How We Help

Our Statistics & Demographics

Individuals Served

297

Organizations Served

191

Amount Raised

$342,082

To help support and grow
your local community.

Age Range

0-10
22%
11-17
26.8%
18-25
17.6%
25-29
3.4%
30-39
9.3%
40-49
10.2%
>50
10.7%

Annual Income

<$10,000
59.2%
$10,000-$20,000
28.9%
$20,000-$40,000
10%
$40,000-$60,000
2%

Diversity

36.1%
Puerto Rican
19.5%
African
American
18.5%
Dominican
18.5%
Mexican
3.9%
Honduran
2.4%
Mixed Race
1%
European
Shannon Medic Young

“Reason to Give is good for us and our needs. Thank you so much.”

Maggy R.

Reason To Give participant

Humboldt Park, Chicago, IL

“I think Reason To Give is amazing.... I am a big supporter!”

Irina B.

Donor

Chicago, IL

“I tell a lot of people about you guys all the time. I just love love love what you all are doing! PLEASE keep up the good work!”

Joe Wright

Director of Development, New Moms

Chicago, IL

Our Story

Reason to Give is a 501c3 nonprofit organization located in the Humboldt Park community of Chicago. Founded in 2007 by Dawn Hancock, owner of Firebelly Design, it was a way for her growing studio to do good in their own backyard. What began as a cool website and the dream of a do-gooder, helping a few local families, has developed into a strong organization reaching hundreds and changing lives. Our supporters have grown too, but many have been loyal from the start.

We’ve always believed that giving should be simple and direct. Reasontogive.com has been an outlet for our families to tell their stories and a way for donors to see the impact their support has. Over the years, we’ve grown our programs to better meet the needs of our community and better serve our population. We’ve taken on several big projects in the community, raising funds and organizing volunteer events for local schools and organizations. When our families told us their hardest times came around the holidays and when they had to go school shopping, we started our annual events. Every August, we provide backpacks full of school supplies to 100 children in our program. Through our holiday events, we provide winter coats, clothing, toys, and help to fulfill our families’ wish lists.

When it wasn’t enough for us to just provide our families with the stuff they needed anymore, we created comprehensive, bilingual resource guides and handed them out to the community. And when our families still asked for more, we started a whole other phase of Reason to Give, providing education.

Our Program

In 2010, we began an education initiative to provide local families a place to learn real life skills to help them be more successful at home and in their professional lives. We teamed up with local universities, organizations, and businesses who facilitated the workshops. Upon graduation, each student was awarded a laptop to help them continue to reach their goals at home. The success of our education initiative prompted us to transform our organization, putting education at the forefront of what we do.

Our goal is to empower our community members to reach their full potential and become self-sufficient. We offer students 20 weeks of intense classes that help them overcome obstacles in their personal lives, prepare them to be successful in school or the workplace, and educate them on all the opportunities available in their community. Professional and peer mentors guide students through the first half, until the students become mentors themselves. In the end, students walk away with all the tools they need to be successful, including a laptop of course, and a huge network of successful people willing to help them. We may have a new mission, but somethings will never change. Reasontogive.com is still the way for our students to tell their stories and our donors to give directly and see the difference they can make.

Want to learn more about our Adult Education Program?

More Information

Meet The Team

A Bit of Our Background

Dawn Hancock

Founder + Managing Director

Since opening in 1999, Firebelly has produced solid work they believe in and clients trust. Work that has merited mention in a journal here and a design archive there. While certainly proud of the studio’s history and accomplishments, Dawn feels no need to rehash the past.

Though the studio remains Dawn’s focal point and her center of gravity, Firebelly has expanded into a bustling little world that she hustles across daily. A world built with her own two hands, the fearless work of her team, and an abundance of neighborhood support. Already coordinating the annual Grant for Good, a charitable award that supports one non-profit for a year, she decided to launch her own organization, which evolved into an entire socially minded enterprise.

Shannon Medic Young

Executive Director

Education, empowerment, continued growth. These are the cornerstones of Shannon’s career and ethos. As Executive Director and the first full-time employee of Reason to Give, she nurtured the non-profit from its infancy into a bustling, full-service organization.

A Chicago native, Shannon spent time traveling the country and world, encountering and engaging with different cultures while researching and advocating for women’s issues and human rights. Upon returning to the midwest, Shannon refocused her energy on her local community. She joined the Americorps Public Allies program designed to place capable, passionate people in non-profit management positions. Through Public Allies she learned about Reason to Give, which at that time was essentially just a website and a good idea.

Our Board

Shawn Ingall Tara Hulka Kyle LaMere