Chicago

Chicago has a cultural identity of heartiness and an easy-going nature that defines the American Midwest. The city is located on the traditional unceded homelands of the Council of the Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations and remains one of the largest urban American Indian communities in the United States. 

It’s a big city in terms of the land mass it covers, but it boasts 77 defined “community areas” (essentially neighborhoods) that make the city appear less dense. In fact, unless you are in downtown Chicago, it is really possible to believe that you’re not in the third-largest American city at all!

Jewish Service Corps Members turn their passion into action by serving in cities across the country at local organizations doing critical economic justice work at the community level. In a large city like Chicago, our Corps Members serve a wide range of justice issue areas from housing insecurity and healthcare to immigration rights and youth programming.

Placements can change year to year, but check out the organizations our Corps Members are currently serving at:

In each city, Avodah provides a fully furnished, rent-free, communal home where Corps Members work collectively to form communities where everyone can have their needs met, their authentic selves are seen, and their growth pushed in loving ways. Learn more about living communally in the Service Corps.

This year, the Chicago bayit features 4 single bedrooms, 5 double bedrooms, and 6 bathrooms.

Lake View

Chicago Corps Members live together in the vibrant community of Lake View. In 2023, a study rated Lakeview one of the top 10 neighborhoods in the U.S. and it’s no secret as to why. Located on the shore of Lake Michigan, this historic neighborhood features a thriving arts community, a diverse food scene, and the famous Wrigley Field. Lake View is also home to one of the largest LGBTQ+ communities in the Midwest and has hosted Chicago’s annual Pride Parade since 1971.

Chicago is down-to-earth, passionate, and neighborly. Adaptability is key! The city’s energy shifts as the weather shifts and the ability to go with the flow through the warm summers and the cold, long winters is important. Knowing how to nourish oneself, turn inwards, and slow down in the winter will be valuable tools to bring to Chicago. Corps Members who are curious and open to different neighborhoods, cultural offerings, self-guided adventures, and communities thrive!

Looking for green space? The city is home to over 580 parks and some include Lincoln Park, Millenium Park, Garfield Park, Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary.

Recommendations from our Chicago Program Director

Corps Members meet regularly with Program Directors who are happy to share their local knowledge and recommendations! If you have a Chicago-specific question, you can reach Chicago Program Director, Samiah at chicago@avodah.net.

Check out Women and Children First, an intersectional, trans-inclusive feminist bookstore in Andersonville

Jewish Life

Chicago offers a diverse range of options for folks looking to plug into religious or Jewish communal life. Some congregations and groups include:

Community Organizations

• Keshet works for the full equality of all LGBTQ Jews and our families in Jewish life.

• Base Hillel seeks to enrich the lives of Jewish students and young adults so that they may enrich the Jewish people and the world.

• OneTable provides financial and programmatic resources for Shabbat Dinners.

• Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) works to transform Chicago into a city free of poverty, racism, and antisemitism, by mobilizing the Jewish community to be a powerful voice for economic and racial justice.

• S’vara is a traditionally radical yeshiva.

• Moishe House Chicago host peer-led social gatherings for people in their 20s & 30s