A "Hail Mary" for the Villa Brothers

Israel Villa shares his story firsthand: 

My name Israel Villa, I’m a One Family Illinois “alum,” and an aspiring creative writer and film maker, which of course means I’ve been in the hospitality business for the last 8 years.

And, despite first impressions, I haven’t always been the “clean-cut”, well-spoken fella you all see here tonight. I was a troubled kid. Loud and facetious. Violent, more often than not.

See, we moved around passing through all the rough neighborhoods of the South Side of Chicago, growing up. It was always abrupt, sometimes moving in the middle of the night to beat the courts or whoever else was coming. It was apartment to apartment for a long while, and every time it was hard to adjust.

Then it was the streets, shelters. I remember how cold it was, seeing the rats freeze to death in the middle of the night, sleeping in a big-old mattress outside with all my brothers, huddling for warmth. It was a brutal life.

Once we were in DCFS they wanted to split us up, too, all 5 of us, being hard to place. The only consistency I’d ever known, they wanted to split us up. Then came along the perfect Hail Mary. One Family Illinois. They promised us we’d all stay together, live in the same house, grow up on a village with other kids, instead of being shipped off all over the state.

And it was true, we all stayed together, moving into the Roosevelt Square Village in December of 2014 with all my brothers. We moved in with the Moyet’s, who were experienced foster parents at that time. And it was good. We got to grow up together, to learn structure we’d never known prior. To receive opportunities otherwise inconceivable.

The agency helped facilitate regular visitation with my bio parents, and the house maintained a healthy relationship between us. Hell, they even gave me a job as a maintenance associate for a few summers. I got to be a functioning member of society, paying taxes, the whole enchilada.

I used to have nightmares, real bad ones. The other night, this is true, I dreamt my credit score went down some points. It really gave me a fright. Talk about one hell of a 180.

Thanks to One Family Illinois, the work of all the dedicated staff, the care of my wonderful selfless foster parents, Antonio and Carmen Moyet, I got to live a second life where otherwise I wouldn’t. My story is not unique. There are plenty of boys and girls, families, that can prosper abundantly from the good work being done here, and of course that can do so through the contributions made here tonight. 

One Family Illinois Mission
One Family Illinois advances the safety and well-being of children by keeping siblings together in foster care, empowering youth, nurturing strong families, and partnering in the development of communities.

Our Vision
One Family Illinois aspires to provide a bright future for every child in our care, with a home that thrives in a strong, connected community.

For more information, contact Kathy Wolf, director of communications, at kwolf@onefamilyillinois.org or (312) 388-0176.

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