Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Resources

The Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil rights has put together a great resource page for businesses and individuals affected by the COVID-19 crisis. Find out more here. 

Friday deadline for loan applications

The deadline for applying for the City's Resiliency Fund program offering emergency small business loans to  is the close of business on Friday, April 24. To apply or for more information about the small business loan program, go here.

Save Small Business Fund

The US Chamber of Commerce Foundation has spearheaded the ‘Save Small Business Fund’ for employers between 3-20 employees! They’ll be supplying $5,000 grants (free money!) to any business owner who has been negatively impacted by COVID-19 and falls into a certain zip code. There’s a slick tool on the website where you can quickly see if a zip code is eligible. Check it out here.

Restaurant worker impacted by the Covid-19 crisis? Check this out.

Samuel Adams and The Greg Hill Foundation are bringing the successful Restaurant Strong Fund to 20 total states to aid the restaurant workers impacted by the Covid-19 closures. Find more details here.

Independent contractor, unemployed because of COVID-19?

If you are you an independent contractor, self-proprietor, or a worker not typically eligible for unemployment benefits, the new federal stimulus program might  be able to apply to offer some assistance. Find details here.

Foreclosure and COVID-19: Tips to help you keep your home

Has your ability to pay your mortgage been effected by the COVID-19 financial crisis?
If so, relief and resources may be available to help you avoid foreclosure and keep your home. Find more information here.

Resources for Small Business

The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity has put together a comprehensive listing of resources available for Illinois businesses harmed by the current crisis
Find a downloadable pdf  here.

Great resources from the Young Center

Thank you to the Young Center staff for putting together these great resources for the community to help cope in these uncertain times. We hope they are helpful to you. 

• Spanish-language resources, including information on financial help, mental health and self-care tips, tools to engage and educate children, and much more from Alianza Americas
• A virtual learning community to help parents cope with COVID-19 through classes taught by expert moms around the country from Mamas Con Poder
• Paula y la Pandemia, a short, Spanish-language e-book for children on remaining safe during a pandemic; you find the English version here. 
• Contact details for state and local health departments from the CDC
• A comic discussing COVID-19 with children in Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Braille, Chinese, English, Finnish, German, Italian, and Spanish from NPR
• Tips on managing anxiety during COVID-19 from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology
• Six strategies to help teens care for their mental health during COVID-19 from UNICEF
• Exercises to keep you active and strong from the World Health Organization (WHO)
• Free virtual cooking classes from Milk Street Cooking School
• Liberate, a meditation app with free guides for and by people of color
• Insight Timer, a more general meditation app with thousands of free guides and courses
• Quick tip for working from home: remember the 20-20-20 rule. Stay at least 20 inches away from the screen and every 20 minutes give your eyes a 20 second break.

New hours for alcohol sales

The Commissioner of Health of the City of Chicago has ordered that all liquor stores cease selling alcohol by 9 pm each day. read the full order here.

Know your rights during the COVID-19 crisis

We're Hiring!

                                                         Photo courtesy of Cytonn Photography
The Greater Southwest Development Corporation is hiring. Join our team and help improve the community on Chicago's southwest side. For more information, click on the open position below:

• Maintenance Technician:
• Assistant Property Manager: 
• Commercial Services Director:

Equal Opportunity Employer.

Woman owned business? Read this!

Do you own a business? Are you hurting due to stay-at-home orders and COVID-19? We're here to help.

We're directory of woman owned business to help folks find you and support you through the downturn. If we all help each other out during this time, we'll all make it out on the other side.

If you or your female friends own a business, submit through this form and you'll be included in the public directory. We're launching soon, so please complete ASAP!

FREE business education workshops are now available as WEBINARS!

The City of Chicago Department of Business Affairs & Consumer Protection’s FREE business education workshops are now available as WEBINARS!  To register visit www.chicago.gov/businessworkshops

Wednesday, April 8th at 3PM Webinar: Cutting Through the Clutter: Understanding Your Options to Navigate Your Business During the Pandemic Presented by ChiBizHub Join us to discover all the resources to help your businesses manage through COVID-19 and beyond: ChiBizHub – One stop shop portal for resources Somercor – How can the Paycheck Protection Program Can Help My Business 37 Oaks – How can I promote my local business now, for free Q&A ChiBizHub, an initiative of World Business Chicago, provides Chicago entrepreneurs and small businesses with free, easy access to a large network of service providers offering a wide variety of business-building services for small businesses.This webinar is intended to help you easily understand what you can do NOW to stay afloat.  Register by visiting www.chicago.gov/businessworkshops

Friday, April 10th at 9:30AM Webinar: The One Page Business Plan Presented by Vincent Williams, MBA, Vice President of Economic Empowerment & Director- IL-SBDC @ YWCA Metropolitan Chicago|Woodlawn Resource Center  This webinar will provide the basics behind cultivating and creating a working business plan that can be applied to all of your business ideas. Register by visiting www.chicago.gov/businessworkshops

All webinars are free. To register for a webinar visit www.chicago.gov/businessworkshops