Kidz Express© is a 501(c)(3) mentoring organization serving children between the ages of five and eighteen who reside on the west side of Chicago. Our volunteers and staff develop positive relationships with children for the purpose of:

• building life skills
• enhancing self-esteem
• encouraging academic excellence
• promoting healthy recreation
• mentoring career choices and opportunities

Our program bridges the gap between diverse ethnic, economic and spiritual communities and expands the horizons of our youth. In our 2009-2010 programming year, we mentored approximately 90 kids per week with a total enrollment of 100 children.

Kidz Express is funded in part by Springboard, The Chicago Community Trust, the Lutheran Services Children Endowment of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Iowa Foundation for Medical Care. Kidz Express also is blessed with the continuing financial and resource contributions of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Oak Park, IL, and many individual donors.

Kidz Express meets in the afternoon from Monday through Thursday and Saturday morning from September through June. We offer a daily eight-week summer program from June through August. We operate from our Center at 342 S. Laramie, donated by Park National Bank.

Are you looking for a way to become more involved in your community? We would love to have you join the Kidz Express family. For more information on how to become a volunteer, email us at info@kidzexpress.org!