American scholar William Arthur Ward said: "The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails." Despite financially challenging times, committed realists from across the state are diligently adjusting the sails to try and keep pace with the growing need for service-enriched housing. Since January of this year, eight development teams from diverse regions of Washington have been attending two-day sessions of the Supportive Housing Institute (SHI) to learn how to create permanent supportive housing in their communities.
 |
Cheri Fleck and Ann Simpson of
Clallam County |
The teams participating in the 2009 Institute are a study in geographical and social contrast, representing Pierce, Clallam, Clark, Cowlitz, Yakima, and Chelan-Douglas
In the middle of May, just as the weather in Washington State finally began warming up, homelessness providers and advocates from all over the state descended on the Vancouver Hilton for
three days of networking and learning organized by the Washington State Coalition for the Homeless (WSCH). We heard moving keynote speeches from Eric Tars of the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty and formerly homeless Richard LeMieux, author of
Breakfast at Sally's. Several Building Changes staff members also participated in multiple workshops, meetings, and panel discussions.
Emily Nolan, Washington Families Fund Manager, spoke on a panel called Writing for Dollars, which focused on grant writing basics (and not-so-basics): deciding which grants to go after, leveraging fund sources,
On February 24th, 560 housing and homeless advocates gathered in Olympia to rally around housing issues, meet with legislators, and make our voices heard. The Washington Low Income Housing Alliance, along with the Washington State Coalition for the Homeless, the Housing Development Consortium, Common Ground, the Tenants Union, Building Changes, and many other organizations statewide brought together low-income and homeless folks, program staff, and other concerned citizens from every walk of life. Advocates from almost every district in the state were ready to meet with their legislators and express why housing matters.
The energy was high in the United Churches building where the group heard speeches by WLIHA lobbyist Nick Federici, advocacy educator Nancy Amidei, and
Senate Majority
For its fifth National Conference on Ending Family Homelessness, the
National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) chose the theme "Making Progress in a Time of Challenge." The theme felt even more appropriate - and urgent - amidst ongoing news of massive layoffs across the country and of Congress struggling to negotiate terms for the $787 billion stimulus package.
The NAEH conference, held in San Diego on February 12th and 13th, brought together hundreds of homeless service providers, advocates, and activists to share best practices, learn from one another's experiences, and to discuss "detailed, practical strategies" to end family homelessness. Workshop topics ranged from direct service concerns to broad-based advocacy strategies.
Building Changes had a hand in several of the conference
During the last week of January, eight teams from around Washington State gathered in Seattle for the first session of the 2009 Supportive Housing Institute. The Institute, funded through a joint effort by Washington State's Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (CTED), Department of Social and Health Services (Mental Health Division), Impact Capital, and the Washington Families Fund, brings regional teams to the table to build practical knowledge for developing permanent supportive housing in their communities.
Consultants from the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH), Common Ground, and Building Changes use an evidence-based curriculum (created by CSH but specifically adapted for use in Washington State) to take teams through the development process, step-by-step.
Subscribe to this feed!