Chicago is assisting developers with building a long-awaited $5.3 million retail center in the Auburn-Gresham neighborhood on the South Side by selling them two parcels to complete the project. A single-story, 21,596-square-foot, L-shaped retail building will go up at 7932-7956 S. Racine Ave., on the Hobby House Hotel site before the city condemned it in the late 1990s.

“It was a nuisance to the neighborhood, used for actions of ill-repute and gang/drug activ-ity,” said Jonathan Swain, executive director of Beloved Community Inc., the development arm of Faith Community of St. Sabina Church. The Beloved Community is the non-profit community member of Gresham Plaza Retail LLC that will build the retail center.

Other LLC members are Joseph Freed and Associates LLC and SIVIC Real Estate LLC, the lead developer. Bral Spight, who had been chief of staff on the Public Building Commis-sion of Chicago, heads SIVIC. The retail center is the second phase of a pro-ject begun earlier this decade. All Chicago LLC

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Gresham Plaza Retail Center in Position to Move Forward

IN THIS ISSUE: page 1 New Destination Eatery in Auburn Gresham page 1 Gresham Plaza Retail Center in Position to Move Forward page 2 Preparing Our Youth for Academic Success page 2 Financial Counseling and Planning for Families page 3 Breathing Life Into Auburn Gresham’s Entrepreneurial Spirit

If you’re driving on west 79th street near Racine and you start to smell wonderful bakery aromas, stop and visit the latest addition to the growing family of great businesses in Auburn Gresham, the newly opened Perfect Peace Bakery and Café. Located at 1255 West 79th Street, the Perfect Peace Café and Bakery fea-tures an extensive array of baked goods, salads, sandwiches and hearty soups, all prepared with high quality ingredients. Co-founders Julie Welborn and Denise Nicholes each had a vi-sion to create an eatery, which would feature healthy, delicious, and beautiful food served in a peaceful and relaxing environment. As divine design would have it, co-owners Julie Welborn and Denise Nicholes met at the Faith Community of St. Sabina. They became friends and began to share their dreams only to learn that their dreams complimented one another. Denise possesses a love for cooking and extensive experience in the food industry, and Julie has the gift of creating beautiful envi-ronments where people feel warm. “We talked about it a lot and both saw a need in the com-munity for healthy, quality food, that wasn’t

fast food and that had a sit-down atmosphere. Because Auburn Gresham is experiencing commercial growth—and because the commu-nity was underserved in restaurant uses—we

wanted to open a stand out café and bakery there,” says Julie. And stand out it does. Not only is the food great and the atmosphere beautiful and inviting—the café is WiFi acces-sible. Welborn and Nicholes received business devel-opment assistance from The Beloved Commu-nity enabling them to open their doors. “Perfect Peace Café & Bakery brings the kind of footprint we are working with our commu-nity partners to bring to Auburn Gresham,” says the Beloved Community’s executive direc-tor, Jonathan Swain. “We are extremely ex-cited to have them in our community.” Store hours are Monday - Friday: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday:: Closed. If you would like to know more about Perfect Peace Café & Bakery, “where prayer is the first ingredient,” please visit their store and/or website: www.perfectpeacecafe.com. Interested in having your Auburn Gresham business in our “Business Spotlight? Call (773) 483-9858.

New Destination Eatery in Auburn Gresham

Winter 2008

The Excellence in Education Program sup-ports young people, from grades 7 through 12, in their pursuit of higher education by provid-ing them with the resources, information, and academic assistance that are so critical for the successful admittance and transition to college. Program components are designed so they complement rather than replicate college preparation services currently offered by local middle and high schools. The program seeks out qualified students from the greater Auburn-Gresham area and beyond and strives to identify and recruit young people who have the best potential to benefit from the program. This does not mean that only stu-dents who already score high on tests are se-lected, but rather students who show commit-ment by attending informational meetings and respective sessions regularly, and who put forth a sincere effort consistently. The Excellence in Education Program lays the foundation for students to achieve success in a post-secondary environment. With two spe-cific objectives of refining academic skills and promoting college preparation, the program offers several services to specifically address the needs of youth at the various stages of development from middle school through the completion of high school. Emphasis is on reading and math. The strategy is more com-prehensive than traditional homework assis-tance programs, and each student is assigned a specific tutor to work with him or her consis-tently over a period of weeks in a single sub-ject. In addition to helping with homework,

tutors cover key subject con-cepts and monitor student progress over time. The Beloved Community has developed a cohort model, Bethune Carver Scholars, which offers an intensive aca-demic experience to a smaller group of fifty promising Afri-can-American and Latino 7th and 8th graders. Enrollment is selective, with each annual class comprised of students currently enrolled in junior high school and identified as leaders with the potential for high academic and personal achievement. These students will remain in the program throughout their high school experiences, and staff will carefully track and measure their progress to evaluate program success. Students meet twice a week for three hours per session to participate in academic enrichment courses in mathematics and reading. They work closely with tutors to improve areas of lower achievement and participate in various life skills activities and workshops. The schol-ars are also being educated on healthy eating and nutrition through discussion and experi-ments. This topic is further addressed as we provide catered, kid-friendly nutritious meals and snacks at every session. Another key component of our cohort model is college and career exploration. Students

participate in day trips one Saturday each month to colleges and career environments. The goal of these trips is to expose students to various careers and college campuses in order to help them shape their personal goals from an early age. Students are encouraged to ask questions and identify characteristics of each career or campus that are appealing to them as well as those that are not. The Beloved Community also offers several workshops annually for parents and students in the community addressing various topics re-lated to college application processes, financing a college education, completing the FAFSA form, and scholarships. For more information on The Excellence in Education Program, call (773) 483-9858.

Preparing Our Youth for Academic Success

The Center for Working Families in partner-ship with The Employment Resource Center of St. Sabina and The Beloved Community, is a one-stop facility available to residents of Au-burn Gresham and surrounding communities providing employment services, financial ser-vices, access to public benefits, and free tax preparation. The centerpiece of the program is one-on-one financial counseling for residents. The goal is to alleviate many of the difficulties and barriers that prevent families from taking advantage of the various benefits and services offered, while helping them develop a family financial plan. The Center for Working Families is designed to build household economic strength by bun-dling financial services, financial education and coaching, and asset-building strategies; employ-ment services and career-laddering services; and access to government income supports, such as child care assistance and the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Success in America today depends on not just a job and growing income, but increasingly on the ability to accumulate a wide range of assets. Owning a home, obtaining an education and building diverse financial investments are es-sential elements of economic well being that provide the basis for building and expanding wealth. The U.S. economy has continued to grow at a healthy pace for the last three years;

every quarter the economic figures reflect the underlying strength and resilience of the con-tinuing economic expansion. Taking full ad-vantage of these opportunities requires knowl-edge of financial assets. Too often, families often lack the financial education to make informed and appropriate decisions. Building up assets and avoiding excessive debt can help families insure against unforeseen disruptions, achieve economic independence, and reach the middle class. Economic success requires a long-term perspective, including a willingness to forego consumption today for higher living standards in the future. Since its start, this important program has served a total of 293 families, with a projection of serving approximately 500 through 2008. There are no charges to interested participants, and the program is open to the community. For more information call (773) 483-9858.

Financial Counseling and Planning for Families

completed a Walgreen's Drug Store at 1213 W. 79th St. in 2002. Gresham Plaza Retail bought the southern end of the 1.1-acre site -- 7952-7956 S. Racine -- from an All Chicago member. Now with Gresham Plaza's purchase of the city-owned land, 38,589 square feet at 7932-7950 S. Racine, construction can be completed. The Chicago Community Development Com-mission last month approved the land sale. Gresham Plaza Retail will pay $235,000 for the city-owned part of that site, discounted from the $475,000 appraised market-rate value of

the land, a Chicago Department of Planning and Development project manager told com-missioners. Pending City Council approval, expected in fall, the developer hopes to close on the land by year-end, Spight said. The new building will have seven retail spaces and 50 parking spots to be accessed from Racine Avenue. “We are looking for restaurant and other ser-vice uses that are missing in the neighbor-hood,” Spight said. “That includes services such as a Dunkin' Donuts, a Baskin-Robbins and other similar amenities.”

Neighborhood leaders expect the project to be a catalyst for economic development along the 79th Street Corridor, roughly from Halsted Street to Ashland Avenue. “We have found that if one or two retailers come to an area, it paves the way for other retailers and other developers,” Ald. Howard Brookins (21st) said last week. “That plaza will turn a vacant parcel of commercial land into an economically productive site and will bring new retail options to a community that is clam-oring for more.” Excerpt from Chicago Tribune, By Jeanette Almada, Special to the Tribune, September 2, 2007, Copyright © 2007.

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You’ve had a great idea for a business in the back of your mind for quite some time, but you don’t know where to begin. Perhaps you’ve been in business for a while and need some help growing and going to the next level. The Business Development Center is ready to help. The Beloved Community Business Develop-ment Program is designed to provide free counseling, resources, direction and affordable training to business owners, managers and potential entrepreneurs. The program is held at the Business Resource Center, 1153 W. 79th Street, and was developed in partnership with State Senator Jacqueline Y. Collins, SCORE, Accion Chicago, the Institute for Justice, local universities and financial institutions. It is available to almost anyone interested in starting or expanding a small business. There’s also a Resource Center with a collection of books, journals, periodicals, business trade magazines, newspapers and guides as well as a Business Technology and Information Center—all avail-able to assist business owners, managers and entrepreneurs in starting and building their businesses. Justin Richardson, Director of Business Devel-opment, shares their objectives. “African

American small businesses are facing new and more difficult challenges than ever before. It’s a much more competitive environment. To succeed, entrepreneurs must be more knowl-edgeable and better prepared to enter their respective markets. Our goal is to help busi-nesses thrive and grow by encouraging busi-ness owners and potential entrepreneurs to ask the tough questions about their business, their strategy, and their market. Our business pro-gram is a great way for them to receive afford-able training.” The current 6-week series, Small Business Plunge, addresses every question an entrepreneur needs to answer before starting a business venture. In Business Plan Basics, participants develop a start-up business plan during the course to test the feasibility of their business concept and to act as a blueprint for their start-up venture. Other classes include Market Analysis and Plan, Financial Analysis, Financing the Business, and Legal Aspects of Business. In the endeavor to create a culture of entrepre-neurship, there is also a pilot business incuba-tion program component that is a hands-on process taking a potential business owner through each step of the process of small busi-ness ownership. The most recent success is

Perfect Peace Bakery & Café, a bakery and café business venture with two African American women. The Business Development Resource Center helped them prepare their business plan, find a location, connect with contractors, review designs for logo, signage, and floor plan, get necessary city, state, and federal per-mits and identification numbers. Perfect Peace successfully opened in July 2007 to the delight of Auburn Gresham’s residents. For more information on workshops or to schedule one-on-one counseling at the Busi-ness Development Center, call (773) 483-9858 or log on to our website at: www.belovedcom-munitychicago.org/business.htm.

Breathing Life Into Auburn Gresham’s Entrepreneurial Spirit

The recent acquisition of the 12-unit apartment building (shown left) located at 1203-09 West 78th Place by The Beloved Community pro-vides increased affordable housing in Auburn- Gresham.

We live in a world focused on the attainment of “things” — the latest flat screen TV, the newest sneakers, over-priced designer clothes, cell phones, IPods, cars, and the like. Every nine minutes televi-sion commercials with beautiful people look straight into the camera and tell us that we have to go out RIGHT NOW and get the latest this or that. Our mailboxes are crammed with catalogs full of “stuff”. Driving along the highway, billboards scream that if you have “this” you’ll be happy. Emails and pop-up advertisements tell us about the latest gadget we have to have. “Come on,” they seem to say. “This is what is missing in your life.” “Purchase this NOW and your troubles will be over.” Yes, it’s enjoyable to have things, but happiness and fulfillment is not in stuff. Consider this for a mo-ment. If stuff made you happy, then, everybody who has stuff would be happy, right? Yet every day the news reports the crash, burn, depression and destruction of rich, famous people who seemingly have it all. All of us know people who have a lot of stuff and yet they are miserable. But we also know people who may not have the latest and best, yet their lives are full of joy. What gives? Depression is often the result of focusing on what is

NOT instead of what IS. Sure, you may not have everything you want right now, but you are still blessed. You have the gift of the present. You’re reading this, so you have eyes to see. Or someone is reading it to you, so you have ears to hear. You have your health. You’re blessed with family and friends. Your children and grandchildren are a blessing. It may not be a palace, but you have a place to stay. You have the ability to go to school and to be educated. You have food to eat. You have a job—either the one you have or the new one on the way. You have neighbors who watch out for you. And even if things are not going quite right now, you have an opportunity to get your self in gear and start moving in a positive direction. Real joy begins with a spirit of thankfulness, right where you are. Why not turn it around this holiday season? Instead of focusing on what you don’t have (and going into debt spending money you don’t have to get it) CHOOSE to be thankful. Start by counting your blessings — and as the old hymn goes, you’ll be surprised to see what God has done. Have a safe and blessed holiday!

CHOOSE To Be Thankful Upcoming Events December 18 Bethune Carver Scholarship Flagway Math Tournament Illinois Institute of Technology Hermann Hall 3241 S. Federal St., Chicago, IL January 8 Bethune Carver Scholars Program, Spring Semester January 24 Teen Entrepreneurship, Spring Semester Auburn Gresham Resource Center 1153 West 79th St., Chicago, IL For more information, contact April Dumas at (773) 483-9858 January 30 Four Week Entrepreneurship Training Auburn Gresham Resource Center 1153 West 79th St., Chicago, IL For more information, contact Justin Richardson at (773) 483-9858