According to Curry, growth has been explosive over the past three years. Close to 300 youth have access to opportunities that nurture and encourage personal development and academic enrichment. Parents and family members welcome Breakthrough as a partner to support the growth and well-being of their children. “We’ve had parents come to Christ, even as recently as Sunday evening,” Curry adds.

 

Over the last six to nine months, a total of nine people accepted Christ as their savior, says Curry. “Six of the nine were African American males between the ages of 15 and 20, guys who really had to correct their course.

 

“But it’s not something we push,” Curry explains. “We always tell people, ‘We’re here to answer any questions you might have. We can spend time with you individually studying the Bible, but everything you are going to do in your relationship with Christ has to be based on your desire, not on ours.’”

 

Approximately 110 volunteers commit to helping each week. “About 20 to 25 volunteers actually live in East Garfield Park,” Curry says. “They have either moved here as a result of being involved with the kids and wanted to be neighbors with the families in the community, or they are people that God already had here.

 

“It’s been really exciting to see what God is doing,” Curry adds.   “It is purely God and we get to experience it.”

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Other programs run by Breakthrough include Bridges of Hope, which is an outreach to women in prostitution; the Joshua Center, which provides emergency overnight shelter for women, as well as meals and case management; and the North Side day center, which provides support for homeless men.

Breakthrough Urban Ministries was founded in 1992 by Arloa Sutter and members of the First Evangelical Free Church as a response to homeless persons in the Edgewater and Uptown neighborhoods of Chicago who were seeking assistance. At first, Breakthrough focused on meeting a very basic need of homeless persons by serving coffee and daily lunches in a small storefront room. By the end of the year, Breakthrough received its non-profit status.

Learn more the mission and history of Breakthrough at www.breakthroughministries.com/