Volume 32

March/Apri l 2017

SPARROW ’S L INK VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER

Home of the Sparrow’s 30th Anniversary Gala

Celebrating the Past, Present and Future

Mark your calendars and join Home of the Sparrow on Saturday, April 29th, 2017 to celebrate our

30th anniversary! Our biggest event of the year will be held at the magnificent Sanfilippo Estate in

Barrington from 4 pm to 10 pm. Guests attending the event are welcome to explore the Estate’s

splendor through self-guided tours, view phenomenal collections, attend an organ concert performed

by renowned organist R. Jelani Eddington, indulge in butler served hors d’oeuvres, enjoy four hours

of open bar, an exquisite dinner, a terrific auction, and a short program featuring some of the women

your support is helping. This is a black tie optional event.

Visit www.HOSparrow.org today to register for this sell out event.

Tickets are $175.00 per person or reserve an entire table at a discounted price.

Home of the Sparrow is excited to announce the

upcoming opening of our 7th Sparrow’s Nest Thrift

Store in the Village of Third Lake, which is just north

of Grayslake. It will be located in the Waterstone

Place Shopping Center at 34500 N. US Hwy 45, just

north of Washington Street. The new location is

currently being renovated with an estimated opening

of mid June 2017. We are actively recruiting

volunteers to help us set-up and serve in this new

store. Please help us spread the word to your friends

and family! If you know anyone who is interested in

volunteering at this new Nest Store, please have

them contact Jennifer Kolarczyk, Volunteer Program

Coordinator at 815-271-5444 x60.

Volunteers Needed for New Sparrow’s Nest Thrift Store

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T H A N K Y O U T O T H E G R O U P S T H A T

vo lu nt ee r ed D U R I N G T H E M O N T H S O F F E B R UA RY & M A R C H

F O R M O R E I N F O R M A T I O N O N H O W Y O U R G R O U P C A N H E L P C O N T A C T M I C H E L L E L U S M A N N A T

M L U S M A N N @ H O S P A R R O W . O R G O R 8 1 5 - 2 7 1 - 5 4 4 4 X 2 4

Providing Hope, Opportunity and Support that empowers women and children, as they

journey from homelessness to self-sufficiency.

Marian Central Catholics in Action group helped organize and

create a prom dress display at the Woodstock Nest.

Newcomers Club of Lake Forest/Lake Bluff helped at the

Mundelein Nest.

Bernotas Middle School—Koriann Lance’s 7th Grade LA/SS

Class held a donation drive and on site sorting event.

Allstate volunteers helped at our Mundelein Nest.

Chase volunteers helped at our Women’s Luncheon.

Woods Creek Cares Group decorated & assembled 400 Easter

Eggs for our resident’s Easter Egg Hunt.

Hannah Beardsley Middle School— Mr. Starnes’s 6th Grade

LA/SS Class held a donation drive and on site sorting event.

Marian Central Catholics in Action Group

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Sparrow’s Link Page 3

Volunteers in Action

Rachel, Volunteer Ambassador, did a

wonderful job representing Home

of the Sparrow at the Harper College Volunteer Fair.

Students from Woods Creek Cares gathered together after

school to decorate and assemble 400 Easter eggs for

Home of the Sparrow's annual Easter Egg Hunt. The students enjoyed this project and the opportunity to show

love to other children in McHenry County.

*Woods Creek Cares is a parent-initiated organization at

Woods Creek Elementary in Crystal Lake.

For more information, please email

woodscreekcares@gmail.com

Algonquin Nest Volunteers Carissa and Lisa helped Kathleen, Algonquin Nest Manager, share our story at the Algonquin/Lake in the

Hills Winterfest Business Expo.

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Sparrow’s Link Page 4

My Sister’s Dress 2017 a Huge Success

Many thanks to all of the wonderful organizers and volunteers for your hard work and

dedication that was put into making My Sister’s Dress such a huge success. The

event raised over $3,600 for Home of the Sparrow and the women and children we

serve. We feel honored being the charity of choice for this outstanding community

event that makes prom more affordable for many area high school girls.

Set-up Volunteers did an amazing

job organizing all the beautiful dresses and

accessories on Friday evening.

Many hands make light work.

Sale Volunteers did an awesome job helping

customers find the perfect dress and

accessories in their size and color. It was a very busy and fun day!

Volunteer Appreciation Dinner

In celebration of our 30th Anniversary, we are

Rolling Out the Red Carpet for our Shining Star Volunteers

at our Volunteer Appreciation Dinner on Wednesday, April 19th, 5 pm—8 pm

at D’Andrea Banquets in Crystal Lake.

Don’t forget to RSVP to your manager by Friday, April 7th.

We hope to see you there!

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Sparrow’s Link Page 5

The McHenry County Community Foundation and

The McHenry County Volunteer Center present:

The Human Race

April 23, 2017

Get Your Hero On for Home of the Sparrow! The McHenry County Human Race is a 5K Walk/Run that supports charities

serving McHenry County. Participants select their charity of choice

and part of the registration fee is donated to that charity.

Join Home of the Sparrow’s Team:

“Super Sparrows”

You can also form your own team with friends, family, fellow volunteers, or coworkers.

The organization with the most runners and walkers wins the

McHenry County Community Foundation Award of $600!

You can also raise additional funds that will 100% be donated to your charity of choice (HOS).

Other ways to help HOS win bonus grant money from the event include:

Best-Dressed Hero, Top Fundraising Individual, Best Creative Race Day Picture of Heroes,

and a Facebook Challenge Award!

Registration is open!

Please visit www.mchumanrace.org for more information and to register.

Thanks for supporting Home of the Sparrow!

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Sparrow’s Link Page 6

Volunteers Needed at 49th Annual Fair Diddley®

Woodstock Square— Sunday May 21, 2017

What is Fair Diddley ? Fair Diddley is a juried arts and crafts show on the Woodstock Square with over 300

skilled artisans, crafters, and food vendors. It is sponsored by the Mental Health

Resource League (MHRL) and the funds raised provide financial aid to mental health

related agencies in McHenry County, including HOS.

How is Home of the Sparrow involved? Providing volunteers for Fair Diddley keeps Home of the Sparrow in the running

for MHRL Grant Funding, which provide programs and services for

residents facing mental health issues.

How can you help? You can help Home of the Sparrow by signing up to volunteer.

The more volunteers we have the better. Volunteers help in various areas including

check-in, bakery sales, raffle ticket sales, shopping bag sales, plant sales, publicity

and traffic control, and get free entrance into the fair.

Sign up online to volunteer!

The MHRL has created an online sign up through SignUp.com. This online site will

allow volunteers to sign up for any time slot AND any position that you prefer!

Here is the link for this year's SignUp.com:

http://signup.com/go/mvH4PH

When you sign up, please indicate that you are a volunteer from Home of the Sparrow.

If you have any questions, please contact

Jennifer Kolarczyk at jkolarczyk@hosparrow.org or 815-271-5444 x60.

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Sparrow’s Link Page 7

Current Volunteer Opportunities

The Human Race

Get Your Hero On for Home of the Sparrow!

The McHenry County Human Race is a 5K Walk/Run that supports charities serving McHenry County. Participants select their charity of choice

and part of the registration fee is donated to that charity. Sign-up today to help Home of the Sparrow!

Sparrow’s Nest Store Volunteers

We can always use more help at our Sparrow’s Nest Thrift Stores. Please consider asking your family, friends, neighbors, coworkers,

church friends, and social media contacts if they would like to volunteer with us! Many hands make light work!

For more information about these volunteer opportunities, please contact Jennifer Kolarczyk, Volunteer Program Coordinator at jkolarczyk@hosparrow.org or 815-271-5444 x60.

Is It Time For a Little Spring Cleaning?

Home of the Sparrow can help! Our Logistics Team offers FREE pick up of furniture and other large items that you, your friends and family wish to donate to our Sparrow’s Nest Thrift Stores.

Simply click on the Schedule a Pickup Now! icon above (also found on our website) and you will be taken to our scheduling page. Many of our donors have used this easy online schedul-ing tool. Donors without access to a computer may call 815-271-5444 ext.41 to schedule a FREE furniture pickup. Please allow up to 10 days to schedule a pickup, as our Logistic team stays very busy. Through the use of four trucks, our Logistics Team logs 1500 miles a week picking up and delivering donations and helping clients move. This translates to 6500 miles a month, 78,000 miles per year! All donations are tax deductible and help support the women and children in our Transitional Shelter and Affordable Housing Programs. Thanks in advance for your generous donations and support of Home of the Sparrow!