”, but as a way of explaining that my mom’s blessing eased my greatest regret of not living closer to my family. I know – I know – that my parents wished that I was closer to home with them. But they both have felt that I have been so fortunate to have landed at CCHCC, and they value and support our work at CCHCC.
Fighting for justice and helping make concrete improvements in people’s lives. I am so profoundly grateful to be a part of CCHCC and all we have accomplished. This year marks my 23rd year at CCHCC. I’m deeply grateful to all of you who participate in and support CCHCC’s work – whether it is our direct client services and/or our advocacy and community organizing work.
Honoring my mom My mom – Marja-Liisa Lennhoff Eskelinen – was a survivor. She was fierce and tender all at the same time. She was compassionate. She was opinionated. And she was funny in a subtle kind of way. She loved justice and she loved people and animals. And I know that she loved CCHCC, this beautiful grassroots organization where I have found my other home.
I will do my best, always, to honor my mom’s life and also to honor CCHCC – all that we have been, all that we are, and all that we will be and do in the pursuit of justice.
If you feel so inclined, and if you have the ability to do so, please consider making a contribution to CCHCC in honor of my mother. CCHCC will be named in my mother’s obituary.
