Opportunities to Give Back to the MCH Community This Year

In November 2022, the UIC Reproductive Justice Coalition (RJC) – comprised of faculty, staff, and students at UIC and UI Health, including many from the School of Public Health – successfully launched and completed a fundraiser to provide housing for abortion patients traveling to Illinois from out of state. The fundraising goal was quickly met, and soon exceeded the amount needed to rent an apartment for a year, through the support of Chicago Abortion Fund staff. With the additional funds, the RJC developed “comfort care” packages for patients seeking complex abortion services in the Illinois Medical District, as well as accompany children’s kits.

This inaugural campaign was such a success that the RJC has decided to launch it again this year and is seeking funding to provide housing for an additional year, as well as develop more comfort care and children’s kits. In addition, the Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health (CoE-MCH) was able to support the RJC’s initiatives by hosting a material donation drive to provide the housing unit with more homey, cozy features like rugs and lamps, along with necessities like toilet paper, paper towels, disposable plates and utensils, and more.

The CoE-MCH has been inspired by the outpouring of support from our wider community and network, and wanted to use this opportunity to elevate a few different fundraising and material drives. Please see the below list for information about how to donate items or dollars to the campaigns that support and benefit the wider MCH population.

• RJC Reproductive Fundraising Campaign (December 4, 2023 to February 29, 2024): https://go.uic.edu/RJCFund
  • Seeking financial donations to fund an apartment for a year for abortion patients traveling to Illinois from out of state, as well as purchasing supplies for comfort care kits if initial goal is met.
• Support for migrants who are coming to Chicago: https://borderlessmag.org/2023/05/02/how-to-help-migrants-bus-chicago-texas/
  • Multiple opportunities and ways to donate food, clothing, money and more to help immigrants sent to Chicago from border states (accepting material donations at local government offices, networks, and stores; volunteer opportunities to deliver meals; items that can be purchased from Amazon Wishlists)
• The Mobile Migrant Health Team (MMHT) initiatives, a volunteer group founded by members of the UIC community made up of physicians, public health experts and medical school students
  • Support MMHT’s financial fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-mobile-migrant-health-team
  • Donate items via the MMHT Amazon Wishlist, sign up as a volunteer, or connect with MMHT here: https://linktr.ee/mmhtchicago
• Donate to the UIC Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health: https://maternalchild.uic.edu/giving/
  • Provide financial support to help increase student funding via stipends or scholarships; provide travel funds for students, staff and faculty; allow us to continue to develop personal leadership programs for students and community partners.

If you know of other fundraising or material donation campaigns that you believe fit with the CoE-MCH’s mission to improve the health and well-being of women, children, and families including children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN), please reach out to coemch@uic.edu.