Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service Benefits Care for Real Food Pantry

One of the most beloved and enduring traditions in our community is the annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service conducted by ECRA, the Edgewater Community Religious Association. It is a time when we come together to celebrate our diversity and give thanks for all we have. Care for Real (CFR), the Edgewater Communtiy Food Pantry, is honored and fortunate to be the beneficiary of the special collection taken at this service. In recent years, more than $2,000 and a ton of food were donated to CFR. These donations enable CFR to make Thanksgiving dinner possible for hundreds of their clients. In 2011, St. Gertrude Catholic Church hosted the event. This year, it will be held at the Ismaili Jamatkhana at 1124 W. Rosemont, Chicago. For more information, contact Rev. Jacki Belile, an ECRA volunteer, at 773.655.4357 or jacki@livingwellministries.net.

A History of Care for Real in Edgewater

Care for Real Care for Real was established in 1970 by Father William Johnson of the Episcopal Church of the Atonement, Rabbi Herman Schaalman of Emanuel Congregation and other members of the Edgewater Clerical Rabbinical Association. This organization, which is now known as the Edgewater Community Religious Association (ECRA), wanted to provide emergency help to victims of fires in "Arson Alley," the Kenmore-Winthrop corridor between Foster and Devon. It was intended to be a short-term solution to a specific problem. However, it soon became clear that there was a need in Edgewater for an ongoing safety net for neighbors in need. Today Care for Real is the safety net for the entire Edgewater neighborhood and surrounding communities. Today, Care for Real is an independent 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to help neighbors in the Edgewater community by providing food, clothing and counseling services to those in need. They do this through on-site food distribution, deliveries to the homebound, a free clothes closet and a case-management program to help clients connect with other services they may need. Atonement supports Care for Real through a variety of programs. For more information about Care for Real, visit their website. www.careforreal.org. Source: http://www.churchoftheatonement.org/MinistryandMission/MissionandOutreach/FoodandShelter/tabid/210/Default.aspx