Public Action To Deliver Shelter
The PADS® Overnight Emergency Shelter is the second largest shelter in the State of Illinois. Each night, an average of 175 men, women and children line up outside the doors of Hesed House seeking a place to sleep, shower, do laundry, eat a meal, find medical and legal assistance and other life–sustaining services.
The PADS® program at Hesed House serves as a model for other similar agencies in the Western Suburbs and across the nation. The PADS® Overnight Emergency Shelter operates from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., every night of the year. Over 70 faith–based communities with teams of volunteers provide food and serve meals, and oversee the shelter dining room, store, laundry facilities, lockers and four sleeping areas. Volunteers also make sack lunches and breakfasts to serve guests as they depart for work or other destinations in the morning.
The men’s sleeping area accommodates 88 sleeping mats. After 9:30 pm, additional mats are placed in our double–duty dining room. Several other smaller sleeping areas provide mats and volunteer oversight for single women.
While in the PADS® shelter, guests may sign up for Case Management services, assistance in finding housing, identification, employment training, medical and legal assistance as well as obtaining veterans’ benefits.
PADS® Overnight Emergency Shelter does not turn anyone away (other than people listed as sex offenders involved with children) for a night. Longer stays are generally limited to those with ties to our service area.
Our basic rules are simple: while a guest is in PADS, he/she may not possess drugs, alcohol or weapons. Violence, threats and profanity are not tolerated.
