on the city's northwest side may be losing access to programs provided by a local community organization.

That's because the nonprofit at Most a neighborhood association says it's set to lose or state funding in June.

The state awarded to Hunt too 244 million dollars in grants using funds generated from taxes on cannabis sales to support and invest in underserved communities.

As a grant and state approaches, community organizers are working to figure out what comes next.

Joining us now with more our Jim it.

But chuckle president of Neighborhood Association and now my cruiser.

The group's founding member and vice president.

We also invited the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority that handles a grant, but they declined to join us.

They did send us a statement and we will get to that later.

Thank you both for joining us.

I want to start off with organization was launched from a conversation about the community between UN residents.

Can you tell us briefly about the Neighborhood Association?

>> I Share, of course.

So unable station started back in group neighbors met in 2014.

>> It was 5 members Kahlenberg being original president and we are super grateful to him for done all the work and to be where we are And and we got our nonprofit status in 2015 and we were a virtual up until like 2 and half years ago when we get the grant, what was the motivation to open the overall vision?

Just, you know, we all agreed at community community needed more.

Services, more attention.

So we just did everything.

Virtually we had a community meetings to bring more information to our community, whether that the information on comment where they low low income nation to our residents, bringing in free life.

All anything like that.

And tonight you saw the need in your community.

>> Well, all the need is great, especially for the use where having a safe place for myself raising 3 children where resources are very scarce when needed to make sure that not only do we provide a safe space for youth teams from 12 to 19 to have somewhere to go feel safe but also have some skill building things that are necessary with our generation's nowadays that some of them may lack some of the social skill.

So we've seen them come flourish, have a safe space.

it was really a labor wants to together and can you tell us about the organization's current financial status for the 2 ation?

Yeah.

So I see, Joe, we're very grateful to them.

We have a three-year grant that is going to expire in June of 2025, we are an all volunteer board.

So we have been able to hire some staff to run the program on a daily basis.

But we are not grant writers by any means.

So we have a struggle just like other organizations in our neighborhoods that we need people to walk us through guide us through some of that.

When we do receive the funds, what are some of the things that we need to do in order to have those timelines set where, you know, we need to, you know, get additional funds.

What do we do to get that guidance collaborative process.

It's a very tedious process.

And hours and hours and something we don't have and where small organization my one out to go to you.

What would you say at the opportunities at the are 3 grand create for the organization?

>> It's it's huge.

the opportunities to bring children given, giving the children a space to go to having spent a lot of time at the office lately.

I've seen what it has done to our children.

The started with the program.

Florish.

I mean, they came in quiet, not speaking to one another to now.

They come in.

They just walk in after school conveyed come in, do their homework and just hang out to see a completely.

And I do want read I do want to read a statement from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

They say in part hundreds of community organizations across Illinois have initiative innovative ideas for rebuilding neighborhoods torn apart by so-called war on drugs.

Our 3 was designed to bring grant funding equity, fairness and opportunity to each one of them.

We strongly encourage organizations to develop a sustainable plan over their three-year grant period to ensure continued service provision.

>> Where there are 3 grand ends now to was enough done by organization to create a long-term sub stena bulk plan.

>> While longer receives a funding, we're very grateful to our former board members who actually wrote the grant and that a fabulous job.

I myself, I'm not a great writer.

I am more of our compliance person.

I'm a private business owner.

So having all the complaints from reporting has taken up a lot of my time and we've had to adjust and make sure that we can do that to keep the boots on the ground going every day.

So, you know, I've attended whatever I can as far as training is concerned as far as anything that they need me to do.

I've done.

What's your message to them right now?

First of also shows that we're very grateful for the opportunity.

The the funding means so much and we've done the work, the boots on the ground.

We've done the work and you see the success stories.

They've had the opportunity to visit our office and see where we've applied all the funds to see our 3 printing to see our cricket makers to see the sewing programs where kids just need some basic You don't want that to end.

We don't want that to end.

And we have children that have actually started small businesses.

And that's the that's the thing that wanted to talk about.

The small businesses.

you mentioned, that one of your students who completed one of your programs >> was able to start their own business.

What has a grant provided for the community?

So what have a grant provided?

It will kind of businesses you It's he I think he and his mother created cart.

>> That they take 2 events and they sell.

They fell there.

I think like 2 adult life, I'm not mistaken, but it's it's a beautiful And he created everything through our program, including the stamp is the So it's amazing.

I just I wish that we have some photos to share his actual business.

So the thought of losing, yeah, this 20 you sais is crucial.

It's crucial.

I mean this.

And that's just an example of what could happen.

And then using him all the kids can look to him say I could do that.

What can I do?

You know, rather than hang out of the street, you know, being more productive may be thinking ahead, peek into the future.

What what they can do Internet, what support are you looking for from the community?

We're looking for support anyone that has time to volunteer instructors that could come in and maybe help with different programs are the programs that we have now.

>> We're looking for the businesses that are in Hermosa to help us.

Because not only is this providing a safe space for the youth is also providing us a safe space for their workers to come into work every day and to help with Hermoso were saying which between these amazing other neighborhoods and we need