1980
New Moms, Inc. was started from the trunk of a car when founder, Ellen Thompson, noticed the number of destitute young moms in crisis who were living in the Humboldt Park community. Hers was a grassroots effort to help these teen moms by providing diapers and formula from her car, while also attending to their need to connect with a loving "mentor mom" who cared about them and their babies. Ellen started "drop-in" groups from her apartment, thus beginning the founding program of New Moms, Inc. -- the Community Outreach Program.
1983
Responding to the overwhelming need that didn't make it possible for one woman to do it alone any longer, New Moms, Inc. incorporated as a non-profit organization in 1983. With the capability to take in donations, the ability of New Moms to help young teen moms expanded rapidly.
1988
New Moms opens its Cooperative Living Program - a transitional living shelter for homeless teen moms (ages 18 through 21) and their children. The program goes far beyond providing short-term shelter for a homeless family headed by a teen mom. Instead, it is the starting point of stability that enables the young mom to take a breath and begin envisioning a long-term future for her family rather than just worrying about where she and her kids will sleep that night.
1992
The Cooperative Living Program is recognized as a leader in providing housing for homeless moms with children and is used as the shelter program model by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) in providing housing for pregnant and parenting teen wards of the state.
1996
New Moms is selected by the Ounce of Prevention Fund to create a pilot self-sufficiency program for our teen mom clients - the Rising Star Career Readiness Program. This results in great strides for our moms towards the goal of self-sufficiency as evidenced by more successful entries into education, job training and career employment.
1997
New Moms is awarded its first federal government grant as a result of its high rating on the Chicago Continuum of Care Priority List. These crucial funds are received in 1998 and enable New Moms to expand the number of clients we serve and the programs we offer.
Tragedy strikes at New Moms when our leased Cooperative Living Program facility is gutted by fire. Displaced without notice, our participants are forced to move to a continuing array of temporary spaces in order to keep the program going.
1998
New Moms becomes a national pilot site for Crown Financial Ministries' career testing materials to insure that they are effective tools for inner city at-risk youth.
1999
Through a federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant, New Moms is able to purchase two buildings: one to permanently house our Cooperative Living Program after the fire, the other to transform into a future day care and Group Living Home for teen moms in the 13 through 17 age range.
2000
After thousands of volunteer labor hours of rehabilitation, New Moms moves into its new shelter facility with ideal program space -- three families per apartment, community living space, and live-in house parents.
New Moms is selected for inclusion in Crown Financial Ministries' new manual and video package highlighting model Welfare-to-Work programs. New Moms also receives an award as an "outstanding shelter provider" from a large church on the south side of Chicago.
