VIDEO: Family Banquet
Learn more about the Homelessness to Hope Benefit Breakfast
2010 Annual Report and 2011 Summer Newsletter is here!
The 2010 Annual Report and our Summer Newsletter is here – combined in one document to save costs on printing and mailings (hey – there’s a recession on here!). We are excited to feature our Community Garage partnership with Our Savior Lutheran Church, as well as great family stories and an update on how we are changing to meet the needs of the community most effectively. And of course, our financials are included.
We look forward to hearing any feedback you may have after reading the report! Find us on Facebook or make a comment below.
MAP: Lahar (Volcanic Mudflow) Evacuation Routes
Helping Hand House has 72 units of housing spread throughout eastern Pierce County, giving us a significant interest in emergency management, particularly as it relates to Mt. Rainier. We are posting the following as a resource to our community in the Puyallup area, and was obtained from the City of Puyallup’s Emergency Management Department (Information about which can be obtained at: http://www.cityofpuyallup.org/emergency-management/).
The following is a map (covering Puyallup city limits only) of the probable areas that would be covered in the event of a lahar (mudslide), potentially to the depth of up to 20 feet. Sumner would likely be buried to depths of 30 feet (Source: USGS). Please be aware of the evacuation routes as you consider your family’s emergency plans.
DOWNLOAD MAP OF THE LAHAR EVACUATION ROUTES (PDF)
The trigger to listen for would be the lahar warning sirens to sound continuously, or the notifications that you would get through the emergency alerts on your cell phone if you have signed up for them (you need to sign up for both Pierce County AND Puyallup).
Additional Information
DOWNLOAD “MT. RAINIER: LIVING WITH A VOLCANO IN YOUR BACKYARD” SAFETY GUIDE FROM U.S.G.S. (PDF)
VIDEO: Keys to Ending Family Homelessness
A hospital stay or unexpected job loss can cost a family its housing. In the middle of a housing crisis in the U.S., the National Alliance to End Homelessness is helping families—including the almost 1.35 million children who experience homelessness in the course of a year. This video profiles three communities that are providing fast, safe housing, and making great strides towards eliminating family homelessness. Video and explanation courtesy of the Gates Foundation.
ARTICLE: Mayor Bloomberg’s Silver Bullet Misses the Mark
Insightful article on the impacts of Rapid Rehousing and Housing First on homelessness in NY City. Surprising and unsettling as the nation moves this direction as its primary strategy…from the Summer 2011 edition of “Uncensored.” Click here for the article.
Full link here:
Centralized Intake 5 months in…Statistics are alarming!
During the first five months of centralized intake (“Access Point 4 Housing” or “AP4H”), we have gained a greater understanding of who is seeking housing assistance in Pierce County.
- AP4H received an average of 1780 unduplicated requests for assistance per month (Editor’s Note: That is a lot!)
- 38% were literally homeless, and 61% were at risk of homelessness
- 49% were in the process of being evicted, generally from a non-subsidized rental
- 81% were families with children (Editor’s Note: This is important – most of these people calling for help have kids and don’t fit the homeless stereotype.)
- 60% were female, and 40% were male
- 40% were African American, compared to 7% of the general population of Pierce County
- 61% were facing homelessness for the first time (This is also an important fact – most of these people had never faced this as a part of their lives)
- In 5 months, Associated Ministries, which oversees AP4H, has used $200k of its $230k available homelessness prevention funding.
*All statistics provided by Pierce County Community Connections and Associated Ministries
What do these statistics tell us? There are far more people on the brink of homelessness or living without a stable home than anyone thought – even the housing providers. Stay tuned for more information on this in the months to come.
ARTICLE: What does the “debt deal” mean for homelessness?
This article comes from the National Alliance to End Homelessness, an organization that Helping Hand House has worked alongside in implementation of national-level strategies here in Pierce County. More at www.endhomelessness.org.
What does the “debt deal” mean for homelessness?
Today’s guest post was written by Alliance Vice President for Programs and Policy Steve Berg.
Many of us – especially people outside the beltway – are asking ourselves, “What just happened?”
People who follow what goes on in Washington, D.C. have been watching an ugly debate over federal spending, taxation, and borrowing. On the news, it’s been commonly referred to as the “debt ceiling” debate. For now, that debate is over, to be resumed at a later date.
There are plenty of people commenting on who got the better of whom; today I’ll try to cover what the “debt deal” could mean for homelessness.
First, a quick summary of the debt deal. It cuts federal spending in two ways:
Second, the debt deal cuts spending through additional across-the-board reductions to most domestic and defense programs, this time including not only discretionary spending but also some entitlements like Medicare. These will begin in 2013, with the total cuts over ten years to be $1.2 trillion. Some programs for low-income people (Medicaid, for example) would be exempt from the automatic cuts, but others, like Section 8, would not be exempt, which could mean that thousands of families lose their housing. Instead of allowing these cuts, Congress can pass a bill proposed by a “super-committee,” reducing federal debt by at least $1.2 trillion through some combination of spending cuts and revenue increases. But the super-committee has to do that by the end of the 2011 calendar year.So how will this affect homelessness? No decisions have been made on the details, but there are two ways this deal could have an impact.
First is the impact of the maximum levels set for discretionary funding. This could impact funding for targeted homelessness programs, especially the Emergency Shelter Grants and Continuum of Care run by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In his original budget, the President proposed an increase of $471 million for HUD’s homeless assistance for 2012 to implement the HEARTH Act, finance 10,000 new HUD-VASH vouchers, and create 7,500 targeted rent vouchers for the Housing and Services for Homeless Persons demonstration. In light of the high rate of joblessness and the struggling economy, all those new resources are desperately needed for homeless and at-risk people. But now we know that overall discretionary spending for FY 2012 will be nearly $100 billion less than what the President’s budget proposed which could jeopardize the creation of these new resources.
Secondly, the work of the “super-committee,” carried out under intense time pressure, creates many dangers in the long run. While entitlement programs for low-income people are exempt from the automatic cuts that take place if the super-committee does nothing, they are not exempt from a super-committee proposal. Roll-backs in Medicaid or TANF, for example, may be tempting for the members of the “super-committee” when they’re overwhelmed with the task of finding cuts to the federal budget. But we know that such cuts would be devastating for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness and rely on federal programs.
In this context, protecting federal homelessness programs will require a lot of work. And the work will only get harder in succeeding years.
Fortunately, the effectiveness of these programs, the vulnerability of homeless people, and the bipartisan history of the work provide a strong case, but the case has to be made. Increased funding remains eminently doable, but only if people in Congress know that it is important back home.
That’s where you come in. The Alliance’s grassroots efforts have always proved effective. The Alliance works to connect passionate citizens with their Members of Congress so that lawmakers can hear, first-hand, the needs and concerns of their constituents. This is the most effective way that we, as everyday people, can best affect policy change.
To find out what you can do to protect homeless assistance programs, please contact us. You can learn more by visiting our website.
VIDEO: What is Motivational Interviewing (MI)?
http://helpinghandhouse.org Helping Hand House’s Pat Williams describes what Motivational Interviewing is.
