What happens when you create a day just for residents to connect, play, and enjoy their community together?
At Axley Place, there was laughter, creativity, and friendship.
The Axley Place HomeComing, sponsored by the HODC Associate Board, brought residents, their families, friends, and HODC staff together for an afternoon of food, fun, and fellowship. Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar of Northbrook generously provided the food, with support from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago (FHLB Chicago).
On a beautiful summer day, kids played bean bag toss and a hatchet-throwing game, ran through the sprinkler, chased bubbles, and filled the pavement with chalk drawings. Some HODC staff brought their children, creating opportunities for residents and staff to simply enjoy time together as a community.
The day was also about creating something together. Residents, children, and staff participated in a community art project, with everyone contributing to the finished work. Residents and staff also worked side by side in the community garden, planting mums in a raised garden bed.
These moments may seem simple, but they are meaningful.
Resident enrichment events like this create opportunities for people to connect with their neighbors, spend time with family and friends, try something new, and simply enjoy being together. These experiences help turn housing into a place where people feel connected and at home.
We are grateful to the HODC Associate Board, Lazy Dog of Northbrook, FHLB Chicago, and everyone who helped make this day possible.
Most of all, we are grateful to the Axley Place residents who made the celebration a day filled with connection, community, and joy.
Because home is more than a place to live. It is a place to belong.