'Support this community is going to need and deserves': Suburban mom sets up Facebook site to connect resources for the Highland Park community
CHICAGO (CBS) -- As lawmakers and people in Highland Park fight for change in D.C., a Facebook group is creating a hub of donations for the parade shooting survivors.
CBS 2's Tara Molina spoke to a woman who has raised thousands of dollars for the Highland Park Community Foundation.
She started a Facebook group, Stronger Highland Park, with almost 10,000 members. People here and across the county looking to help in any way they can.
What started as family food donations grew to a Facebook group already generating thousands in donations for Highland Park community.
Limore Zilberman is the woman behind the effort.
"It's definitely taken on a life of its own, and one I never could've anticipated or planned for," Zilberman said. "People kept saying where can we send money to? How can we offer more help? What else do you need? I just realized I needed one central repository for all the information, where people could request help, and where people could offer help, their time."
This is Stronger Highland Park and it's 9,400 members strong. People here looking to get help, give help, and share in any way they can.
There are dozens of posts with offers to help with mini therapy horses, meals, toy donations, drop-offs, even Cubs tickets for people looking for a mental and physical break.
Zilberman said this page is one of the ways she's working to help this community, partnering with others she connected with on the page to make the yard signs a reality.
"There was someone that reached out to me, Eliane Rozenblat, who I don't know, and she said, 'I'm a graphic designer. I would love to just create a logo. Do you need help?' And I said, 'Great, let's do it,'" she said.
It took off from there. A mom of three with a full time job, she said this hasn't been a small undertaking, but it's been amazing to see the community come together - and a larger community join in that, too.
"Within 24 hours, we have sold out of our first 1,000, and it's probably about 5 or 6 days later, we've sold 4,100 signs and raised over $100,000 for the community," she said. The money they've raised goes to the Highland Park Community Foundation.
They have people donating money and offering help in this Facebook group from all over the country and the world.
"We've had folks from California. We've had folks from Canada. We've had folks from Georgia," Zilberman said.
Hundreds have signed up to buy one of the signs she created with Rozenblat, raising thousands of dollars for the Highland Park Community Foundation.
"I've committed myself to just ensuring that everyone gets help, and this isn't something that is ... it will have an end date. The yard signs are going to get distributed over the next couple of days, but I think the support this community is going to need and deserves will be ongoing," said Zilberman.
Rozenblat said she's an art director and she created the logo for the yard sign, a corresponding campaign, and was able to source the printers to create it. It was her way of offering help and healing for her community and her family, including her young daughter- at the 4th of July parade.
She's been working with Zilberman on the Highland Park Strong signs since.
A vigil is planned for 7:00 PM outside Highland Park City Hall.
"I think we've shared in our shock and our sorrow and then quickly went into how we could help one another- the need is there and the community wants to help," Zilberman said. "There's just a lot of need for people to come to the community and help support highland park in all different ways and it's a great repository for information. If someone wants to give time, services or their financial contributions there's a place for everyone to help in the way that they can."