The Inner Voice, Inc.

With a subscription to Dowd's e-newsletter, I am continually impressed with his ability to write with impact and shine a light on things that are often overlooked. Today, I received the following in my inbox, and I thought it was worth sharing. Thank you Dowd:

Gary did not become homeless all at once.

First, he got a divorce.

Paying for an apartment by himself was expensive, but Gary managed to squeak by each month.

Until his car broke down and he could not afford to fix it.

Unable to get to work reliably, he got fired.

Without a job, Gary got evicted.

Afraid to stay at a shelter, Gary tried to find places outside to sleep at night. It was summer, so he wouldn’t freeze, at least.

One night Gary got jumped by a couple of guys. In the melee, he got hit in the head with a baseball bat. Lying unconscious, his attackers rifled through his pockets and found nothing worth taking.

Gary woke up in a hospital bed with blurry vision, the worst headache of his life and a few stitches.

Gary also had something that made all of his prior problems look small: a traumatic brain injury.

That injury changed what Gary could do. A hit to the frontal lobe can make memory, judgment, impulse control and social filters much harder. Gary started saying things he never would have said before (“disinhibition”) because he didn’t know they were offensive. He also struggled remembering anything but the simplest instructions.

Those two things made steady work impossible.

Gary has not been able to hold down a job for more than a few days since his injury.

Gary will never get back on his feet again without intensive support… EVER.

Homelessness has Patterns

Homelessness has many patterns that shape it.

One is what I’ll call the “Domino Effect.”

The basic idea is simple: One bad thing does not guarantee the next bad thing, but it does increase the odds.

Most people who get a divorce will not end up homeless, but it increases the risk.

Studies have shown that it is one of the leading drivers of homelessness.

Most people who become homeless will not take a baseball bat to the head, but it makes it more likely.

When someone becomes homeless the risk of violence against them is increased by a factor of 9,000. (No, you’re not reading that wrong).

Not surprisingly, 53% of individuals who have been homeless for over a year have a traumatic brain injury. (No, you’re not reading that wrong either.)

The Domino Effect takes people who could have been helped cheaply and turns their lives into something much more harder, much more expensive, to repair.

A few hundred dollars would have fixed Gary’s car.

Now he will either be homeless or need a fully subsidized apartment for the rest of his life.

So, what do we do?

There a few lessons in here:

1) Small problems ignored early, cause big problems later.

One-by-one, the people living on your streets are becoming permanently unemployable if your community doesn’t have adequate shelter and services.

2) Once a person reaches a certain point, there is no coming back.

Someone with a bad enough brain injury is unemployable. Calling them lazy and threatening to take away their subsidized housing if they don’t get a job doesn’t change that.

3) Homelessness is not as hopeless as it seems.

We need to stop treating homelessness like a random collection of bad choices.

It has patterns… and patterns can be interrupted.

The “Science of Homelessness” is a new endeavor, but in a few decades we have already learned a lot, and we learn more every day.

Have a great week!

Peace,

Ryan

Several members of the Inner Voice team were proud to attend and support our community partner, Teamwork Englewood, at their fundraising event on May 30th.

The evening featured a powerful presentation of The Story of Violence, written by award-winning playwright and artist Toussaint Daniels in collaboration with incarcerated men at Dixon Correctional Center, followed by a discussion featuring individuals whose lives have been shaped by both incarceration and exoneration.
The stories shared throughout the evening were powerful reminders of resilience, redemption, and the importance of creating opportunities for people to move forward and rebuild their lives.
As an organization committed to helping individuals rebuild their lives through housing, employment, and supportive services, Inner Voice values opportunities to learn from and collaborate with partners who share a commitment to creating pathways to stability and success.
Thank you to Teamwork Englewood for an inspiring evening and for the important work you do in our community.

Several members of the Inner Voice team were proud to attend and support our community partner, Teamwork Englewood, at their fundraising event on May 30th.

The evening featured a powerful presentation of The Story of Violence, written by award-winning playwright and artist Toussaint Daniels in collaboration with incarcerated men at Dixon Correctional Center, followed by a discussion featuring individuals whose lives have been shaped by both incarceration and exoneration.

The stories shared throughout the evening were powerful reminders of resilience, redemption, and the importance of creating opportunities for people to move forward and rebuild their lives.

As an organization committed to helping individuals rebuild their lives through housing, employment, and supportive services, Inner Voice values opportunities to learn from and collaborate with partners who share a commitment to creating pathways to stability and success.

Thank you to Teamwork Englewood for an inspiring evening and for the important work you do in our community.

The residents of Inner Voice’s three transitional houses were able to enjoy some sunshine, time to talk and laugh, and enjoy a nice BBQ feast this weekend.

Additionally, the Barber College came to visit one of our houses this past weekend to offer haircuts to the residents. Nothing like enjoying the sunshine and feeling fresh and clean shaven.

Thank you to the staff, the Barber College, the chefs at each of the houses, and to all who made it possible. The residents really enjoyed the pampering and the great food!

Inner Voice was honored to march alongside veterans connected to our programs in last weekend's Memorial Day parade downtown. It was a beautiful day to strengthen connections with our veterans and to recognize the courage and sacrifice of all who have served our country. We proudly stand behind the belief that every veteran and every person deserves dignity, stability, and a place to call home.

This Memorial Day, I hope you find time to recharge and enjoy the company of friends and family. Let's all take a moment to pause to remember and honor the courage, service, and sacrifice of those who gave everything for our freedoms.

And to the veterans who work at Inner Voice, our veteran Board members, the veterans we are honored to serve, and to all who have served, thank you for your service.

Enjoy your weekend, everyone.

This week, Inner Voice clients were celebrated in a special way ahead of Mother’s Day during a wonderful “Hair Day” event and it was truly a success! 💐

We were honored to welcome two talented stylists who generously dedicated their time and skills to pamper the amazing mothers in our program. Each woman received personalized hair services, along with well-deserved care, encouragement, and a warm breakfast in celebration of all they do.

The room was filled with smiles, laughter, confidence, and appreciation as these moms enjoyed a relaxing and uplifting experience created just for them. Sometimes the smallest acts of care can make the biggest impact. 💛

A heartfelt thank you to King Tut Hair Salon for generously donating your time, talent, and resources to make this day so meaningful. Your kindness helped create a memorable and empowering experience for the women of Inner Voice.

We are so grateful for community partners who help us celebrate, uplift, and remind the incredible mothers we serve that they are seen, valued, and appreciated. 🌷

Hello everyone.

There are a couple of easy ways to support the work we all do here at Inner Voice every day. Consider both!

Today is the last day in our Winter Walk Chicago fundraiser with donations being accepted until midnight tonight!

Whether it's $10 or $50, these funds allow our team to continue to support those at risk of homelessness and allow so many to take steps to a path of stability . If you have the means, and you can donate, please click on the link below and show Team Inner Voice some love. We're asking everyone to consider making a tax deductible donation. Invest in the work we do every day. Every dollar counts! Link below:

https://fundraisers.winterwalk.org/teams/team-inner-voice-stepping-up-and-out-for-chicago

Another way to support us with a few swipes and clicks on an app is listed below:

Today is the last day to vote for Inner Voice in the Target Circle program. You don't have to go into the store to shop and you can just use your APP if you are a Target Circle member.

I've included some steps below on how to do this, and every vote counts. I took all of my points in my account and just used them to vote for Inner Voice. Takes a few swipes and clicks and it doesn't cost you a thing. Just a little bit of your time to vote for Inner Voice and Target turns those votes turn into dollars for us.
Let me know if you have any questions about Winter Walk donations or Target Circle.

Go to the Target app
Click on My Target
You should see a pop up that says "Support Nonprofits with your community votes and click it
From there, you will see a list of nonprofits so scroll until you see Inner Voice and choose us
Use what number of votes you're allowed where it says Enter number of votes (everyone may have a different amount of votes they can use).

Vote and then that's it!

Easy Peasy. Thank you!

Team Inner Voice-Stepping Up and Out for Chicago Fundraising Page for Winter Walk 2026 Chicago Inner Voice supports people experiencing homelessness as they work toward stability, self-reliance, and a place to call home. Founded in 1984, Inner Voice serves individuals and families facing housing insecurity through a holistic continuum of care; from emergency and transitional housing to suppor...

With a subscription to Dowd's e-newsletter, I am continually impressed with his ability to write with impact and shine a light things that are often overlooked. Today, I received the following in my inbox, and I thought it was worth sharing. Thank you Dowd of Empathy Studios

My grandfather’s father died when my grandfather was a young child.

He was raised in desperate poverty by his mother and aunt during the great depression.

My grandfather’s favorite joke (though it was true) was:

“During the Great Depression, I wore hand-me-down underwear from my older siblings. I only had sisters.”

From those humble beginnings, my grandfather served in two wars, put himself through college, became an electrical engineer, raised a family, and retired with a healthy 401(k) and homes in Illinois and Florida.

My grandfather's story is the kind of American story we love to tell — a man who overcomes adversity through hard work and perseverance to build the life he dreamed of.

Except…that’s not the whole story

That version of my grandfather’s success is technically true.

It also leaves out so much it borders on mythology.

My grandfather was born healthy — no disabilities, no conditions that would have overwhelmed the family's already-threadbare resources.

His mother was stable, without mental illness or addiction.

She had her sister to lean on when things got desperate.

Then there's the GI Bill, which paid for his college degree. Had my grandfather been African-American, or a woman, or gay, there's a good chance he would have been denied those benefits entirely. No degree. No engineering career. No Florida home.

Change any one of those facts and the story likely ends differently — and earlier.

In fact, I could fill pages with the factors outside his control that quietly paved my grandfather’s road to success. Remove any single one, and you get a different man living a different life.

What is my point?

It’s NOT to minimize my grandfather’s hard work.

He did work his butt off to overcome poverty and build the life he did.

It is fashionable right now to choose one of two narratives and reject the other as the enemy:

Personal responsibility – Our choices—like working hard and planning carefully—shape our future.
Structural factors – Some people are born with advantages that make failure unlikely while others face disadvantages that make success impossible.
People argue about which is true, as if it is only one can be.

Both are true. They always have been.

Yes, personal responsibility matters.

And so do structural forces — family stability, environmental conditions, racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia.

The circumstances you are born into are not a minor footnote.

My grandfather worked hard and he caught breaks he didn't earn and didn't ask for. Holding both of those things at once isn't weakness or political correctness.

It's just honesty.

Peace,

Ryan

We agree Ryan, and see it every day in the work we do. This is a link to just some of the success stories that have come out of the work we do with individuals that have fought their way back with hard work and hope, with the support of Inner Voice, from some dark places and are thriving.

Stories of Hope Archives - Inner Voice Chicago Inner Voice currently employs 61 full-time staff members. Inner Voice has a long history of employing individuals with lived experience. Learn more here.

Rest In Peace Reverend. We are going to continue to keep hope alive.