A MESSAGE FROM OUR
CEO & BOARD CHAIR
We are extremely excited and grateful to share a milestone this year for Metropolitan Family Services – we helped to Mpower 136,675 children and families in 2021!
In the process of surpassing the 100,000 mark – reaching an ever-growing number of children, youth and adults throughout metropolitan Chicago and DuPage County with services designed to improve quality of life – we learned about not only endurance, but also about expectation and expansion.
Around the time we set our goal of Mpowering 100,000 families by 2020, the theme of our Annual Report was “The Power of WE.” In 2021, we focused on The Power of “RE.”
To us at Metropolitan,
“RE” means many things.
It means resilience.
We worked to keep bouncing back, proactively enduring despite the ups and downs of navigating a constantly changing, pandemic-challenged landscape.
It means resurgence.
We prioritized retaining existing services, while building our support for intermittent emergency services such as food donations and deliveries, to meet lingering needs that went above and beyond the norm throughout our communities.
In 2021, we reimagined
how to deliver services in ways that kept clients engaged despite the isolation and fatigue many felt, in being alone or limited to virtual communications long-term, and in a lack of connection with others in person.
As we’ve reflected
on progress and roadblocks, we consistently ask questions to rethink how we best approach serving others.
How effective are we? What can we do better to serve our clients, communities, supporters and colleagues? How do we apply our learnings to look for what is possible, to transform challenges into opportunities?
Throughout it all, we remained focused on our mission of strengthening families and communities.
Due to your support and the phenomenal MFS family, we now reach more than 136,000 people with life-changing services!
We’re honored to share some of these stories of Mpowerment with you in this year’s Annual Report – lives revived, restored, renewed!
Join us as we explore and celebrate the power of “RE!”
Ric Estrada
President & CEO,
Metropolitan Family Services
Ashley Duchossois Joyce
Chair,
Board of Directors