In The News

It’s the holiday season and all through the city, bright and colorful decorations illuminate the streets. At BUILD, we are spreading the holiday spirit with some decorations of our own that not only create beauty, but lift spirits as well.   Last week, our team spent a day hanging Trees…

WGN’s “Chicago’s Merry Own” segment recently featured BUILD community social worker Olivia Santiago! Watch the video here as Olivia shares her experience at BUILD’s holiday gathering where we are able to provide dinner and gifts for nearly 100 youth and their families. We are proud to have Olivia as part…

BUILD was not the organization Alex Rasky had in mind when he began searching for volunteer opportunities in 2016. He was seeking an opportunity that would allow him to ply his trade while helping others. A place to roll up his sleeves, get his hands dirty and go to work.…

BUILD is honored and grateful to have been awarded a prestigious Obama Foundation’s My Brother’s Keeper (MBK) Community Challenge Seed Grant – one of five grants in Chicago and 19 nationwide. Our Apprentice Mentor Program (AMP) will train a cohort of BUILD youth to become our next generation of mentors – creating a pipeline of powerful boys and…

“It’s not safe like it used to be,” Keshayla said of growing up in of Chicago. “It’s like everybody’s just dying and getting killed.” At 19, she has experienced the violence first-hand, and she is not alone. Now, Keyshayla is one of 60 pioneers in BUILDing Girls 2 Women (BG2W),…

“Local Program Helps Empower Teens To Escape Community Violence” BUILD Chicago is an organization that helps empower at-risk youth in the Chicago area, helping thousands of teens escape the violence in their communities on a yearly basis. NBC 5’s Anayeli Ruiz reports. (Published Tuesday, Aug 28, 2018)  See news piece…

BUILD is proud to be part of the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation‘s $26 million strategy. Thriving communities require strong, resilient, generative, and compassionate organizations that are tackling barriers and working to increase the confidence, stability, power, and effectiveness of the community as a whole. Community Capital grants…

Once it was a hot spot for gun violence and drug trafficking, but now Hubbard Park is teeming with drum circles, barbecues and community bonding. What’s happening at Hubbard Park is happening elsewhere in Austin – which has seen a drop in homicides so far this year compared to 2017. As of…

BUILD’s second annual Summer of Opportunity street festival was a great success as more than 2,500 Austin residents, community leaders, anti-violence groups and community organizations came together for an exciting day of celebration. Activities included live entertainment, art projects, 3-on-3 basketball, a climbing wall, bounce houses, Project Exploration STEM Fair,…

When the final bell of the school year rings, some kids flip the switch and power down their brains until autumn – the dreaded “summer slide” sets in. Nine months of mental exercising goes out the window in the blink of an eye. Not at BUILD! With a new school…

It was a hot day at the ballpark on August 2 when BUILD celebrated its 40th edition of the Peace League Softball All-Star Game. The tradition lived on at Little Cubs Field in Humboldt Park this year and served as the culmination of BUILD’s summer long softball league, known as…

Chicago Violence Toll Tied to Poor Neighborhoods In an analysis of Chicago crime data, Axios reports that while the city’s homicide rate is not the highest in the U.S., Chicago has consistently had more total killings than any other U.S. city, with 27 people killed since the beginning of the month. Racial…