The Emergency Fund provides immediate financial
assistance to help low income Chicago area individuals
and families through a crisis or transition.

Partner Agencies

The Emergency Fund enjoys a wide reach due to our long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships with community-based social service agencies. When developing a new partnership, it is essential that both the Emergency Fund and the potential partner are clear, honest and realistic about allotment expectations, service capabilities, and other key functions of a successful partnership.

The Emergency Fund takes a wide variety of factors into account when assessing potential partners:

• Is the agency experienced in providing social services in its community? (year founded; service boundaries; historical highlights)

• Is the agency experienced in working with the many diverse groups that are represented in the community? (ethnicity/race, age, sex, disability, etc. of population served)

• Is the agency accessible to clients? (CTA accessibility; site restrictions such as women only, id’s required for entry, etc.)

• Is the agency equipped administratively and physically to succeed as a partner? (availability of necessary office equipment; security/privacy of EF records )

• Is the agency capable of responding to a variety of needs quickly? (emergency services provided; accounting requirements)

• Is the agency located in an area where we are in need of partners? (who else is in the same zip code or community?)

• Does the agency truly need the program at their site? (availability of other emergency funds)

• Is the agency capable of accepting more clients per month? (current number of clients served; Fund Manager workload)

• Is the agency overly reliant on time-limited contracts, running inefficiently, etc ? (diversity of revenue sources; program vs. overhead costs; budget shortfalls; other relevant information from the most recent 990)

• What can the potential Fund Manager bring to the partnership? (availability; knowledge of social service system; length of employment with the agency; ability to link clients to other services; ability to attend meetings; etc.)

Organizations interested in becoming Emergency Fund partners should review the criteria before applying. If they feel they do qualify they should send a letter of interest and a description of their services (this can be in the form of annual reports, newsletters, brochures, etc) to Kathleen Molnar at kmolnar@emergencyfund.org.

Decisions about partnerships are usually made in December with a planned January 1 start date.

Emergency Fund

651 W. Washington, Suite 504

Chicago, IL 60661

312.379.0301

info@emergencyfund.org

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Need Help? If you live in Chicago, dial 3-1-1 and ask for "Short-Term Help" to be screened for the Emergency Fund's financial assistance.

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