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Months before the shelter opened, the Oak Park, Illinois, community started to worry about the groups of refugees that were camped outside of the local police station. As winter approached, the community was determined to create a better situation for the families. They had gathered support from community leaders and local community centers, and even secured crucial stop-gap funding to support their efforts. But they needed to establish an effective plan and act on it quickly.
Inspire, an organization that brings together consultants from leading strategy firms to support nonprofit organizations, assembled a team of eager EY-Parthenon teammates to help the newly formed 501(c)(3). “The clients reached out with a large problem, a true humanitarian crisis,” explains Austin Christhilf, Consultant, EY-Parthenon, Ernst & Young LLP (EY US). “When we got the call, we didn’t know exactly what the project would look like, but we knew we had a team that could offer a steady hand.”
From the outset, the EY team was determined to find the most efficient path to supporting the refugees. After conducting a survey and interviewing community members, they identified a crucial disconnect between the volunteers’ perceptions and the migrants’ needs. While volunteers were eager to provide clothing and food, migrants were more interested in legal services, job placement and wraparound support, leading the Oak Park Family Transitional Center team to shift its near-term priorities.
“None of this [change] would have happened without the EY team,” says Jack Crowe, Executive Director of the OPFTC and Senior Advisor of Corporate Coalition. “The business skills the EY people used in their other consulting projects were directly applicable to what we needed. And the EY team was clearly passionate about the mission.”
As the project shifted out of research and strategy and into execution, the EY team leaned into its experience in operations, finance and project management to keep the OPFTC organized and on track to open. The EY team did background research, sourced resources from neighboring shelters and helped build in strategic systems for the ongoing initiatives — from how to best source a shower truck to managing back-office functions and establishing a hiring process.
“The team had so many ideas for the many moving parts of the project,” says Merlin Steffensen, Associate, EY-Parthenon, EY US. “What kept us on the same page was the end goal and the shared mission of the team.”
The shelter was scoped to support around 100 people, but after the EY team’s findings, the OPFTC shifted its strategy to help people live independently as quickly as possible. Because of those efforts, many refugees resettled in apartments, while 40 individuals moved into the shelter.
“We are closing soon because we call ourselves a transitional shelter. We are busy helping people move on to their next step,” Jack says. “Now we are able to direct funding to put people in apartments, which is much cheaper, and the people are happier.”
The EY team’s support helped get the shelter up and running while laying a strong foundation for lasting impact. The working relationship between EY US and the OPFTC was nothing short of transformative. The EY team embraced the dynamic, high-touch, high-impact nature of the project, prioritizing action over perfection to move it forward. Their dedication to the mission inspired others and demonstrated the power of corporate social responsibility in driving positive change.
“The opportunity was unmatched compared to anything I’ve done in my career because it was an opportunity to truly, directly impact people,” Austin says.
By bridging the gap between corporate skills and community needs, EY US and Inspire helped turn a potential humanitarian crisis into a story of resilience and hope. And as winter turned to spring, the seeds of change planted by this remarkable relationship continued to grow.