One of our community organizers, Dollie Brewer, runs outreach at family
shelters throughout Chicago. So when WTTW-TV’s Chicago Tonight show
asked us to introduce them to some homeless students, we turned to
Dollie.

Dollie knows so many families. She hears all their stories.

Through Dollie, we introduced a Chicago Tonight reporter to Twinette
Williams and her 11-year-old daughter, Demarra. Last night, WTTW aired
its story on what it is like to be a homeless child going to school in
Chicago.

Demarra’s touching interview has been generating a lot of calls, WTTW tells us today.

Follow the video link and watch for yourself: http://www.wttw.com/main.taf?p=42,8,8&vid=052709c

And here’s a fact update: Chicago Public Schools served a record
number of homeless children and teens in the 2008-09 school year. Through June 2009, 12,525 homeless students were enrolled. That’s an 18% increase over the previous school year.