Regular Hours of Operation - Tuesdays and Thursdays & By APP

There is never a dull moment at the Heart to Heart Durable Medical Equipment Lending Closet. Located in St. Gertrude's Ministry Center, we field calls from all over Chicagoland.

Family caregivers, home health aides, physical and occupational therapists, Blue Cross/Blue Shield caseworkers, social workers from CHA senior housing, Stroger Hospital, Rush University Medical Center, Mercy Housing, Thresholds, and The Night Ministry are among the many people reaching out to us.

Recently, we assisted a man recovering from gunshot wounds. Thanks to the generous assistance of parishioner Beth Nelson, a brand-new walker was delivered to Shirley Ryan Ability Lab for this patient. 

As many calls as we get asking for help, we get an equal amount offering donations. Wheelchairs, transport chairs, rollators, standard walkers, knee scooters, canes, crutches, shower chairs, tub transfer benches, commodes, toilet seat risers, toilet safety rails, ice machines, sleep apnea machines, assorted medical supplies and incontinence supplies all find a way to us. Because of this ongoing generosity -- by parishioners, community members and local organizations -- we are able to assist the many people seeking our services. We are grateful to parishioner Linda Jeffers who handles all our donation acknowledgement letters. Thank you one and all!

~ Laurie Hasbrook, Heart to Heart Medical Equipment Lending Closet Manager 

Are you in need of durable medical equipment? Heart to Heart offers a medical lending closet. Items available include walkers, with and without wheels, crutches, wheelchairs, and portable commodes.  Our Heart to Heart staff works on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:00 am-2:30 pm and by appointment. 

Arrangements for pick-up must be made in advance - there is no delivery service. Please call the Heart to Heart office to schedule an appointment for pick-up or return of needed items. 

Donations of medical equipment in good condition are also accepted. The Lending Closetaccepts UNOPENED PACKAGES of medical supplies such as gloves, gauze bandages, alcohol wipes, bed pads, adult briefs, Q-tips, and disposable wash clothes. Please call Laurie Hasbrook at the above number to schedule a drop-off.

April Showers bring… lifted spirits!   

Miss B’s UIC-Hospital physical therapist referred her to the Heart to Heart Lending Closet for a rollator. Delighted to get a sturdy walker with a seat, Miss B patiently waited in the Ministry Center parlor for her PACE bus ride home to the west side.  As we watched the rain, she mentioned her years working at Little Sisters of the Poor Home for the Elderly, including when Cardinal Joseph Bernardin’s mother Maria lived there. “I got the call when the Cardinal’s mother arrived – the staff wanted me to be there to welcome and care for her!” Miss B reminisced.  

Her welcoming demeanor was confirmed not 10 minutes later, when Jacqueline rang the bell, desperate to borrow a Lending Closet wheelchair. Jacqueline’s teen son, a varsity CPS high school basketball player in the Chatham neighborhood, had been injured in a game. He needed a wheelchair to attend school for the next six weeks and CPS suggested the Lending Closet. Miss B assured the worried mom that her son would do just fine and promised prayers of healing. 

As the rains softened and Miss B and Jacqueline each headed home, I imagined Maria Bernardin and her son Joseph smiling down on such chance meetings that lift all our spirits!  

~ Laurie Hasbrook, Lending Closet Manager