Residents looking to help domestic violence survivors through the holidays have several options close to home, including donating gifts, volunteering and shopping at a WINGS Program resale store in Niles.

WINGS, the largest domestic violence service provider in Illinois, served 1,434 survivors last year, including 571 children, according to the organization's holiday campaign page. The nonprofit is facing financial strain. It ended its previous fiscal year roughly $800,000 behind budget, the Chicago Wolves reported in an Oct. 21 feature on a $50,000 donation the hockey team made to WINGS.

"We're trying to hire more counselors so the donation will help make up that difference so that we don't have to let any clinicians go and create a bigger wait list," WINGS President and CEO Rebecca Darr said, according to the Wolves.

Here is how area residents can help through December.

Donate gifts by Dec. 4

WINGS is collecting new, unwrapped gifts for child and adult survivors. Donated items let survivors select presents for their families in a free, store-style experience the organization sets up for them. The gift deadline is Dec. 4.

Shop the Black Friday weekend sale

All three WINGS Resale locations will offer 50% off Nov. 27, 28 and 29. Proceeds from the resale shops help fund the organization's programs for survivors, according to the WINGS resale page.

Sip N Shop in Niles on Dec. 10

WINGS will hold a Sip N Shop event from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 10, at its Niles resale store, 8349 W. Golf Road. Residents can check the organization’s resale page for further details.

Volunteer

Volunteers can help at WINGS Resale stores by sorting, pricing and organizing donations or working the register. A separate donation sorting center on Carnegie Street in Rolling Meadows takes up to 25 volunteers at a time. At the sorting center, volunteers 14 and older may work independently. Those ages 10 to 13 must be accompanied by a guardian.

Give on Giving Tuesday

WINGS is encouraging donations on Giving Tuesday, Dec. 1.

Growing demand for services

WINGS operates resale shops that help fund its services, and its Niles location places one of those shops minutes from Park Ridge. The organization also stations staff at five hospitals in northwest suburban Cook County, according to the Wolves' reporting, providing on-site help when patients disclose abuse.

Demand for domestic violence services continues to climb. WINGS cited a report from The Network, which oversees the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline, stating the hotline received 69,748 contacts in 2025. That figure represents a 181% increase over pre-pandemic 2019 levels, according to WINGS.

Last year, WINGS provided 126,550 nights of shelter and safe housing.