One of Elaine Pierce’s favorite sayings is: "When someone knocks at your door, don’t build a higher wall – build a longer table."
These days, there are a few more people at Elaine's table.
With her kids gone and plenty of space in her Oak Park bungalow, she decided to open her home to asylum seekers from Venezuela.
Since August, five adults and two kids have been living with Elaine. Most of them were previously living at the 15th District police station in Chicago's Austin neighborhood.
"Their first response is they want to feel safe,” she said. “They feel safe here, and don’t want to go anywhere else.”
Elaine doesn’t get any assistance from the city or state of Illinois. Google Translate is how they communicate.
Jose Castro and Jose Hernandez were home the day we met Elaine. They told us in Spanish how thankful they are to be out of the police station and into a real home.
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Attached to Elaine’s kindness, there’s also some sadness.
She has terminal breast cancer .
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"It has metastasized," she said. "So it is pretty much in every bone in my body. So I have cancer from the top of my head to the tips of my toes."
Elaine said she has no regrets about opening her heart and her home to people looking for a better life.
"They are just as much a gift to me as I am to them," she said. "I have lived a rich and full life. To not pass that on somehow is wrong. I think people need to back away from the big picture and just look at what you can do. What one little step can you do? And for me, it was an easy decision."
