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Emanuel: Human Services Team Will Have Tough Job

CHICAGO (WBBM) -- Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel has named his team to coordinate the city's human services, and acknowledges that they will have a very tough job.

As WBBM Newsradio 780 Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports, Deputy Mayoral Chief of Staff Evelyn Diaz has been named commissioner of the Department of Family and Support Services.

LISTEN: Newsradio 780 Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports

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Currently, Diaz is head of the Green Jobs Initiative in outgoing Mayor Richard M. Daley's administration.

John Pfeiffer, who heads the non-profit Inspiration Corporation, will be Diaz's first deputy.

Inspiration Corporation operates Inspiration Café, at 4554 N. Broadway in the Uptown neighborhood, and the Living Room Café, at 806 E. 64th St. in the Woodlawn neighborhood, which serve meals to the homeless and offer programs to lead them toward self-sufficiency.

The selection of Pfeiffer has also won kudos from gay rights groups. Equality Illinois lauded the selection of Pfeiffer, who is openly gay, and said he would be able to make sure gay and lesbian families are treated fairly and receive equal access to city services, Gay Chicago Magazine reported.

Emanuel acknowledges his team, and the not-for-profit agencies they work with, will have a tough job because less money is coming from Washington.

"Clearly, they're going to have to do and achieve what they can with less, which is why John's unique experience in management will be so important," Emanuel said, "and these are not just about merging six different departments – or six different offices, rather – but integrating them so you get more out of them."

The Department of Family and Support Services was created by Mayor Daley in 2009, as a consolidation of the departments of Human Services, Housing, Workforce Development, Children and Youth Services and Senior Services, and the Office of Domestic Violence.

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