From Housed to Homeless – and Back!

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. To which I’d add: stories are how we make sense of the world. Here at Human Solutions, we have the honor of being a partner to many people’s stories as they seek our help along their way.

When I recently met Jesse and Tanya and their three wonderful children (ages 2, 6 & 14) at Lilac Meadows, our new emergency shelter for families in SE Portland, I was struck by both the speed and magnitude of their spiral into poverty and homelessness and by their hard work to put it all back together. You’ve probably seen this, too – how quickly folks are being pulled from calm to crisis by the forces causing homelessness at record rates in our community. And like us, I bet you want a solution so all families in our community have a place to call home and a real chance to thrive.

From Housed To Homeless In 6 Months

While each family we work with is unique, we see some trends: people are working hard to survive and overcome poverty and homelessness, facing systemic barriers at every turn – racism, misogyny, low wages, no way to save, and high childcare costs, among others. Jesse and Tanya’s experience going from a stable home and job to unhoused with nothing took a mere six months, precipitated by a layoff. Tragically, when Jesse lost his job the family lost their housing, too, because their landlord was also Jesse’s employer. Without income, they couldn’t afford their car payments, so those are gone, too, along with the money they had invested in them.

One thing about poverty in America is that once that starter event happens – an unexpected medical (or other) bill, a rent increase or a high-needs child – it’s like the dam is broken and a flood of additional blows push people further from stability. But we can rebuild the dams and push back on the floodwaters.

With your continued help, families like Tanya and Jesse’s can have what everyone in our community deserves: a place to call home that they love and can afford.

An Important Partner

While Jesse, Tanya and the kids are living at Lilac Meadows, our on-site shelter team supports them by meeting them where they are and working forward from there. All 39 resident families at Lilac Meadows have a warm and dry place to sleep and store their belongings, three meals a day, one-on-one rehousing support, and, importantly, empathy and encouragement. With their immediate needs met, families can focus on their futures. Speaking of which, Jesse is already back at work in a new job!

Something Jesse and Tanya really love at Human Solutions is the orga- nized field trips we make available for the kids – OMSI, the pumpkin patch, the Children’s Museum and more!

As Jesse told me, their littles wake up and ask to go right to the shelter office so they can hang out with staff, whom they adore. As we like to say at Human Solutions: this is what community looks like.

Can you help families like Jesse and Tanya’s have the housing and economic security they are working so hard for? Your gift will make a world of difference for Jesse, Tanya, and the kids – and for Human Solutions’ work to ensure that everyone in our community has a safe and stable place to call home.

Solutions Now And For The Future

Our staff does a great job working with families like Jesse and Tanya’s to overcome the challenges our economic and housing systems throw in their way. But too many of our neighbors are facing the same barriers. At Human Solutions, we believe that these systems must work better, so fewer families endure the trauma and lasting impacts of poverty and homelessness – and more have a real opportunity to thrive. To that end, we’re not just helping people find housing today – we’re also working for a more just society tomorrow.

Together We Are The Solution

For the sake of Jesse and Tanya and the many unhoused families across our area who need help right now (there are hundreds on waitlists for shelter), I invite you to be part of the solution by making a generous gift this season. Together we can help our community today and work to address the root causes of poverty and homelessness to prevent more crises tomorrow. We know there’s a better way, and we’re working every day to get there.

With gratitude,

Andy Miller, Executive Director

PS – BE PART OF THE SOLUTION! Thank you for renewing your support – it does a world of good. And our community needs us right now!

Give here today: humansolutions.org/back2home

Our kids adore the staff here at Lilac Meadows. They were comfortable from the 1st day we arrived. When our kids are happy, we’re more able to focus on the future.

-Jesse B, shelter resident and father of 3