Dear Advocate:
With your support in the past, the National Coalition for the Homeless has had a fantastic year of gathering leaders from across the United States in DC to prove that homelessness is a solvable issue. We hosted 250 people in our nation’s capital in September for a Leadership Conference, with many having recent homelessness experience to talk about the issues and propose solutions. NCH provided 100 scholarships to people without housing or who recently found their way off the streets to join us in DC to craft a national strategy for ending homelessness. We had experts who were solving problems every day, meeting with experts who survived a period without housing to voice concern over the rise in hate and the stereotypes associated with homelessness. As NCH executive director Donald Whitehead said, “This is why the National Coalition for the Homeless exists--to bring together those who overcame extreme poverty to craft a message, a strategy and provide hope that we can finally end homelessness in the US.” Will you pledge your support to our efforts in 2024 to continue to community organize on a national level by giving today at this link.
What separates NCH from every other organization is the people we have gathered to take on what has, for a long time, seemed like an intractable problem facing the country. From our founding in the 1980s until today, we have always valued the expertise of those on the streets with the passions of those who use their talents to end this long national nightmare. We have had people such as Michael Stoops, Steve Thomas, and Deborah Gilbert White who take what they have learned from a period without housing to create support networks for others to get a handout of homelessness. We have surrounded ourselves with others, such as Dr. Matt Vega, former intern Shaun Donovan, and Senator Chris Coons, who used their talents to help put the organization on a solid footing. We are asking you to do your part to support the effort to end homelessness in the US with a donation to NCH today!
DeBorah Gilbert White came to NCH via our Speaker’s Bureau and demolished all the stereotypes about who is homeless in this country. She has an advanced degree, lived in a shelter after an eviction, and had a successful career in the private sector before turning to work for a non-profit social justice group. Gilbert White found an outlet for her advocacy by talking to young people about homelessness and pushing a Homeless Bill of Rights in Delaware. Her fellow resident of Delaware, Senator Chris Coons started his professional career in New York City, where he was one of the first staff hired by NCH to begin to mobilize a national movement. NCH was a program of the Coalition for the Homeless in New York City, which was fresh off their right to shelter victory and was working on building coalitions in other parts of the country. A young Chris Coons performed the task of building the grassroots into a national movement that could push legislation and win housing for all. For the past 13 years, Coons has represented the state of Delaware in the US Senate and is a leader in expanding housing and healthcare to fragile populations who otherwise would be homeless.
In 2023, along with our leadership conference, we hosted a tour of several cities that have opted for a path of criminalizing those without housing. We toured Miami, Los Angeles, Seattle, Sacramento, and Atlanta to build our base and to call for more humane alternatives. NCH has co-hosted an annual Candlelight Vigil for the past 34 years to remember those who died far too soon after experiencing a period without housing. We are one of the only national groups that regularly calls attention to the criminalization of homelessness in the United States while also pushing alternative policies on Capitol Hill. Your continued support for our mission will help us take the next step to amplify the voices of those who experienced homelessness in city halls and committee hearing rooms in Congress. NCH will continue organizing public demonstrations against hate and will continue to remind civic leaders that disregarding the rising number of displaced and hungry people is just as harmful as sending law enforcement out to arrest those without housing.
We are planning a big push to encourage those without housing to vote in 2024 and to expand our presence in cities across the United States with additional field offices. We need your help to continue this critical work. Please consider making a gift to support the National Coalition for the Homeless with a general donation online or by donating this holiday season. Just as the people on staff are giving their talents to see an end to homelessness, we need your support to continue our mission.
PLEASE GIVE TODAY!
Sincerely,
Donald Whitehead
PS: We also encourage other non-monetary support for the organization, such as volunteering or donating household goods to local charities. Consider becoming a partner of the Bring America Home Now campaign to show your support. Your voice matters. Sign on today at https://bringamericahomenow.org.