Somos una agencia social sin fines de lucro que fue creada para promover el desarrollo de la comunidad latina en el área de Waukegan IL.
Afiliate Organizations
Projects
Food Pantry / Banco de Alimentos
El Puente Latino presently runs programs in two categories: Food and Health.
The longest running service is the food pantry, which serves over 400 families a month with food provided for between 1,800 and 2,500 individuals. The majority of the clients are families where the parents are working at low wage jobs and because of other bills and are not able to feed their families adequately. Only 49 of the 400 households are eligible for food stamps. Many of the families are also undocumented. 257 0f the 400 households have children under the age of 18.
The agency works with the Lake County Food Depository to provide the food. The NIFB has considered our pantry as one of the best runs in Northern Illinois. In fact, they recently selected El Puente to be the central distribution point for additional food being made available to Waukegan students in need as a result of the long school strike.
The pantry is open every Saturday at the premises of the Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe church. An anonymous supporter provides a donation of $7,000 to the Lake County Food Depositary for the costs of the food purchased by El Puente. The agency partners with Walmart and Fresh Market, a local grocery store that provides fresh organic fruits and vegetables. Panera Bread also provides bread for the pantry.
The agency also does fundraisers annually to assist in the costs of the food pantry.
Health Screening / Exámenes de Salud
This program is a partnership with the Rosalind Franklin University Health System providing free health screening exams once a month.
The program is affiliated with Walgreens Pharmacy, which provides free flu vaccinations.
Healthy Lifestyle​ / Estílo de Vida Saludable
Four years ago, with a grant from Health Connect One, several Promotoras (promoters) were trained to teach healthy lifestyle practices related to obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. The Health Promoter Program continued with funding from the Lake County Health Foundation. A nurse from the Lake County Health Department volunteered to monitor high blood pressure and diabetes management. Support groups help monitor blood and sugar levels. Workshops provide education about chronic illnesses and nutrition. The health promoters also do home visits to help clients cook meals common to their culture in nutritious ways so they can control their sugar levels and blood pressure. People with chronic illnesses are also encouraged to attend Zumba classes, which are offered three days a week at El Puente
Maternity Program / Programa de Maternidad
A second grant from Urban Strategies addresses maternity related health for the mother and the baby. Providing regular workshops and home visits, El Puente volunteers and Promotoras raised awareness and taught healthy techniques to pregnant women and new mothers.
A third grant from Urban Strategies/Best Start specifically addresses the importance of breast-feeding for the health and development of the child. For this new program, several EPL volunteers were trained at hospitals to pay home visits to eighty-eight expectant mothers. The new mothers and representatives from Vista Hospital have very positively reviewed the program. In fact, the hospital offered to provide additional training and certification to our team. They have also created a dedicated space in their building available for our volunteers to educate new Latino mothers before they go home with their newborns.
Education / Programas despues de la Escuela
There is a great need for health care education in the Latino community of the Waukegan area. So, ELP started four successful health education programs.
El Puente Latino is preparing to launch a new after-school tutoring program targeting first through fourth grade Latino children in the fall of 2015.
