BENNU Legal Services, Immigrant Legal Aid: Agency Receives Grant to Build Community Outreach

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BENNU’s work is even more critical given the recent Census report that America’s poverty rate is so high, with families in poverty among large immigrant groups at a shocking 25%, nearly double the national average.

Lake Bluff, IL (Vocus) October 12, 2010

BENNU Legal Services, a nonprofit located midway between Chicago and Milwaukee, has received a grant from The Lake County Community Foundation, an affiliate of The Chicago Community Trust. This grant will be used to raise awareness and visibility of BENNU in the community, as well as to continue to build skill sets for volunteers and key staff and to maximize BENNU’s impact. With this grant, BENNU will improve its capacity to serve the underprivileged and underrepresented in Lake County.

Says BENNU’s Executive Director, Andrew Sagartz, “BENNU’s work is even more critical given the recent Census report that America’s poverty rate is so high, with families in poverty among large immigrant groups at a shocking 25%, nearly double the national average.” For instance, through BENNU’s outreach in the community an abused mother of six paralyzed in fear by her green-card holding husband—who threatened to have his wife deported if she reported his vicious beatings—recently learned about BENNU and her ability to get free, and to legally build a new life for herself and her children with a work permit, valid social security number, and a driver’s license.

Says Sylvia Zaldivar-Sykes, Executive Director of The Lake County Community Foundation, “Our support of BENNU is another way the Foundation is working to make Lake County a better, more vibrant place to live, work, and raise a family.” The Foundation was established to improve the lives of the most vulnerable residents of Lake County, a mission that closely parallels BENNU’s mission.

BENNU provides low-cost legal aid and education to help families and individuals new to the United States to legalize and integrate. Through its work, BENNU also supports small business entrepreneurs and helps address important issues such as domestic violence. In addition to its formal services, BENNU has also implemented educational programs--such as community education seminars and confidential legal consultations—to increase clients’ occupational skills, promote dialogue and understanding, and improve the health of the greater community. Like the bennu bird, or Egyptian phoenix, rising from the ashes, BENNU’s clients rise to new heights to achieve their American Dreams.

About BENNU Legal Services

To meet clients’ needs, BENNU Legal Services, an innovative nonprofit Supporting American Dreams, offers services on a sliding-fee-scale, and sometimes pro-bono, basis. Through collaborations with many other agencies and faith-based organizations, our multicultural staff meets clients at locations convenient to them. BENNU also conducts vocational trainings to increase employability, helping individuals successfully rise to new beginnings. To learn more, visit http://www.BENNUlegal.org.

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