Chicago Survivors

What Chicago Survivors does

Chicago Survivors is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in May 2010 by Joy McCormack following the violent loss of her son, incorporated as a tax-exempt corporation in 2012. It is the sole comprehensive provider in Chicago of crime victim services specifically for family members of homicide victims, delivering a five-program integrated service model: Immediate Crisis Response (2-4 hour dispatch to crime scenes, hospitals, and the Medical Examiner's Office), Family Support and Case Management (up to six months of in-home services), a Youth Program providing free licensed clinical counseling for children ages 7-17, a Community of Survivors (ongoing peer support, workshops, family dinners, memorial events, and an annual Wellness Fair), and Criminal Justice Advocacy (court accompaniment, victim rights protection, and structured Unsolved Case Meetings for cases unsolved nine months or longer). All services are delivered free of charge, are trauma-informed and survivor-shaped, and are offered in Spanish and English with real-time translation capacity across the Chicago metropolitan area within a 25-mile radius.

The organization operates from a single headquarters at 1010 W 35th St., Suite 510, Chicago, IL, with a 20+ person staff organized into a Leadership Team, Family Support Team, Crisis Response Team, and Youth Program Team. Field service delivery is the primary channel — Family Support Specialists and Crisis Responders meet survivors in their homes — supplemented by a 24/7 crisis helpline (877-863-6338), office appointments, court-based advocacy at Cook County facilities, and community events at partner venues including Augustana Lutheran Church of Hyde Park. Distribution into the survivor population is referral-driven through longstanding training partnerships with the Chicago Police Department, Cook County Medical Examiner's Office, area hospital systems, Cook County State's Attorney's Office, and the Illinois Office of the Attorney General, which together generate proactive case referrals within hours of a homicide.

The revenue model is non-commercial and grant/donation-funded. Since 2014, the organization has received federal, state, and city government funding covering core program operations, with supplementary revenue from individual donations (tiered from $10 "Faithful Supporter" to $5,001-$10,000 "Visionary for Change"), corporate and foundation contributions, fundraising events (including the annual A Walk Toward Healing and a Chicago Fire FC ticket partnership), and ancillary professional services (assisting families with Illinois Crime Victims Compensation applications). The organization is governed by a board of directors chaired by Antoinette Mitchell and led operationally by Executive Director JaShawn Hill, with no parent company, no institutional investor ownership, and no commercial product line.

Name

Chicago Survivors

Legal name

Chicago Survivors

Website

https://chicagosurvivors.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Chicago Survivors is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit and the sole comprehensive provider of free, trauma-informed crime victim services to family members of homicide victims across the Chicago metropolitan area, delivering in-home crisis response, case management, youth counseling, and criminal justice advocacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Victim Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Victim Services & Witness Assistance (Justice System) (BPAIAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wraparound Student Support & Case Management Services (At-Risk K–12) (EDAJAEAJ), Youth Justice, At-Risk Youth & Violence Prevention Nonprofits (BPAGADAM), Trauma-Informed Care & Crisis Response (School-Based) (EDAKAMAF)

Keywords

• Crime victim services
• Homicide survivor support
• Crisis response services
• Family grief counseling
• Youth trauma counseling

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Grants and Funding: Federal, State, and City funding since 2014 enabling staff hiring, service system building, and training partnerships with law enforcement and hospital systems
2. Individual and Corporate Donations: Tax-deductible donations through online portal and mail; includes tiered giving levels from $10 (Faithful Supporter) to $5,001-$10,000 (Visionary for Change)
3. Partnership Contributions: Corporate and foundation contributions supporting organizational growth and family services
4. Crime Victims Compensation Assistance: Assists families with applications for Illinois Crime Victims Compensation to cover funeral costs, crime scene cleanup, and other expenses

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Chicago Survivors provides free, multi-cultural crime victim services to family members of Chicago homicide victims, including 24/7 crisis response dispatched within 2-4 hours, in-home family support and case management for up to six months, licensed youth clinical counseling, criminal justice advocacy with court accompaniment, and an ongoing Community of Survivors peer-support program. All services are trauma-informed, bilingual (Spanish/English), and delivered primarily in survivors' homes across Chicago and surrounding areas within 25 miles.

Product overview

Chicago Survivors offers a comprehensive suite of crime victim services organized as five integrated programs serving families of Chicago homicide victims. The core offering begins with Immediate Crisis Response (dispatch within 2-4 hours), followed by six months of Family Support and Case Management, a Youth Program providing clinical counseling for children ages 7-17, an ongoing Community of Survivors with peer support groups and events, and Criminal Justice Advocacy with court accompaniment and Unsolved Case Meetings. All services are free, trauma-informed, survivor-shaped, and delivered primarily in survivors' homes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Immediate Crisis Response
• Family Support and Case Management
• Youth Program (Triage, Counseling, and Referral)
• Community of Survivors
• Criminal Justice Advocacy

Quantifiable outcome

• Crisis response within 2-4 hours of homicide
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Augustana Lutheran Church of Hyde ParkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Primary venue partner for community events including summer camp, community symposium, Tree of Life classes, and various support gatherings. Located at 5500 S. Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637.
• DePaul UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Collaborative partner for Tree of Life weekly classes bringing together survivors and university students, and ongoing educational programming. Board member Mark Laboe affiliated with DePaul University.
• Chicago Fire FCminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026Partnership for fundraising event at Soldier Field on July 16, 2026; 20% of ticket purchases support Chicago Survivors.
• City College of ChicagominorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnership for educational opportunity sessions for survivors covering GED, ESL, certifications, degrees, financial aid, and resources to overcome barriers.
• Elmhurst UniversityminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Host venue for 3rd Annual A Walk Toward Healing fundraiser on September 14, 2026.
• Everytown for Gun SenseminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Board member Maria Pike serves as Survivor Fellow at Everytown for Gun Sense, connecting Chicago Survivors to broader gun violence prevention efforts.
• Cook County Medical Examiner's OfficecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Training partnership to respond to victim families with greater compassion and effectiveness. Crisis Responders accompany families to Medical Examiner's Office.
• Chicago Police Department (CPD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Training partnership for law enforcement in needs and expectations of families. Crisis Responders liaison with CPD detectives. Facilitates Unsolved Case Meetings with command-level officers.
• Area Hospital SystemscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Training partnership for hospital staff to respond to victim families with greater compassion and effectiveness. Crisis Responders may be dispatched to hospitals.
• Cook County State's Attorney's OfficecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Criminal Justice Advocate works in collaboration with State's Attorney's victim services program to support families throughout court process.
• Illinois Office of the Attorney GeneralcoreOthers · 1 January 2014Administers Illinois Crime Victims Compensation program that Chicago Survivors helps families access for financial assistance with funeral costs, crime scene cleanup, and other expenses.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Parents Of Murdered Children: National nonprofit that provides support and advocacy for families of murder victims through local chapters. Most directly comparable peer to Chicago Survivors given identical mission focus on families of homicide victims and free, survivor-led service delivery.

Emerging players

• VictimConnect Resource Center: National hotline and resource referral service for crime victims operated by the National Center for Victims of Crime. Comparable as an emerging peer providing immediate victim-services navigation, particularly the 24/7 helpline element of Chicago Survivors' model.
• Operation Snow (formerly Ryan's Angel): Chicago-area nonprofit providing bereavement support and crisis response for families of violently killed children. Comparable emerging peer operating in the same Chicago geography and serving a narrow subset (child homicide survivors) of the population Chicago Survivors serves.

Broad incumbents

• The Compassionate Friends: National peer-support organization for families grieving the death of a child. Highly comparable on its bereavement peer-support and family-meeting model, though differs in that grief is from any cause rather than specifically homicide.
• National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA): The largest national nonprofit dedicated to victim services, advocacy, and training across all crime types. Comparable as a broader-incumbent victim-services peer, though NOVA's scope spans all crime types rather than concentrating on homicide survivors.
• Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD): Long-established national nonprofit supporting victims of drunk driving and pushing for policy reform. Comparable as a peer in survivor-led victim advocacy and free support services for families of violently killed loved ones.
• Joyful Heart Foundation: National victim-services nonprofit providing healing, advocacy, and prevention services, primarily focused on sexual assault and domestic violence. Comparable as a peer in trauma-informed victim support, but with a different crime-type specialization.

Regional players

• Cure Violence (Cure Violence Global): Chicago-originated violence prevention organization operating a public-health model for violence interruption. Comparable as a regional peer addressing the same Chicago gun-violence ecosystem, though focused on prevention/interruption rather than post-homicide survivor services.
• BUILD Chicago: Chicago-based violence prevention nonprofit serving youth and communities affected by gun violence. Comparable as a regional peer working in the same Chicago violence ecosystem, with similar reliance on city and foundation funding and Chicago homicide trends.
• Padres Angeles: Los Angeles-based nonprofit supporting parents and families affected by youth gang violence. Comparable as a regional peer serving Latino families of homicide victims with bilingual capacity and faith-community engagement.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/chisurvivors
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCBE2s4wAiNs_Sy7gw41MKIQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/ChicagoSurvivors
• Instagraminstagram.com/chicagosurvivors/?hl=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chicago-survivors

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chicago Survivors