Mercy Housing Lakefront
When Mercy Housing Lakefront residents open the doors to their homes, they are also opening doors to a realm of possibilities and opportunities. As the largest affordable housing nonprofit in the Great Lakes region, MHL is home to veterans, seniors, individuals, families, and adults exiting homelessness. Every person brings their unique narrative to the vibrant fabric of their communities. With onsite, service-enriched programming available, we aren’t only building apartment homes — we are providing residents with a foundation from which they can thrive.
A New Lease on Life
Michael proudly worked as a machinist for 30 years. Sadly, it became impossible for him to do the work he loved because of chronic pain that developed in his leg.
Without a job or any income, Michael became homeless. For nearly six months, he lived inside a shed, with no heat or running water.
Fortunately, he learned about MHL’s Spruce Manor in Indianapolis and moved into his new apartment home: “I got everything moved in and just sat there and looked around. I couldn’t believe it. One of the first things I did was turn the air conditioner on in the apartment, which was great. And a shower, a shower! Warm water, running water, and a stove!”
Michael is enjoying his new home and community and looks forward to spending more time with his seven grandchildren and great-grandchild.
“I’m loving it here. Absolutely loving it. And this organization, Mercy Housing, God bless the organization…when no one else would help, you guys did. I thank you and everybody involved.”
By The Numbers
6,037
residents
4,451
homes
40
properties
2024 Highlights
1
Accepted the prestigious 2024 Charles L. Edson Tax Credit Excellence Award in the HUD Preservation category for the Carlton Apartments.
2
Participated in the Proactive Engagement for Permanent Supportive Housing (PEP) pilot program in partnership with Chicago’s Coordinated Entry System (CES) and the Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) Government Performance Lab (GPL). Results showed improved system efficiency and reduced the average number of days between referral and move-in for residents by 22 days.
3
Installed Mercy Housing FindHelp Kiosks in pilot locations to provide residents with 24/7 access to community resources that can be searched independently in their preferred language.
MHL 2024 Board of Directors
Phil Ashton (Chair)
University of Illinois at Chicago
George Adams
Bank of America
Lindsey Artola
Sage Health Strategy
Chester Bell
U.S. Bank
Henry Crumpton
Mercy Housing Lakefront Resident
Phillip DeSalvo
KPMG LLP
Mary Fishman
Sisters of Mercy and Architect
Tifair Hamed
P33 Chicago
Desire’ Hunter
Mercy Housing Lakefront Resident and UNYQUE, LLC
Esther Macchione
Prestige Health
Teresa Maltby, RSM, D.MN
Sisters of Mercy
Advocate Aurora Health
Advocate Health
Pamela Sharar-Stoppel
Wintrust Financial Corporation
Jon D. Stolz
Christopher B. Burke Engineering, LLC
Steve Thomas
FutureWave Finances, LLC
Ritu Vig
SP+ Corporation
Thank you to our Partners
We want to extend our most heartfelt gratitude to the individuals and organizations who share our vision to create stable, vibrant, and healthy communities and that make our work possible through their generous contributions.
