Author: Homeward Bound
Days Inn Demolition Has Begun!
Demolition began a few weeks ago. There was some mold and termite damage found, which is being remediated. We are repurposing much of the hotel furniture. Air conditioners are being repaired and replaced, so they can be used in resident apartments. Light demolition took place in the residential buildings including all carpets being removed. The construction phase should begin soon!
Becoming part of the homelessness solution yields reward
by David Bailey GUEST COLUMNIST
This article was published by The Citizen Times on March 27, 2022. See the original article here.
Throughout Asheville and our larger community we cross paths with people who are homeless every day: along roadways, downtown, in our neighborhoods, and outside stores and restaurants.
Each of us acts or reacts in different ways: a smile, a frown, avoidance, a kind word, a few dollars, food, or offering a cold drink.
In Asheville, AHOPE, a daytime shelter operated by Homeward Bound, provides these individuals support and services needed every day – that kind word, respite from the weather, and a bit of hope to move them from the streets into housing.
I became aware of AHOPE15 years ago during a visit and was enlightened about who and how AHOPE served the community. The homeless and near homeless receive a hot cup of coffee, a sandwich, a warm pair of socks, a shower and a chance to clean their clothes. It is their post office, safe haven, storage lockers for their personal belongings so they don’t have to walk the streets with shopping carts like in other cities. On any given day 200 different folks enter AHOPE’s front door and more than 2,100 used these services last year.
Over the past 2 1/2 years, at the beginning of my retirement, I began volunteering weekly at AHOPE – looking for a hands-on way to help some of the most challenging and at-risk citizens of our community. I came in on Thursdays and staffed the kitchen – making lots and lots of coffee, putting out bread and PB&J and, if available, donated baked goods to offer to the clients. Immediately, I was struck by the varied backgrounds and conditions of these folks: Michael, the artist who had dreams that were never realized; Jill, the domestic violence survivor who fled from her home to escape her abuser; Dwight, whose mother killed his father in front of the family; Carolyn who gave birth while living on the streets and had her child taken by DSS. They each have their own unique story, but all involving trauma.
When I had made enough coffee to keep the clients satisfied, I ventured over to the mail room to offer a hand to other volunteers who checked and distributed mail for AHOPE guests. AHOPE serves as the Post Office for hundreds of our community. They receive bills, notes from friends, letters from family members wondering if they are dead or alive, new IDs, checks, and packages. It is as important to them as my daily venture to my mailbox; perhaps more.
Getting and keeping clients connected is a key focus of AHOPE. Individuals are logged in when they come to AHOPE, and if they are still homeless after two weeks, they become “clients” and are interviewed and assessed to determine housing needs. AHOPE also works to prevent homelessness. Staff will call family members or friends to see if they can mend fences so the individual can remain housed.
In 2021, Homeward Bound staff coordinated 94 leases with private landlords and partnered with more than 75 landlords to provide stable housing.
AHOPE also serves as the connection point to other community services: medical, dental, legal, veterinary for their pets, mental health and substance use services, as well as helping them get drivers licenses, and other documentation so they can enter a shelter or receive other services.
And most importantly, AHOPE is the portal/entry for folks re-starting their lives. A new beginning. AHOPE’s staff is the hub of this re-start. It’s the first step to moving an unhoused individual into a home of their own.
Homeward Bound has been using the national approach of Housing First since 2006 and has moved more than 2.300 people into homes, and 92% have not returned to homelessness.
Housing First’s method prioritizes providing permanent housing to people experiencing homelessness, thus ending their homelessness and serving as a platform from which they can pursue personal goals and improve their quality of life. This approach is guided by the belief that people need basic necessities like food and a place to live before attending to secondary needs, such as getting a job, budgeting properly, or attending to substance use issues.
And while challenges and criticisms pervade, I choose to be a part of the solution by giving time to the most vulnerable people in our community, our homeless neighbors, via AHOPE. I am rewarded when Ms. E comes each Monday to collect her mail from her post office. She lives in her car but hopes for more: Her own home.
David Bailey is retired CEO of United Way of Asheville and a Homeward Bound, AHOPE, volunteer.
Mothers & Homelessness Interview with Eleanor Ashton
Learn more about Homeward Bound’s HomeTrust Bank Open Your Heart for Women & Homelessness Luncheon taking place on March 11 at Trinity Episcopal Church by listening to an interview with Homeward Bound Senior Resource Development Officer, Eleanor Ashton. The Interview, conducted by Jordan Coppinger with 98.1 the River, covers important research about mothers experiencing homelessness and provides details about this year’s event.
Homeward Bound Advocates for Shelter Options for Folks Awaiting Permanent Housing
Homeward Bound’s mission is to prevent and end homelessness through permanent housing and support. To that end, we work with individuals experiencing homelessness and meet them where they are. We assist them in any way we can to make their lives more stable, safe, and secure while waiting for permanent housing. We maintain that campers should not be moved without alternative locations for them to move to.
Safe and reasonable options include short term use of hotel rooms pending conversion to additional permanent housing (although this is an expensive option which will ultimately reduce monies available for permanent housing, the only real solution for ending homelessness), a low barrier shelter, and sanctioned outdoor space with basic amenities such as toilets, water, showers, and sanitation. An intentional focus on organization, safety, predictability, and a cooperative mindset will help reduce violence and disruptive behaviors. Additionally, homeless service providers can offer needed resources, harm reduction interventions, and basic services to make hotel, shelter or camp sites more stable.
We are committed to working with our local government, non-profit partners, and other community groups to find solutions as quickly as possible. If you are interested in helping with your resources, time or energy, please contact Homeward Bound at info@homewardboundwnc.org
2 Awards for National Philanthropy Day
2021 National Philanthropy Day will be held virtually on Nov. 17. The purpose of this day is to recognize the great contributions of philanthropy, those people who are active in the philanthropic community, and the impact philanthropy has on our society. The day provides an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of giving and all that it has made possible. NPD celebrates the endless daily contributions individuals and organizations across the world make to countless causes and missions.
Homeward Bound was involved in two awards – Senior Resource Development Director Eleanor Ashton was named Outstanding Professional Fundraising Executive in recognition of her 20 plus years of successful nonprofit fundraising leadership, her professional integrity, and her dedication to the profession of philanthropy. Homeward Bound’s nominee Prestige Subaru earned the Outstanding Business in Philanthropy award in recognition of their philanthropic support and community service. Prestige has supported charities whose missions include providing shelter, housing, food, education, and environmental sustainability. Homeward Bound has been a recipient of Subaru’s Share the Love event for the past three years and has received over $100,000 which has gone directly ending homelessness for many individuals.
City of Asheville Votes to Help Fund $13.5 Million Home is Key Initiative
The city will help pay for the $13.5 million purchase and conversion of a Days Inn hotel to “permanent supportive housing” for homeless people from around the region to move to and age in place.
That follows a 7-0 July 27 City Council vote to give $2 million to the nonprofit Homeward Bound for the purchase of the former hotel on a nearly 3-acre lot at 201 Tunnel Road. The money will come from $26.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds being distributed by the federal government to Asheville.