Chicago's newest arrivals struggle for work, food but find hope through education

CHICAGO (WLS) -- As Chicago navigates the challenges of providing shelter to thousands of migrants, those who have been in the city the longest are learning to navigate life in limbo.

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Angelica, asked that her real name not be used. Angelica, her husband three young daughters have been living in a one-room shelter in Uptown for almost a year.

Despite surviving the treacherous eight-country journey from Venezuela to the United States, the family's new struggle is finding work and food to put on the table.

But Angelica said her girls' education is what keeps her going.

"This is our daily routine," said Angelica as she lead her daughters on their daily morning walk to McCutcheon Elementary.

Routine is something many people take for granted but for Angelica and her family of five, it represents one step toward long-sought after stability.

"I want them to study, for them to have a good future," she says. "This is the country of opportunity and more so for them (my girls) and their education."

America's promise fueled the courage it took Angelica, her husband and three daughters, ages 12, 6 and 4, to leave their home in Venezuela and trek north for months on end.

That included a tortuous 10 days of trudging through the notoriously dangerous Darien gap, which connects Colombia to panama.

"My girls got sick. They were vomiting a lot, we all got very sick because we didn't have water we had to drink from the river's waterfalls." she recalled. "We saw a 10-year-old girl get swept away by the river and die."

The group persisted, even in the face of death toward hope for a better life.

Almost one year after their arrival in Chicago and much of what they sought still eludes them: a stable home, gainful employment.

The one exception? The pursuit of an education.

"That was the best thing that happened to me," said Angelica. "That they could study. "They were so excited and the people at the school have helped us so much."

And when asked what she hopes for Angelica said "that they become good girls, that they succeed, that they don't have to live what I have lived.

The girls' school has provided a critical source of nutrition for them as with all c-p-s schools, they receive breakfast and lunch at school for free. These are meals they can count on and that they enjoy which isn't always the case at their shelter.

The Chicago Public Schools said it enrolled 5,700 English learners last year, another 1,200 over the summer and are in the process of enrolling an estimated 1,000 additional students now.