Funding Area
Housing
Having a safe, affordable place to live is a basic human right, allows people to focus on their education, career and health, and contributes to a thriving community.
Schreiber Philanthropy supports transitional and supportive housing and is committed to building better options for safe, accessible and affordable rental and home-ownership opportunities, especially for people who’ve been historically denied access, to create more vibrant and inclusive communities.
Our Strategy
Schreiber Philanthropy centers its housing strategy around five key priorities.
Our work is focused within the Chicagoland region, and will evolve based on the dynamic nature of the world we live in. With that in mind, we are committed to learning alongside our partners and being nimble in our strategy to achieve these goals.
Housing Priorities
Foster collaboration around a coordinated housing strategy, allowing philanthropic, government, and non-profit entities to work toward a common goal in order to maximize impact.
Create more housing choice by investing capital, supporting technical assistance, and policy change efforts designed to increase the supply of housing options across Chicago and Lake County.
Promote wealth and economic mobility through innovative home ownership strategies.
Advance housing stability and safeguard the rights of low- and moderate-income residents through advocacy and legal support for affirmative fair housing.
Leverage capital projects to create healthy and inclusive neighborhoods.
Grantee Spotlight
Mercy Housing
For two decades, Schreiber Philanthropy supported Mercy Housing Lakefront, formerly known as Lakefront Supportive Housing. Mercy Housing Lakefront is the Great Lakes region’s largest nonprofit provider of service-enriched housing. There are now more than 7,000 people living in one of Mercy Housing Lakefront’s communities. By offering high-quality housing options for low-income people and families, Mercy Housing Lakefront has helped alleviate housing instability and improve people’s health and economic security.
Grantee Spotlight
ReNew Communities
After meeting ReNew Communities for the first time in 2019, John and Kathy were impressed. This small-but-mighty organization, which focuses on transforming the lives of families in North Chicago through affordable home ownership, was changing the game for North Chicago residents one home (and eventually one block) at a time. The model, which goes far beyond building homes, combined John and Kathy’s interest in Lake County, as well as their desire to serve families with dignity and humanity. In addition to building and renovating homes to suit the families they serve, they work hand-in-hand with their partners to connect neighbors with one another, provide foundational financial literacy resources, and – ultimately – build civically-minded community members. In 2021, John asked “what would it take to scale your model?” And, by 2022, Schreiber Philanthropy made a $2.025M commitment to help ReNew build its organization, and – as a result – build more homes for families in North Chicago.
Grantee Spotlight
Transform Capital
As Schreiber Philanthropy has grown, it has identified newer, in-mission partners with innovative approaches to long-standing challenges. Transform Capital is a volunteer-led, non-profit, low-cost business and mortgage lender, focused on creating a community ecosystem designed to lift up and learn from community members. All of Transform Capital’s operating costs are covered by recurring income, so every dollar donated is recycled over time to create generational impact for families. Transform Capital is a key partner to other community-based organizations, including ReNew Communities and its work to increase home ownership in North Chicago.
Impact
While John and Kathy have been engaged in homelessness and housing work for years, they have made a decision to expand their focus on affordable housing in Chicagoland, especially for people who’ve been historically denied access, to create more vibrant and inclusive communities. These investments support partners working on homeownership models, supportive and transitional housing, and emergency shelters.
Since 2005
$13M in Grants
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