Grayslake Community Care Center Opens To Serve Families In Need

It is about more than the food.

That comment summed up the newly opened community Care center at 25270 W. Highway 60, Grayslake. It is located in The Stadium of the Grayslake campus of The Chapel.

"This is not just a food pantry," said JoAnn Hungness, of Round Lake Beach. "People feel invited to come in, they feel welcomed, they feel valued."

Just one month ago, 150 people came to the center for food and personal items. Two weeks ago, there were 177 people. The needs continue to increase as joblessness remains high and families struggle to pay for necessities like food and clothing.

The Chapel's community Care center, known simply as the cCc — with the emphasis on the "Care" — provides food and clothing to any community members who need support for themselves or their families. The center is open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays.

The center offers a different approach than some food pantries where people receive a standard box stuffed with items that they may not necessarily have chosen.

"We are a choice center," Hungness said. "That is very important to us. We let people choose what they want."

Clients come into the facility, greeted by volunteers with sweets and coffee or cocoa. Kids can play in the gym while their parents selects groceries from stocked shelves in the center.

The community Care center has wide aisles and stocked shelves thanks to donations from individuals and food supplied the Northern Illinois Food Bank. The pantry recently received two commercial walk-in refrigerators and freezers. The facility was built by volunteers.

The new location is bigger, brighter and more welcoming than the previous location in Mundelein.

"We have three times the space here than we had before," said Michelle Stanger, director of the community Care center. "The space is awesome."

She said the team of volunteers focuses on making the people feel welcome.

"There's a warmth here," Stanger said. "God provides in abundance and we pass it on to the families who come here."

For more information, to donate or volunteer, email Juli Chaffee at jchaffee@chapel.org.