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COALITION UPDATESeptember 6, 2024 |
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First medicine: Supportive housing in Anchorage for elders now open
Congratulations to Providence Alaska for its brand-new supportive housing project, Q’et’en Qenq’ – Providence House. It has the potential to be a game-changer in our community for people experiencing homelessness. Q’et’en Qenq’a means Elder’s House in the Dena’ina language.
Our most vulnerable neighbors will be better served the more we leverage health care resources and integrate health care and homelessness responses. A safe, stable and warm place to live helps people maintain and even improve their physical and mental health.
Q’et’en Qenq’a includes 45 permanent supportive housing studio apartments for individuals 55 and older who have been experiencing homelessness. It also includes six recuperative care units serving individuals who have been homeless and who need a healing place after they’ve been discharged from the hospital. They will have access to all services as well as follow-up health care services.
Learn how this program could be a model of integrated systems so that no one is discharged into homelessness. |
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Our local grant competition is on!
Organizations providing housing and supportive services for people experiencing homelessness in Anchorage must apply for the annual Continuum of Care program competition funding before Monday, Sep. 9. This U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grant supports permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, and coordination work by ACEH. All projects must follow the Housing First model. Learn more about this $5 million community-wide opportunity. |
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Housing our neighbors direct from camps
Another round of move-ins on the books!
Fourteen people from an encampment just off the Coastal Trail near Elderberry Park now have a home. This is the second encampment in which everyone was housed through the Next Step project. We worked closely Anchorage police and Parks and Rec on timing to ensure everyone had a home before the Municipality shut down the camp.
Some have never had a place of their own. |
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Street outreach stays connected with those living outdoors |
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How do we reach our unsheltered neighbors? Street outreach! It's how we know who is unsheltered and where to find them. It's the way we build connection and trust with those who are sleeping in tents, vehicles and other places where no one should be living. With partners SALA Medical and Covenant House Alaska, we reach as many reported camps as possible to connect people with services every week.
We are wrapping up our second summer of outreach, and we continue all year, even in the depth of an Alaska winter. |
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With housing, they get their lives back
Beau and Sarah went through hard times after everything went sideways in the pandemic. Through the Next Step housing collaboration, they now have an apartment of their own and were able to regain their beloved dog, Hot Wheels. They are recovering, healing and working. Beau, who had been doing day labor and then was working for a shipping company, is again working as a licensed electrician. Sarah is working, too, and plans to regain her nursing license. They can work on regaining child custody. For the first time in a long while, they feel like someone’s got their back. |
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HUD’s new regional administrator brings nearly 50 years of public service
Welcome aboard, Andrew Lofton! The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently announced his appointment as the administrator for Region 10 serving Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. He isa lifelong resident of Washington. He previously served as executive director for the Seattle Housing Authority. Lofton is immersing himself in the region beyond Washington. In visits to Alaska, he met with housing and homelessness leaders. |
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For the first time since January 2023, the count of people experiencing homelessness in Anchorage has dropped below 3,000. In July, our community marked the eighth consecutive month in which more people left the homelessness response system than entered it. |
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Mary and Clement Navitsky dropped off yarn at our office. |
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One of people housed through Next Step was featured in an Anchorage Daily News story. Patricia has gone from a tent in the woods to shelter to a cute apartment in Mountain View. She crochets hats to give away to people who are still unhoused, calling them “hats for my homies.” Anchorage resident Mary Navitsky read the story and was so inspired, she donated her own stash of beautiful yarns to Patricia’s cause.
“I know that there are more pressing needs, but being able to have yarns available, to be able to have a sense of accomplishment, is also vital,” Mary told us.
Thank you, Mary! |
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We love the yarns and Patricia does, too. Stay tuned for more on Hats for My Homies! |
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Want to stay connected all month long?
Follow us on social media! |
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We’re active on Facebook, Instagram, Linked In and X. Not on social media? You can catch these mission moments right on our website. |
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| Assembly Housing and Homelessness Committee
Learn more about the Committee's work and Assembly initiatives to provide Housing First and to solve Anchorage homelessness. Next meeting is on Sep. 18, at 11 a.m. |
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| Local Competition Technical Support Session
These sessions are designed to assist both renewal and new project applicants in navigating the application process. Friday, Sep. 6 at 2 p.m. |
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| Volunteer opportunities
Looking to spread some kindness and make a difference in the lives of our unsheltered neighbors? Join us as we assemble outreach kits for those forced to sleep outside. Next event is on Monday, Sep. 9 from 6-7 p.m. |
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| Case Conferencing
These meetings provide a platform for housing providers to share vital information about client situations, whereabouts, and both past and current circumstances. |
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