Today we’d like to introduce you to Donnita Travis.
Donnita, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
In 1997, I had just completed my MBA at Northwestern University and was president of an advertising agency when I felt God whisper to my heart a verse from the book of John, John 10:10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” He used this verse to call me from a job in advertising onto a mission of helping children in the city of Chicago have abundant life.
I immediately started volunteering through my church, The Moody Church, with kids who lived in the nearby Cabrini-Green housing project, known around the world for its unprecedented poverty, drugs, and violence. From 1997 to 2001, I worked in advertising during the day and volunteered at nights on the weekends at my church with kids from Cabrini. Then, in 2001, I left advertising to start By The Hand Club For Kids with 16 kids from Cabrini-Green.
Today, we are serving 1,523 kids in four neighborhoods at five clubs, soon to be six clubs serving 3,000 kids.
Has it been a smooth road?
It’s never been a smooth road. We have grown by about 25% annually each year since 2002. Our budget today is more than $9 million. With that comes all sorts of challenges, including scaling operations, funding, staff and volunteers. Our biggest challenge is getting people – children and supporters alike – to see that together, there is hope… we can do this!
So, as you know, we’re impressed with By The Hand Club For Kids – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Our Vision: To help kids in critical need of intervention have new and abundant life. This is based on our theme verse from John 10:10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
Our Mission: We are a Christ-centered, after-school program that takes kids by the hand and walks with them from kindergarten all the way through college —mind, body, and soul.
We pick up our children after-school on school buses from 17 partners Chicago Public Schools and bring them to our clubs. We have dinner, chapel and bible study, homework, and reading, including personalized reading on computers). We have eye, dental and mental health care. We have enrichment activities, such as choir, dance, and basketball. So, our kids are in a safe and loving environment, supported by hundreds of staff and volunteers until nighttime, when we take them home on school buses.
We serve kids who are most likely to drop out of school – based on their reading scores. We care for them during the most dangerous time of day – the after- school hours, when more crimes are committed against youth than any other time, and we meet their most pressing needs – mind, body, and soul.
As a result of this holistic care, we see:
• 84% passing all of their classes
• 100% graduating from high school
• 78% enrolling in college or a technical school
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
What I like best about our city is the diversity – I love walking down Michigan Avenue and hearing every language and seeing every culture represented in our people. What I like least is that By The Hand serves children and families just a few miles south or west of Michigan Avenue who don’t have access to all the great things that people downtown have e.g. art, education, jobs, healthcare, even basic nutrition. It is a tale of two cities.
Contact Info:
- Address: 415 North Laramie Avenue, Chicago, IL 60644
- Website: bythehand.org
- Phone: 3123052622
- Email: donnita.travis@bythehand.org
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
