The Hadiya Pendleton Foundation has received a $1 lease for two unoccupied offices at the Martin Luther King Community Center via the Chicago City Council's Housing Committee.
The lease goes through 2016 and the foundation plans to use the space to offer after school tutoring as well as computer, mentoring and recreational programs for Chicago youths.
Fifteen year-old Pendleton was killed on January 29, 2013 by gang gun violence while sitting in a park just blocks away from President Barack Obama's Chicago home. The sophomore at King College Prep had performed as a majorette at Obama's second inauguration festivities days before she was killed.
Pendleton's father, Nathaniel, has even bigger plans for the foundation. He is looking to find a permanent home for the center with at least 2,500 square feet of space by the end of February. As of now, Pendleton has raised $15,000 of the $150,000 needed to open a fully-operational facility with all of the computers and other bells and whistles he hopes to offer the youths.
“Wallowing in your grief does nothing to help any situation. It’s best to just try to keep moving and keep your head on positive things,” Nathaniel told the Chicago Sun-Times. “We’re looking for a place where they can come and socialize and just hang out with each other.”
Learn more about the Hadiya Pendleton Foundation here.