Mentorship 2.0 | A Panel Discussion

Last week’s mentorship session, Jasmine invited two photographers, Adri and Jamilla, to join our group and share the stories that shaped their careers. Both photographers started by introducing themselves and explaining how they started. Listening to them talk about their stories, the type of work they do, and personal experiences is a reminder that everyone’s creative path is different. They showed their websites and the work they have done; one photographer focused on family portraits, graduation portraits, corporate, and maternity photos. The other focused more on maternity, newborn, and family portraits.

The session ended with an open Q&A, and answered any questions the mentees had. Overall, this mentorship session went over pricing, confidence, networking, and experiences. Bringing in photographers who have walked this path for years was a great opportunity for the mentees to connect. We are grateful to Adri and Jamilla for sharing their time, their stories, and their knowledge.

Mentorship 2.0 | Spring 2026

Meet our mentees: Mya, Saffron, Melina, Haley, and Ethan! Each with their own style, story, and way of seeing the world through their own lens. Our mentorship is rooted in creativity, growth, community, and providing a space for the mentees to learn, feel supported, and collaborate with other creatives. We started the first session of mentorship with introductions and shared the types of photography they do and showed their work, which included portraits, events, product, family, and sports. The room filled with conversations about technique, inspiration, challenges, and the types of photos they want to create.

After, we spent the rest of the day taking group shots and individual headshots by our Executive Director for The Firehouse Dream, Jasmine Lopez, who is also a photographer! We are excited about the upcoming sessions and the new things the mentees will be learning.

Calm Room Makeover at Proviso East Pt.1

The Calm Room is a space where the youth can take a moment for themselves, so we wanted to transform it so the students of Proviso East can come and take this space to reflect or take a break.

During the three days we spent as a team at the school, we were able to transform the Calm Room with new and comfy furniture and new colors painted all throughout the room. Yekseny, who painted the mural, filled the entire wall with the rich, beautiful colors of browns, blues, and greens, and with the detailed designs that are painted over an entire wall. Seats were placed by it, to admire and hopefully bring inspiration to the students who see it. The room was also filled with comfy seating throughout the space, as well as a corner with sofas and games. The Calm Room consists of vibrant colors of green and yellow all over, these colors bring a sense of calmness but also uplifting feelings.

Check out the images to see the process from the beginning and how each day was filled with new and exciting things that filled up this space. Thank you to our partners, Loyola University Chicago, Niehoff School of Nursing’s School-Based Health Center, Yekseny Guerrero (mural artist), and Mylene Rapasado (interior designer) for making this dream come true!

PEHS Health Fair | 2025

We are so excited to have handed out Mental Health Kits at Proviso East’s health fair last week! Overall, we gave away 321 kits at this Health Fair. Additionally, it was great to see our community partners and meet new ones! This event is impactful for students and community organizations as well. Thank you to Loyola’s School-Based Health Center for inviting us!

Black and Brown Solidarity | Creative Dreaming, Second Session

We hosted our second creative dreaming session last night on black and brown solidarity. After dinner, we opened up with reminders of our values on what creates a safe space. The youth then answered some of our reflection questions on black and brown communities, some of the biases we may have, and what we can learn from them. Then we continued building on ideas and topics we came up with last session. For inspiration, Maya showed the youth some of the past creative projects TFD has done. Each youth took one topic we came up with last time and brainstormed some creative projects that related to the topic. After, they shared their ideas and commented on others they found interesting.

Thank you so much to everyone who came yesterday! We are still looking for more youth who are passionate about black and brown solidarity. Contact Maya (maya@thefirehousedream.orga) for more information. Our last dreaming session is March 6th, 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM.