As we reflect on this year, which has been full of ups and downs, we see the Lord's hand in so many wonderful moments. Amid these ups and downs, this year brought both losses and wins.

This year was all about keeping it real, giving our guests a taste of what the kids experience when they attend our evening programs. Everyone became “Rock House Kids” for the night. Just like on program nights, all who came received a hot meal, were safe, and received a nugget of Jesus - the three marks of a good night at RHK.

Throughout the month of October, we sat down with each of our kids and teens to put together their Christmas wish lists. They tell us three items they want for Christmas (must be under $40). Usually, they ask for something for themselves, but it’s not uncommon for them to ask for something for a family member instead. We then pass on those list to those who ask to sponsor our kids for Christmas. One of the highlights of our year is watching them open their gifts at our annual

Wednesday evenings, if you walk down our classroom hallway during free time, you will find 5-6 kids in the second room on the left working on art projects with Miss Kathy. Every week, she chooses different group of kids, until everyone who wants to has a chance to make that project.

Meet Miss Tiny! She serves Monday and Wednesday evenings, pretty much wherever she is needed. On Mondays, she can usually be found with our little Pebbles (1st & 2nd graders) and most recently, she has been leading the Memory Verse station for our 3rd – 5th graders on Wednesdays. Tiny grew up in Chicago. She has three grown children and one “Glambaby” – her son’s beautiful eight-year-old daughter. She worked as a Switch woman with the Chicago Transit Authority for 24 years. S

This month we are also in need of gift wrapping supplies, as we prepare for our annual Wrapping party on December 13. Any items you can provide will help.

Kids look forward to celebrating their birthday all year long. Our friends with Rosie’s Birthday Club understand how important this is and do all they can to make them special for our kids.

Meet Becky. She and her husband of 27 years have a beautiful family, with four adult children. Becky went to college in Pensacola, FL and became a nurse. She’s worked largely in clinic and homecare settings. In recent years, her focus has been training and optimizing healthcare workers’ use of the computer system. Becky started volunteering in our Teens program last November. She spent several years working with youth who live in challenging situations and the Lord kept her h

In September, our friends from Life Church came and hosted a special event night for our kids. They brought a bounce house and set it up...

In September, I received a call from a former RHK kid. They were struggling—homeless, sleeping on the streets, and recently hospitalized due to an infection that required surgery. As they shared their story, they weren’t asking for a handout. They weren’t looking for help—just someone to listen. But it wasn’t a one-way conversation. They wanted to know how RHK was doing. They wanted to know how I was doing. How Mr. Mike was doing. How my dogs were.

Every item you donate from our Wish List enables us to use the funds we would need to spend on those items in other critical areas to best serve our kids.

In September, we welcomed Sierra Parker, our newest staff member to RHK. She is our new Office Coordinator.

Our “elves” are already in full planning mode for Christmas at RHK! The holidays are approaching quickly and we want to make it extra-special for the 200+ kids who attend RHK. Would you like to help?

RHK now has TWO program coordinators - one for the kids and one for the teens.

I’ve been volunteering at RHK for about 10 months now, and I truly love what I do. I typically come in during the day and work with April, RHK’s Storeroom Coordinator. What I enjoy most is that every day is different. I never quite know what I’ll be doing, and that keeps it exciting.

Our staff have a great time visiting local churches and groups, sharing about the mission of RHK. Sometimes it is speaking during a church service, or helping kids in children’s church pack Kid-friendly food bags for our kids.

In September, I received a call from a former RHK kid. They were struggling—homeless, sleeping on the streets, and recently hospitalized due to an infection that required surgery. As they shared their story, they weren’t asking for a handout. They weren’t looking for help—just someone to listen. But it wasn’t a one-way conversation. They wanted to know how RHK was doing. They wanted to know how I was doing. How Mr. Mike was doing. How my dogs were.