homelessness

A New Perspective on Homelessness

Guest Blogger — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 09:41:18 -0400

The following is a post from SpeakUnited's very first guest blogger. Katie is a 7th grader at Wellesley Middle School. She was introduced to Homelessness issues by her mother who helped to implement a program in London for homeless teens called Business Action on Homelessness. Katie also recently researched homelessness for a school assignment and interviewed United Way housing expert Liz Curtis. Click the headline to see her post. read more »

Being reminded to appreciate our partners

Elizabeth Curtis — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:57:02 -0400

The other day I saw a really nice article in the Globe by Adrian Walker, that profiles Richard Ring, a man who has worked to end homelessness in Massachusetts for 40 years. Unfortunately, the article tells us that Rich is currently facing a health crisis as he awaits a heart transplant, and it reminded me to take a moment to think about the great work that Rich and others have taken on for the good of our community. read more »

Boston Homeless Census 2008

Meghan Keaney Anderson — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 10:17:50 -0500

A few photos from the Boston Homeless Census. Where you there this year? What was your experience like? Leave a comment below and let us know.

Homeless Census 2008

Boston's Homeless Census

Meghan Keaney Anderson — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:34:46 -0500

Monday, United Way volunteers joined crowds of others in the City of Boston's annual Homeless census. The Homeless Census aims to shine a light on the numbers of individuals and families living without permanent homes in the city. The Boston Globe coverage included a photo of United Way staff alumna (and current executive director of the interagency council on housing and homelessness) Liz Curtis leading a set of volunteers as part of the census. read more »

Boston's Homeless Census - In reflection

Donna Stiglmeier — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 13:25:12 -0500

Tuesday night (December 18th), nineteen United Way volunteers joined hundreds who conducted the 28th annual city-wide census of our neighbors who are homeless. I was a team leader for the census, and these are some of my experiences and thoughts... read more »

Bringing New Voices to the Table

Elizabeth Curtis — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:49:16 -0500

Yesterday, January 23rd, United Way co-hosted “Ending Homelessness in the Commonwealth: A Leadership Summit on Housing First.” Our partners, Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance and One Family, Inc., joined us in bringing together a variety of community leaders to learn about the issue of homelessness in our state as well as how they can
get involved in brining about solutions to the problem. read more »

Ending Homelessness: Video on Successes Across the Country

Elizabeth Curtis — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:56:00 -0500

Through a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Alliance to End Homelessness has made a new video available to the public for free. The video can be accessed here.

The National Alliance is hoping that by offering this video for free, various groups will be able to use it for fundraising, educational purposes, and prompting discussion about how we work to end homelessness in our own communities.

What do you think of this video? Does it provide you with new information? How should United Way use it, and in what circumstances? Will you share this video with others?

How hungry are Bostonians?

Elizabeth Curtis — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:28:10 -0500

The U.S. Conference of Mayors recently released their annual "Hunger and Homelessness Survey" that outlines responses from 23 cities across the country regarding the level of hunger and homelessness experienced by their citizens. Find out how Boston is responding... read more »

Linking Homeless People to People-less Housing?

Elizabeth Curtis — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:11:03 -0500

In the December 2nd issue of the Boston Globe there was an intriguing article that caught my attention. In Miami there is a homeless advocate who has started helping homeless individuals and families locate empty foreclosed homes in which they can squat. In case you're unfamiilar with the practice, squatting is when one illegally stays in an empty or abandoned property. read more »

Making a Difference Beyond the Holiday Season

Elizabeth Curtis — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 15:48:58 -0500

With all the holiday toy drives, coat collections, and food drives,
it's easy for us to figure out how we can do something very simple to
help homeless and other low-income families. In an immediate way, we
can see that our donations of winter coats and stuffed animals can make
a difference for families who don't have the extra resources we all
need at this time of year. It makes us feel good, and it really does
mean something to those receiving the gifts. After reading an article
by Victoria Cheng in the Boston Globe last Sunday however, I was moved
to help keep people focused on the long-term goal - ending homelessness... read more »