Inaugural fundraiser supporting homeless community

MILAN, Ill. (KWQC) - Homelessness in our community is a consistent issue, but Rock Island County has developed a program targeted at helping those in need.

The Rock Island Housing Finance Corporation and Old Oaks Winery hosted the first ever ‘Fire and Ice Casino Night’ fundraiser Saturday night.

“This fund will help anything from rental assistance to utility assistance to groceries anything a family is in need of honestly,” said the CEO of the Rock Island County Finance Corporation Amy Clark. “As of this year we’ve already helped about 25 families, and last year we helped over 1,000.”

This assistance doesn’t come without sponsors and donations from the community, and a few of their biggest donors were in attendance tonight. Including:

“We’ve actually done some construction work for this organization, so if you’ve ever been to one of their facilities you might notice this is a nice facility well we’ve contributed to that from a business perspective,” said Russell’s Chief Strategy Officer Melissa Pepper. “From a donation perspective with rent assistance I think that’s hard, that’s human beings and it’s hard to quantify how it feels to help people pay their bills.”

The event also featured casino games like poker, blackjack and roulette, along with a silent auction.

Copyright 2023 KWQC. All rights reserved.