MeetIRV

My favorite question! Please visit us at www.MeetIRV.org and click on the 'Get Involved' link, where you can find a number of ways to join us. Many thanks for checking us out!

Hello! Far and away my inspiration to do this is my mother. She passed away when I was very young, 8 years old. But she always taught me that those of us who can should for those who cannot. She was very dedicated to charitable works, especially with children, battered women, and veterans. I love that this work allows me to serve those same folks in our communities. In fact, May 18th is the anniversary of her passing and we always host a HUGE service day in celebration of her works for others. I always tell others that while I only had her for a short time, I would not trade those 8 years with her for 100 with another. They are just too dear to me. Thanks for asking!

To be honest, somewhat dynamic at the moment as we have just turned to other methods of acquiring the funds to maximize our current potential. Right now our resources are capable of operating more than our funding allows. That being said, I am working aggressively to address that concern. It is difficult, however, to spend time on that administrative strife as opposed to doing the actual work for others.

Short answer: To acquire sufficient funding to operate to full capabilities; to increase our exposure to community groups, civic organizations, first responder groups and others who can benefit from our versatility; Lastly, to sponsor a program that allows others to spend time with us learning how we work with emergency responders, community groups, citizens, law enforcement and others so that they can replicate the same in their respective cities.

We genuinely see it all. Sadly, many of those we encounter are school-aged children with no parent or guardian at all. Chicago is home to over 1,600 of these kids. They either leave home because of violence and/or drug abuse, or simply have no home and have exhausted their welcome elsewhere. We certainly see more men than women, though I must say the women are usually in more dire need. I do not want that to be taken wrong...what I mean is that often the personal and hygienic needs as well of the general health of the women tends to be worse. Just as we serve young people, we see the other end as well, serving those well into their 80s. There is one woman, a wonderful soul really, who is wheelchair bound and lives under a bridge near the Chicago loop. She has immense sores as a result of her immobility, but has "lived" there for years and will not leave to seek medical attention for risk of her things being stolen and her makeshift home being taken over by another. Now for military service members...my friend, the best and most concise answer: FAR too many to be deemed socially acceptable. Far too many.

I hope that helps...I've never done an AMA before so I'm not sure how detailed I'm supposed to be. :)

I have not spoken with them but somebody turned me onto their site a short while back and what they're doing is absolutely awesome. I feel it's the right expansion in our services given we too respond to natural disasters, fires, and other events where it would be of huge service. The weight and water requirements of new HE machines makes it more plausible than ever before as well.