94.9 WDKB and T-Mobile presented this week’s #HometownHero award to:

Jan Gerhardt

Jan is a Cortland native that has been helping people in need around Northern Illinois through the group Humans for Hope.

Jan’s daughter founded Humans for Hope 4 years ago. They are dedicated to assisting the homeless and focus on the power of love, community connection, self-healing, and education to help break the stigma of homelessness.

Through Humans for Hope, Jan devoted the past few years to collecting and distributing clothes, personal items, food and other essentials for those who have come upon hard times. 2020 was especially difficult, but she continued to step up to answer the calls for help. Jan is also consistently spreading positivity, reminding those that she helps that “You Matter. Don’t Give Up!”

We are proud to be honoring Jan and the incredible group of people at Humans for Hope for their continued passion and selflessness in helping our neighbors throughout Northern Illinois!