“Health is something that affects all of us – especially now as we see cuts to Medicaid and people are losing access to critical care.”

Meet Susana! She isn’t sure whether she found COFI or if COFI found her. What she does know is that nearly fifteen years after joining COFI, she’s never looked back.

Susana first heard about COFI at her children’s school and was drawn by its emphasis on education and advocating for her children. The COFI Way hooked her right away, especially the “Web of Support” and seeing who around her was invested in helping her reach her goals and who wasn’t. 

“It helped me really think about how I build connections and relationships,” she said. 

Over the years, she’s been involved in all of the COFI and POWER-PAC IL campaigns and has seen them touch her life and the lives of the families she knows. Now, as co-chair of the Mental Health Justice and Equity Campaign, she feels especially motivated to lead it during a historic time when the federal administration is making several cuts to Medicaid funding, and even those with insurance avoid seeking care when healthcare is expensive. 

“Not having health insurance and paying out-of-pocket expenses has affected me,” she said. “That’s why I’ll keep advocating for expanding healthcare for all, regardless of someone’s immigration status.”

The campaign has seen several wins since parents started it in 2005 as the Recess for All! Campaign. Through the Elementary Justice Campaign, parents were seeing children denied recess or other breaks for physical activity as a form of discipline. They prioritized bringing recess back to elementary schools after years of organizing and advocacy, and they won its return for all 266,000 Chicago public elementary students in 2012! Later, parents expanded the victory to the whole state of Illinois in 2021. 

At the heart of the campaign, parent leaders have always focused on ensuring children and families of color have good mental, physical, and social supports. The recent name change reflects parents’ growing interest in changing and improving the mental health system. 

And that’s been one of Susana’s proudest achievements – working toward expanding mental healthcare. Parents launched a “Community Healers” program, which is a network of trained parent leaders who provide peer-to-peer emotional support and referrals to families who can’t access traditional mental health services. For Susana and many of the COFI parents, it fills a gap that cannot wait. 

“It’s a service needed to help families and communities as a whole, and I hope to see policymakers invest in it.” 

As she looks ahead, she has a few dreams. One is to see the community healer grow outside of COFI and reach those who need it most. She also dreams of seeing COFI and POWER-PAC IL continue to expand and find parents who are passionate about working together.