Evanstonians Gather in the Hundreds to Fundraise for Shelters

The “feels like” temperature was -20, but hundreds of Evanston community members gathered in the pews of the First United Methodist church, 516 Church St. for the reception of the seventh annual Walk for Warmth at 11 a.m. on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The Evanston chapter of Interfaith Action (IAE) is a faith based social services organization which primarily helps to fight homelessness. President Donna Richardson said IAE advocates for those experiencing food insecurity and unhoused individuals through interfaith dialogue. 

Rev. Eileen Wiviott, senior minister at the Unitarian Church of Evanston, has been a part of IAE since 2010 and is currently a board member. Before the walk kicked off, she gave a 30-minute sermon in which she emphasized the value of “beloved community.”

“I’ve seen the power of people working together across differences,” Wiviott said. 

Wiviott has engaged in interfaith dialogue work, and she volunteers at the hospitality center and soup kitchens. She’s participated in the Walk for Warmth since its inception.

“As a Unitarian Universalist, I emphasize faith in one another, faith in the power of love that we all have access to,” Wiviott said.

It was the third year in a row the walk had to be shortened, to a one-block alternative around First United Methodist due to extreme temperatures, according to Richardson. When the last groups of community members were leaving the church to begin the walk, the first ones out the door were returning.

“The traditional walk was planned to go and visit all eight of the faith communities that host the overnight shelter,” Richardson said. “These are faith communities that give up their space so we can have 30 men and women housed in their Church space from eight at night until 6:30 in the morning.”

Despite the shortened journey, the mission behind it stands strong. The Walk for Warmth was created by previous president Anne Heinz in 2020, now retired. The idea first came to her in 2019 when her daughter-in-law, a New Yorker, organized a group to participate in the New York City Marathon to raise money for a cancer society. 

The process took about six months of organizing, including securing permits from the city, of which Heinz said they were cooperative and helpful. The first Walk for Warmth occurred on MLK day of 2020, about two months before the Center for Disease Control recommended against mass gatherings of more than 50 people due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In 2015, the overnight shelters remained open only if weather conditions were above 20 degrees. Now, the shelters accept guests Monday through Friday from 7-11 p.m. during the beginning of October to mid-May, according to Richardson.

“The Walk for Warmth is an important opportunity for the community to come together and rededicate itself to ending homelessness,” Mayor Daniel Biss wrote in a statement to The Phoenix. “We’ve done some good things in recent years, but there’s far more left to accomplish and I’m deeply appreciative of Evanstonians for their commitment to this cause.” 

In 2020, the walk raised $27,000 for the First United shelter in Evanston. It costs $1,000 per night to run. This year, $24,000 was raised.

2021 was the only year IAE could not put on the Walk for Warmth as it had originally been structured. Instead, they organized the “Walk for Warmth on Wheels” and drove the walking route instead. They provided signs for the participants and encouraged them to decorate their vehicles.

“We were adapting,” Heinz said and praised the work of the many volunteers who helped the drive roll along.

It’s a dense network of churches in Evanston which provides aid to the city’s unhoused population. Richardson and Heinz began by volunteering at St. Marks Episcopal Church through IAE in 2017. 

St. Mark’s serves as a weekend warming center for people experiencing homelessness who need food, rest, technology or to talk to a counselor. This is their oldest service, according to Richardson.

“People that are housed overnight can leave and walk over to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, which has hosted that hospitality center for more than 35 years,” Richardson said.

An estimated 7,452 individuals are experiencing homelessness in Chicago, with 6,136 in sheltered locations and 1,316 in unsheltered locations, according to the city’s 2025 Annual Report on Homelessness.

“Many people don’t know we have homeless people in Evanston,” Heinz said. “They see them on the streets during the day, but don’t tend to think about where they may spend the night.”

Heinz praised the efforts of the city to provide shelter during the cold, like warming centers and overnight places such as the Skokie Courthouse, which is open 24/7.

“It gives visibility to not only the contributions faith communities are making — but also by walking around in the wintertime, it serves to dramatize, helps us witness the lives of the people we’re trying to help,” Heinz said.

Chairman and volunteer of the fundraising committee Joan Sherman said there’s only 30 beds in IAE shelters due to health department limits. Sixty people are on the waiting list who cannot be accommodated.

“If somebody comes to the door and is desperate, they’ll give them a pass for the CTA to ride the CTA at night. At least it’s warm,” Sherman said.

Interfaith Action publishes details for where unhoused individuals can stay during the day or night on their website and local bulletin boards, according to Sherman.