More Work to be Done
On December 18th a cohort of United Way staff joined Mayor Menino, and 350 volunteers from around the area in their annual effort to quantify the number of people experiencing homelessness on that given night. See Donna Stiglmeier's blog entry for an account of her experience.
This week, the results of the census were released. We received some positive news, as well as some clarity that there was much work left to be done to end homelessness for many of our neighbors.
First, there was a significant decrease from last year in the number of homeless individuals, or those often described as "chronically" homeless. At least some of this can be credited to an increase in housing-based solutions for this population. The concept of Housing First, where folks are placed into housing as soon as possible with home-based stabilization services, began with implementation for the chronically homeless population. I think we are starting to see the fruits of those efforts.
On the other hand, however, the census revealed that the number of families experiencing homelessness increased 17% over last year, and the number of children increased 21% over last year. This is obviously very troubling, especially considering all the new and innovative thinking that has been getting underway. Why have we seen this upward trend over last year? We may never uncover all the answers to that question. Is this a result of the foreclosure crisis? I would guess the economic situation the country is experiencing plays a big part. Family homelessness is more often a result of economic forces.
The other question that begs to be answered is: what do we do with this information? I think that we should take the lessons learned from the successes in the single adult population and attempt to replicate those for families. If economics is at least one of the primary factors contributing to this uptick in the population, we need to find economic solutions - housing-based solutions! We've already mentioned the statitistics in previous blog posts here. We all know it's a bad idea to have kids living for months in shelters. It's only logical (and cost-effective) to help families get into safe, affordable housing. We must focus on Housing First, and provide the necessary support services in the community so families can stay housed.
How do you think we should react to the results of the census?
I was reading the census
I was reading the census report last night at home and was also disappointed in the fact that there was a rise in homelessness for families. I agree that the decrease of homeless individuals is a tremendous success and that should be celebrated, but last night as I sat in my own apt that I couldn’t possibly afford on my own, I thought imagine if I had a family as well.
Housing FIRST. It makes sense. First housing THEN services to help people get back on “their feet”. If this can be done for individuals and is successful, it can most definitely be done for families. I have been fortunate enough to meet many great people while working in non-profit. But the one thing that inspires me the MOST is meeting someone who has personal story to tell.
I recently met a speaker at an event, who told me “around this time of year I was giving birth to my daughter in a shelter.” I couldn’t imagine how she did it. She went on to tell me her story about that if she just had a little money to help cover her last months rent she would not have been homeless and living in the shelter system with her husband and four children. She didn’t know how this would affect her children, where they would go to school. She was a smart woman, her husband was a hard worker, but lost his job as a result to the situation. She told me, “I knew I had to find a way out of this.” She spent most if, not all of her time trying to maneuver out of the shelter system AND trying to find ways to move up the long waiting lists for affordable housing. (Keep in mind she still has four children to feed, clothe, and take care of on top of searching for affordable housing which she’s never done before.) She knew it was going to be hard, she knew it would take a while, but she pushed on and tried not to get bogged down with the difficulties. With the assistance of a couple of housing agencies she was placed in housing. She confided in me that those were tough times for her, but now that she has a home she is able to take care of what is important, her family. I am willing to say that her story and the stories of many others is why ending homelessness is so important. I still keep in contact with that woman and consider her a friend.
I think it’s hard to say WHY the census numbers reported an increase in homeless families. But I think it’s easy to see that while ending homeless overnight is impossible, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.
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