Celebrate Chicagoland Heroes: Support the Red Cross Now and Double Your Impact With This Donation-Matching Opportunity

July 2023 saw record-breaking floods on Chicago’s Westside, causing severe home and property damage in the city’s Austin neighborhood. As a longtime Austin resident and community advocate, Jacqueline Reed spearheaded relief efforts, mobilizing resources and volunteers to help 75 homes become habitable.  That same month, Firefighter and Paramedic Nicholas DeLeon encountered an active shooter at […]

by Jessica Braun Gervais

Alzheimer's Association Celebrates Caregivers, Spotlights Impact of Balancing Work With Care of a Loved One

The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that over six million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia. Each of these people need care, and that care is frequently provided by over 11 million unpaid caregivers: spouses, siblings, children, or sometimes just concerned friends and neighbors. More than half of these caregivers are employed […]

by David Hammond

How To Help: This October We Honor Mental Health Awareness — Support Your Loved Ones and Community

This year, from Oct. 2 to 8, we celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week—a national, week-long observance that discusses, examines, and advocates for mental health conditions. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which founded the tradition in 1990, the series also aims to “raise awareness of mental illness, fight discrimination, and provide support. “ […]

by Margaret Smith

Spread the Word and Save Lives: Donate to Support Organizations Fighting the Fentanyl Crisis and Your Donations Will Be Matched

Fentanyl has been called the single deadliest drug threat our nation has ever encountered. It is, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. The staggering numbers show that in 2021 alone, 107,375 Americans died of drug overdose and poisoning, with 67% of those deaths involving synthetic opioids […]

by Better Staff

National Fentanyl Awareness Day: Stories and Advice from Parents and Experts Who Have Faced the Terrifying Reality of America’s Fentanyl Crisis

Fentanyl has been called the single deadliest drug threat our nation has ever encountered. It is, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. The numbers are staggering. In 2021, 107,375 Americans died of drug overdose and poisoning, with 67% of those deaths involving synthetic […]

by Susan Berger

National Fentanyl Awareness Day: A Lament and Request For Help On Behalf Of Charlie, Linus and Too Many Other Lost Children

My nephew Charlie Griswold was born just a few weeks before our youngest child, Emma. Both were beloved youngest siblings in large, strongly connected families. They were two of seventeen beloved grandchildren, who gathered frequently and playfully. Charlie’s brilliant blue eyes and mischievous grin endeared him to all.   View this post on Instagram A post […]

by Susan B. Noyes