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[ Dallas Area Partnership to End and Prevent Homelessness Local Government Corporation on August 1, 2024.]
MENDELSON.PRESENT VICE CHAIR THERESA DANIEL.
PRESENT, UH, LAKEISHA TOWNSEND.
UH, CELESTE VISTA GLOVER PRESENT? DR.
UM, CHIEF BRENT HURLEY PRESENT.
WE CANNOT HEAR THE, THE SPEAKER.
TELL ME IF YOU CAN HEAR ME RIGHT, ROB? YES.
PEOPLE ARE SHAKING THEIR HEAD.
AND THEN, ROBERT, WILL YOU SPEAK INTO THE MICROPHONE AND LET'S SEE IF THEY'LL SHAKE THEIR HEAD IF THEY CAN HEAR YOU.
HELLO? OKAY, NOW THEY CAN HEAR YOU.
YOU HAVE TO BE, THANK YOU ROBERT.
I'VE NEVER HAD THIS PROBLEM BEFORE.
YEAH, YOU LEANED IN VERY CLOSE TO SAY HELLO.
AND I THINK YOU HAVE TO BE THAT CLOSE TO THE MICROPHONE.
DO I GET BY TWO MINUTES BACK? I'M GONNA LET YOU START ALL OVER, BUT GO VERY CLOSE TO THE MICROPHONE, OKAY? OKAY.
UM, I WALK OUTSIDE THERE AND LOOK AT, IT'S SO DISGUSTING AND I'M SURPRISED THAT IT'S HAPPENING AND NOW IT'S NOT THERE AND WE'LL SEE WHAT'S GOING ON.
BUT, UH, I'LL BE HERE EVERY MONTH.
I'LL BE CITY COUNCIL EVERY MONTH.
START THE PROCESS ALL OVER AGAIN.
UM, EDUCATION AND HOMELESSNESS.
THEY DID A, A SURVEY AFTER DOCTOR, UH, AFTER THE MAYOR'S FIRST TERM, GAR GARIN, HART YANG RESEARCH GROUP.
THE FIR TOP THREE ISSUES FOR PUBLIC SAFETY, EDUCATION AND HOMELESSNESS.
WHY IS IT HOMELESS IS ALWAYS ABOVE? UH, THAT, THAT THE CROWD
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WANTED TO, THE, THE, UH, PEOPLE ARE VERY INTERESTED IN TAKING CARE OF.WHY IS THERE ONLY 1% MONEY? TALKS.
YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT HOMELESSNESS BECAUSE IN THE BUDGET AND IN THE, AND THE BOND ELECTION, IT'S ALWAYS 1%, $500 MILLION FOR, UH, STREET REPAIRS THAT'S BELOW HOMELESSNESS AND ONLY 19 MILLION FOR HOMELESSNESS.
THAT SHOULD END THE QUESTION ABOUT ANY, ANY RUMORS OR ANYTHING.
AND THAT'S BEEN GOING ON FOR ABOUT SEVEN, EIGHT YEARS AT LEAST.
YOU HEAR ME, KARA? AND, AND, UH, UM, I'M JUST WORRIED ABOUT YOU AND DR. DANIEL ONE OH STRONG MAGA AND THE OTHER ONE'S STRAIGHT LIBERAL.
HEY, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.
AND THAT'S LIKE I SAID, ERIC JOHNSON.
YOU GOT ME ON MY PIECE AND QS NOW.
OKAY? AND, AND, UH, I'M JUST SAYING BEFORE GO, IS THAT, UM, THE BOARDING HOMES, THEY SIT THERE AND NOT DO ANYTHING.
CAROL, YOU MENTIONED LAST TIME I SAW YOU, YOU MENTIONED YOU KNOW WHERE TO GET THE BUS PASS, BUT YOU DIDN'T SAY WHERE.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE THAT DON'T HAVE ANY MONEY, BUT YOU, YOU GOT TO, YOU LEFT THAT OPEN AT THE END OF THE MEETING.
OKAY? SO YOU CAN LET ME KNOW WHERE YOU, WHERE YOU GET THESE BUS PASSES AT.
YOU CAN PLEASE TELL ME, BUT THIS IS NOT POLITICS RIGHT NOW.
OKAY? BUT YOU AND DR. DANIEL AND KARA, YOU GOTTA SPLIT.
YOU GOT TO BECAUSE IT'S LIKE, YES, BECAUSE WHAT, WHAT MR. JOHNSON DID.
CARRIE, THE STRONG ALLY OF MR. JOHNSON.
YOU UNDERSTAND ME? I MEAN, THERE'S NOTHING, NOTHING HARD ABOUT THAT.
OKAY? SO THAT'S YOUR TWO MINUTES.
AND THERE WAS ONE OTHER, ONE OTHER SPEAKER.
OH, SORRY, MY TIMER JUST WENT ON.
AND, UH, I AM HERE BECAUSE I'M DOING A COMMUNITY INTERVENTION PROJECT AND I HAVE CHOSEN HOMELESSNESS TODAY.
UM, I LIVE IN OAK CLIFF AND, UM, I'VE NOTICED THAT THERE'S AN INCREASE OF HOMELESSNESS IN MY AREA.
SO THAT'S THE REASON WHY I CHOSE, UM, HOMELESSNESS TODAY.
UM, I, AS I WAS DOING MY RESEARCH, I FOUND OUT THAT THERE'S A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, OTHER COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS THE HERITAGE OAK, CLIFF, OAK CLIFF, CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, MISSION, OAK CLIFF, AND JUST OTHERS THAT, YOU KNOW, TRY TO KEEP, UM, OAK CLIFF TOGETHER.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, OAK CLIFF HAS BEEN EXPERIENCING A HIGH END CITIZEN HOMELESSNESS.
AND SOME OF THE COMMON CAUSES ARE, UM, POVERTY, LACK OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING, PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES.
SO ONE OF MY PROPOSAL, UM, HAS BEEN, UH, TO WORK WITH ORGANIZATIONS THAT SPECIALIZE IN HOMELESSNESS SUCH AS HOUSING FORWARD AND THE OUR NEIGHBORS COALITION.
UM, ALSO, UM, I FEEL THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO ENGAGE WITH LOCAL RESIDENTS, BUSINESSES, AND COMMUNITY LEADERS TO UNDERSTAND THE CONCERNS AND GATHER INPUT ON FINDING THE BEST WAYS TO ADDRESS HOMELESSNESS.
ALSO INVOLVING CITY OFFICIALS, UH, PUBLIC AGENCIES IS ALSO CRUCIAL FOR CREATING EFFECTIVE POLICIES AND SECURING NECESSARY RESOURCES AND IMPLEMENTING COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTIONS.
ANOTHER, UH, PROGRAM THAT I, YOU KNOW, THINK THAT IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA WOULD BE TO CREATE, UH, WHAT I CALL A NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH PROGRAM, UM, WHICH WOULD BE A PROGRAM THAT IS, UM, ONLY IN IN OAK CLIFF.
I FEEL THAT IF WE CAN, UH, GET LOCAL, UM, VOLUNTEERS THAT ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE AREA, WE COULD HAVE, YOU KNOW, BETTER, BETTER, MORE SUCCESS.
WE CAN OBTAIN GRANTS FROM DON, UH, FROM DONATIONS, FROM INDIVIDUALS CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS, UH, CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS, AND ALSO GOVERNMENT, UH, SOURCES.
OKAY? I'M SORRY, THAT'S YOUR TWO MINUTES, BUT FEEL FREE TO SEND AN EMAIL TO US YES.
OKAY, BECAUSE IT WAS ACTUALLY LONGER, SO I TRY TO MAKE IT SHORT.
THAT CONCLUDES YOUR SPEAKERS, MADAM CHAIR.
UM, SO OUR NEXT ITEM IS APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM APRIL 4TH.
IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE? DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS, CORRECTIONS, CHANGES? NO.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE SAY, AYE.
MOTIONS ARE APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.
OUR NEXT ITEM IS, UM, A PANEL DISCUSSION,
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AND I WANNA WELCOME TODAY'S PANEL DISCUSSION.IT'S OUR NON-FAMILY VIOLENCE, FAMILY HOMELESS PROVIDERS, AND WE'RE SO GLAD TO SEE YOU TODAY.
FEEL FREE TO MOVE UP TO, UM, THE FRONT.
SO, BECAUSE OF THE VERY POWERFUL PRESENTATION WE HAD AT THE DALLAS AREA PARTNERSHIP ON ANY HOMELESS MEETING BY THE DALLAS ISD HOMELESS LIAISON, IT WAS CLEAR THAT A DEEPER DIVE INTO THE STATE OF HOMELESSNESS FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES WAS NEEDED.
SO OUR SUMMER RETREAT FOR THE DALLAS AREA PARTNERSHIP DIDN'T WORK OUT WITH CALENDARS, BUT SO LAST MONTH I WAS VERY HAPPY TO ACT IN MY CITY COUNCIL CAPACITY TO CO-HOST THE PANEL DISCUSSION ALONG WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT RANDY, UH, SHACKMAN FROM CARROLLTON FARMERS FRANCHISE, SD CHRIS POTE, THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT FROM RICHARDSON, ISD, NANCY HUMPHREY, THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT FROM PLANO, ISD, AND TRUSTEE MAXIE JOHNSON FROM DALLAS ISD.
AND WE WERE HONORED TO HOST THE HOMELESS LIAISONS FROM EACH OF THOSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS FOR AN EXTREMELY INTERESTING PANEL.
THE HOMELESS LIAISONS WERE IMPRESSIVE.
THEY'RE DOING THE KIND OF INTENSE, INSPIRING WORK THAT I THINK WE ALL LOVE TO SEE.
WHAT WE HEARD FROM THE PANEL, THOUGH, WAS TRULY DISHEARTENING AND FRIGHTENING FOR WHAT SO MANY OF OUR YOUTH ARE GOING THROUGH AT SUCH A PIVOTAL TIME IN THEIR LIFE.
AND MANY OF THE ATTENDEES HAVE SHARED WITH ME SINCE THAT THEY LEARNED IMPORTANT THINGS AND IT CHANGED HOW THEY VIEWED THE NEED OF THE STUDENTS AND FAMILIES AS WELL AS THE STAFF.
SO I HOPE YOU HAD A CHANCE TO WATCH IT.
A LINK WAS PROVIDED WITH, UM, THE AGENDA NOTICE.
I'M NOT SURE IF IT WAS ACTUALLY POSTED ON THIS AGENDA, IT WAS NOT.
UM, BUT IF WE COULD GO AHEAD AND INCLUDE THAT LINK TO THAT, UM, SESSION IN OUR MINUTES, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT SO THAT IT'S EASY FOR PEOPLE TO FIND.
DURING THE PANEL THAT WE HAD, UM, I STARTED GETTING A NUMBER OF MESSAGES AND THEY WERE ASKING IF WE WOULD CONTINUE THIS CONVERSATION WITH THE FAMILY, HOMELESS SERVICE PROVIDERS, AND POSSIBLY HAVE OTHER PANELS WITH LIKE-MINDED GROUPS TO SHED LIGHT ON VERY SPECIFIC ISSUES THAT AREN'T USUALLY HIGHLIGHT.
SO I'M VERY HAPPY TO REPORT THAT OUR TWO GUESTS IMMEDIATELY SAID THEY'D BE VERY HAPPY TO COME TALK TO US IN THAT SAME KIND OF FORMAT.
AND SO TODAY'S PLAN IS FOR US TO ASK THEM AN INTRODUCTORY QUESTION, WHICH WILL PROBABLY TAKE ABOUT FIVE MINUTES FOR EACH OF THEM TO ANSWER.
AND THEN JUST DO A ROUND ROBIN OF OUR COMMISSION MEMBERS PRESENT.
AND IF YOU'D LIKE TO ASK 'EM A QUESTION, ANYTHING THAT'S ON YOUR MIND, UM, YOU'RE CERTAINLY WELL WELCOME TO DO SO.
THOSE QUESTIONS WILL PROBABLY LIMIT TO JUST ONE OR TWO MINUTES, UNLESS YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S A NEED TO GO FURTHER.
UM, OUR TWO GUESTS KNOW EACH OTHER VERY WELL, LITERALLY WORK IN THE SAME BUILDING AT THE SAME AT THIS TIME.
AND SO I THINK THAT THERE'LL BE SOME INTERESTING INTERPLAY BETWEEN THEIR ANSWERS.
SO JOINING US TODAY, WE HAVE TWO EXTREMELY ACCOMPLISHED WOMEN WHO I GREATLY ADMIRE.
UM, ELLEN MAGNUS IS THE CEO FOR FAMILY GATEWAY, KAREN HUGHES, CEO FOR VOGEL ALCOVE.
THEY BOTH HAVE AN EXTREMELY IMPRESSIVE TRACK RECORD AND ARE WIDELY KNOWN IN THE COMMUNITY FOR THEIR LEADERSHIP AND RESULTS.
I'D LIKE TO CONGRATULATE FAMILY GATEWAY WHO JUST LAST WEEK WAS AWARDED THE D MAGAZINE, NONPROFIT LARGE ORGANIZATION OF THE YEAR.
I HOPE YOU'LL BE ABLE TO LISTEN, LEARN, ASK QUESTIONS, AND CONTRIBUTE IDEAS.
SO LET'S GET STARTED WITH ELLEN AND KAREN INTRODUCING THEMSELVES AND THEIR AGENCY.
AND IF YOU CAN TELL US HOW LONG YOU'VE BEEN THERE AND JUST SORT OF AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT THE AGENCY DOES AND HOW THINGS ARE GOING AT YOUR NONPROFIT.
TELL US WHAT YOU WANT US TO KNOW.
HOW'S THAT? EVERYBODY CAN HEAR ME ONLINE.
I'M ELLEN MAGNUS, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF FAMILY GATEWAY.
I HAVE BEEN HERE, I JUST FINISHED MY EIGHTH ANNIVERSARY, SO JULY.
UM, IT'S BEEN A VERY LONG EIGHT YEARS.
I WILL TELL YOU, UH, WE HAVE, UM, OUR AGENCY ACTS AS THE PRIMARY ACCESS POINT FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN WHO ARE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS IN DALLAS AND COLLIN COUNTIES, WHICH MEANS WE ANSWER A 24 7 HELPLINE AND FAMILIES WHO MIGHT APPEAR AT OTHER AGENCIES WHO ARE EITHER IMMINENTLY OR LITERALLY HOMELESS, ARE ROUTED TO US TO TAKE CARE OF.
AND SO WE OPERATE THE ONLY EMERGENCY SHELTERS FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN THAT ARE NOT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RELATED, UM, IN DALLAS AND COLLIN COUNTY.
AND, UM, WE HAVE ALSO CHANGED OUR MODEL OF OPERATING OVER THE LAST, I WOULD SAY, SEVEN YEARS TO TRY TO BUILD ADDITIONAL CAPACITY TO SERVE MORE FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN.
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HI, I'M KAREN HUGHES.I'M THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OF VOGEL.
UM, AND I'VE BEEN THERE FOR 14 YEARS.
UM, VOGEL, AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, HAVE BEEN AROUND LITERALLY 38 YEARS, AND I ALWAYS TELL THE STORY WITH ELLEN.
UM, VOGEL LITERALLY STARTED 38 YEARS AGO IN A ALCO IN THE DOWNTOWN FAMILY SHELTER, WHICH IS NOW FAMILY GATEWAY.
SO, UM, WE LITERALLY HAVE BEEN JOINED AT THE HIP FROM THE BEGINNING, BUT VOGEL'S A LITTLE UNIQUE, AND ACTUALLY WE'VE GROWN A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE ALL THAT VOGEL DOES.
UM, SO WE KINDA ARE THE CENTER, WHAT I CALL THE CENTER OF THE SPOKE WHEN IT COMES TO CHILD AND FAMILY HOMELESSNESS.
BECAUSE VOGEL PROVIDES THE SUPPORT SERVICES.
WE DO NOT PROVIDE HOUSING, WE PROVIDE THE, UM, SUPPORT SERVICES THAT GO AROUND THAT.
AND FOR THAT REASON, WE DO NOT RECEIVE HUD FUNDING, UM, IN ORDER TO DO OUR WORK BECAUSE WE, HUD DOES NOT FUND SUPPORT SERVICES.
BUT THE THING THAT'S IMPORTANT TO MOBILE IS THAT IN TERMS OF OUR PROGRAMS, THE KIDS THAT COME TO US ARE ALL HOMELESS UPON ENTRY, BUT WE DO EXPAND IT.
SO OUR, WE USE THE HUD DEFINITION OF HOMELESSNESS WELL AS THE BIKINI BENTO DEFINITION OF HOMELESS.
SO SOME OF THE CHILDREN THAT COME TO US ARE ALSO DOUBLED UP.
THEY MAY BE IN HOTELS, THEY MAY BE IN THEIR CARS, SO THAT'S WHEN THEY COME IN.
BUT THE OTHER IMPORTANT THING IS, IS THAT ONCE THEY GET INTO THE VOGELS PROGRAMS, WHEN THEIR CHILDREN AND WE HELP THEM GET HOUSING AND HO AND, UM, JOBS, THEY DO NOT HAVE TO LEAVE VO.
SO THEY ACTUALLY CAN STAY WITH US TO RE CONTINUE TO RE SERVICES UNTIL THEIR CHILDREN GO TO KINDERGARTEN.
AND SO THAT MEANS THAT WE ACTUALLY ARE ABLE TO HELP PEOPLE THAT ARE RECOVERING FROM HOMELESS AS WELL AS THOSE THAT ARE VIRTUALLY HOMELESS.
AND ON A GIVEN DAY, IT'S ABOUT 50 50.
UM, BUT THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHAT WE FIND IS THOSE ARE THE MOMS THAT REALLY NEED THE EXTRA SERVICES THAT ARE LITERALLY OUT THERE IN THE COMMUNITY ON THEIR OWN.
BUT THE OTHER THING I'D LIKE TO THINK OF IS A LOT OF PEOPLE WHEN THEY HEAR VOGEL OR KNOW ABOUT VOGEL, THEY SAY, OH, THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT DO CHILDCARE, UM, FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD, FOR, FOR HOMELESS KIDS.
AND WE ARE VERY PROUD OF OUR QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM THAT WE LITERALLY ARE NOW ABLE TO OFFER IN THREE SITES AND SOON WILL BE FOUR SITES.
BUT WE ALSO OFFER DEVELOPMENTAL SERVICES, UM, SPEECH THERAPY, OCCUPATIONAL PHYSICAL THERAPY ON SITE FOR OUR KIDS.
WE OFFER A FOOD SERVICE PROGRAM.
WE OFFER, WE HAVE A HEALTH CLINIC ON SITE, UM, WITH OUR NURSES ON SITE.
WE ALSO HAVE, UH, WORK WITH PARKLAND OF COURSE, BUT WE ALSO HAVE A, A MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM THAT LITERALLY HAS BEEN BURSTING AT THE SCENE.
SO WE HAVE TWO CHILD THERAPISTS ON SITE.
WE ALSO HAVE TWO ADULT CLINICAL MENTAL HEALTH THERAPIST ON SITE.
UM, AND WE ALSO PROVIDE THAT AFTER HOURS SO THAT MOMS THAT ARE WORKING CAN ACTUALLY CONTINUE THEIR MENTAL HEALTH THERAPY.
WE ALSO HAVE A MAJOR TEAM OF MASTER LEVEL LICENSED, UH, CASE MANAGERS THAT WORK WITH EACH OF OUR FAMILIES TO MOVE THEM FROM CRISIS TO STABILITY TO THRIVING.
AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A PARENT OPPORTUNITY CENTER THAT PROVIDES JOB READY TRAINING, LIKE GED CLASSES, WHICH WE ALSO OFFER IN THE EVENINGS.
UM, AND OTHER JOB READY THINGS.
WE HAVE A PROGRAM CALLED PROFESSIONAL U.
WE DO CAREER READY TRAINING, AND THEN WE ALSO DO NETWORKING AND SUPPORT FOR OUR FAMILIES AND PROVIDE THEM RESOURCES, UM, THAT THEY MAY NEED.
WE DO HAVE IT, WE OPERATE AT OUR MAIN SITE, UM, WHICH IS A, UH, ANO STREET, BUT WE'VE ALSO OPERATE, UM, AT THE EMERGENCY SHELTER, UM, WITH FAMILY GATEWAY IN NORTH DALLAS.
AND SOON, HOPEFULLY IN THE FALL, WE WILL BE OPENING OUR NEW SITE AT REDBIRD.
SO A LOT'S GOING ON, I'M HOPING.
WELL, I I THINK YOU'VE JUST PROVED THE POINT ABOUT HOW ACCOMPLISHED BOTH OF YOU ARE.
SO I'D LIKE TO KICK IT OFF AND ASK, UH, MY VICE CHAIR IF SHE WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE FIRST QUESTION.
AND FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR COMING AND TAKING TIME OUT OF YOUR DAY, WHICH I KNOW IS AS FRANTIC AND FULL OF DOING THE SERVICES THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
UM, PROBABLY MORE HOURS THAN THAN ANY OF US WOULD LIKE TO, UM, ADMIT TO.
UM, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I GET OUT OF BOTH OF YOUR, YOUR PRESENTATION SO FAR IS HAVING, HAVING WORKED WITH HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS FOR A LITTLE BIT, PART OF IT IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE ARE WE CREATING A BENCHMARK SO THAT YOU CAN FIGURE OUT WHETHER THE THINGS THAT WE ARE DOING ARE HELPING.
AND SO I GUESS IT'S A TWO PART QUESTION.
FROM THE NUMBERS THAT HAVE BEEN PRESENTED, IT APPEARS THAT RAW NUMBERS OF HOMELESSNESS, HOWEVER YOU'RE GONNA DEFINE IT, HAVE BEEN INCREASING.
AND SO PART OF IT IS, IS THAT THE SAME PEOPLE? AND THEN THE SECOND PART OF IT IS IN YOUR ESTIMATION OF THE NUMBER OF, UM, STRATEGIES
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THAT YOU USE TO ADDRESS HOMELESSNESS, WHICH ARE, DO YOU THINK ARE MORE PRODUCTIVE? AND THEREFORE, YOU KNOW, SHOULD WE REALLY BE, UM, UH, GEARING TOWARDS, IN ORDER TO BETTER ADDRESS THE CURRENT SITUATION? OH, THAT'S GREAT.YOU WANT ME TO GO? UM, IF, IF WE CAN PULL UP, I BROUGHT JUST SOME DATA TO SHARE.
THERE'S A COUPLE OF SLIDES THAT I WANNA JUST TALK THROUGH TO HELP ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
SO AS THE CENTRAL ACCESS POINT, WE DO ASSESSMENTS ON FAMILIES WHO WALK IN, CALL IN OR HIT OUR WEBSITE, AND WE DO AN INITIAL TRIAGE ASSESSMENT.
AND THESE, UM, THIS TOP LINE SHOWS PRE PANDEMIC 2019 TO LAST YEAR, 2023, THE LAST FULL YEAR THAT WE HAVE.
SO THESE ARE UNDUPLICATED ASSESSMENTS THAT WE DID AT THE POINT WHERE A FAMILY APPROACHED US.
AND SO YOU CAN SEE FROM 2019, WE DID ABOUT 3000 ASSESSMENTS IN 2023, ABOUT 5,600 ASSESSMENTS.
SO THOSE ARE ALL FAMILIES WHO HAVE REACHED OUT TO US, UM, OR HAVE BEEN BROUGHT TO US BY A PARTNER, YOU KNOW, YOU NAME IT, ANY WHICH WAY THEY COME IN.
NOW, SOME OF THOSE ARE JUST INELIGIBLE.
THEY CALL, THEY'RE LOOKING, THEY DON'T HAVE ANY CHILDREN MAYBE THERE FROM TARRANT COUNTY.
WE TURN THEM AROUND AND SEND 'EM RIGHT BACK TO TARRANT COUNTY, RIGHT? SO THEY'RE OUTSIDE OF OUR SERVICE AREA, OR THEY'RE CALLING FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY TO SEE IF THEY CAN COME HERE.
AND WE SAY, NO, WE ONLY HAVE FAMILIES WHO HAVE, UM, A, A RELATIONSHIP IN DALLAS AND IN COLLIN COUNTY.
SO THERE'S A, A, A GROUP OF THOSE FAMILIES WHO ARE JUST NOT ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICES.
AND THEN WE LOOK AT THE URGENCY AND WE PRIORITIZE THOSE WHO ARE MOST URGENT AND IN NEED OF CARE AS THE PEOPLE WE HIT FIRST, SORT OF LIKE AN EMERGENCY ROOM IS GONNA TAKE THE MOST CRITICAL PATIENTS TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE.
SO YOU'LL SEE IN 2019, THE 738 FAMILIES REPORTED TO US THAT THEY WERE LIVING IN THEIR CAR LAST YEAR, THAT WAS 1,241.
AND THEN YOU CAN GO DOWN THIS LIST TO SEE WHERE ELSE ARE THEY.
THEY'RE LIVING OUT OF HOTELS, THEY'RE RUNNING OUTTA MONEY, THEY'RE IN ANOTHER SHELTER.
THIS IS TYPICALLY A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTER.
AND THEIR TIMING OUT, UM, AND IT'S TIME FOR THEM TO LEAVE OR, UM, A NUMBER THAT HAS GROWN SIGNIFICANTLY IS PENDING EVICTION.
THAT'S A BIG NUMBER THAT'S GONE UP SINCE PRE PANDEMIC.
SO PRE PANDEMIC 218 FAMILIES LAST YEAR, 7 0 9.
SO WHAT WE CAN SEE IS THAT THERE ARE MORE FAMILIES TRYING TO ENTER THE SYSTEM.
UH, THERE IS ANOTHER CATEGORY OF FAMILIES, UH, THAT FIT THAT BROADER MCKINNEY-VENTO DEFINITION, WHICH MEANS THEY DON'T HAVE A STABLE PLACE TO LIVE, BUT THEY'RE NOT IN A PLACE OF CRISIS YET.
WE CAN'T GET TO THOSE FAMILIES.
WE ARE SO CONSUMED WITH ALL OF THESE FAMILIES WHO HAVE URGENCY THAT WE ACTUALLY CAN'T DIP DOWN INTO THAT POPULATION YET.
AND SO WHAT YOU CAN SEE IS, AND IF YOU'LL GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, WE THEN TARGET OUR RESOURCES ON THOSE FAMILIES WHO ARE MOST URGENT, SO WHO ARE LIVING IN THEIR CARS, ET CETERA.
AND SO THE BIG STRATEGY THAT WE SHIFTED TO ABOUT SEVEN YEARS AGO WAS PUTTING RESOURCES INTO A PRACTICE CALLED DIVERSION.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO DIVERT THEM OUT OF THE SYSTEM INSTEAD OF HAVING THEM HIT THE SYSTEM.
SO LAST YEAR WE WERE ABLE TO DIVERT 1200 OF THOSE FAMILIES WHO WE DETERMINED WERE IN A STATE OF URGENCY.
THEY DID NOT HAVE TO ENTER THE SYSTEM.
ANOTHER 872 FAMILIES REQUIRED EMERGENCY SHELTER.
AND OF THOSE, WE SERVED ABOUT 639 OF THOSE.
AND WHEN OUR EMERGENCY SHELTERS ARE FULL FOR FAMILIES, WE OVERFLOW INTO HOTELS TO SORT OF INCREASE AND EXPAND OUR CAPACITY WHEN WE HAVE TO.
SO, UM, AND THEN THERE'S A GROUP OF FAMILIES WHO CALL US OR WALK IN AND SAY THEY'RE IN THIS PLACE OF CRISIS.
AND THEN ONCE WE START TALKING TO THEM, OR MAYBE THEY CALL AND THEN WE CALL THEM BACK, THEY'VE ALREADY RESOLVED THEIR ISSUE OR THEY'VE, UM, THEY HAD A VERY PARTICULAR THING IN MIND THAT THEY WANTED.
I I WAS COMING TO YOU TO GET A VOUCHER.
WE'RE NOT THE HOLDERS OF THE VOUCHERS.
SO THERE ARE FAMILIES WHO JUST COME OFF AND, AND WE DON'T PROVIDE ANY SERVICES TO IN THAT.
SO, SO THAT'S A LONG WAY TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION.
WE'RE SEEING MORE FAMILIES IN CRISIS COMING TO US FOR SERVICES IN ONE OF THE PRIMARY WAYS THAT WE'RE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT IS BY DIVERTING THEM.
AND SO WE'VE, WE'VE SPENT A LOT OF RESOURCE OVER THE LAST SEVEN YEARS TO DIVERT FAMILIES SO THAT THEY DON'T HIT THE SYSTEM.
AND IF YOU LOOK AT, WE KNOW THE POINT IN TIME COUNT IS IMPERFECT.
BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE DATA FROM THE, THIS YEAR'S POINT IN TIME COUNT TO
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LAST YEAR'S, WE ACTUALLY SAW A DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF FAMILIES WHO HAD HIT THE SYSTEM.SO THAT TELLS US DIRECTIONALLY WE'RE DOING THE RIGHT THING.
SO HOW DO YOU RECONCILE THOSE PIECES OF INFORMATION? BECAUSE WE DIVERTED MOST OF THEM AWAY.
SO YOU FEEL, UH, UH, CHAIR KARA MENDELSON.
PRESENT, UH, LAKEISHA TOWNSEND.
WE CANNOT HEAR THE, THE SPEAKER.
TELL ME IF YOU CAN HEAR ME RIGHT, ROB? YES.
PEOPLE ARE SHAKING THEIR HEAD.
AND THEN ROBERT, WILL YOU SPEAK INTO THE MICROPHONE AND LET'S SEE IF THEY'LL SHAKE THEIR HEAD IF THEY CAN HEAR YOU.
HELLO? OKAY, NOW THEY CAN HEAR YOU.
CAN YOU HAVE TO BE YOU ROBERT? YOU LEAN I NEVER HAD THIS PROBLEM BEFORE.
YEAH, YOU LEANED IN VERY CLOSE TO SAY HELLO.
AND I THINK YOU HAVE TO BE THAT CLOSE TO THE MICROPHONE.
DO I GET MY TWO MINUTES BACK? I'M GONNA LET YOU START ALL OVER, BUT GO VERY CLOSE TO THE MICROPHONE, OKAY? OKAY.
UM, I WALK OUTSIDE THERE AND LOOK AT, IT'S SO DISGUSTING AND I'M SURPRISED THAT IT'S HAPPENING AND NOW IT'S NOT THERE AND WE'LL SEE WHAT'S GOING ON.
BUT, UH, I'LL BE HERE EVERY MONTH.
I'LL BE CITY COUNCIL EVERY MONTH.
START TO PROCESS ALL OVER AGAIN.
[00:30:01]
EDUCATION AND HOMELESSNESS.THEY DID A, A SURVEY AFTER DOCTOR, UH, AFTER THE MAYOR'S FIRST TERM, GAR GARIN, HART YANG RESEARCH GROUP.
THE FIR TOP THREE ISSUES FOR PUBLIC SAFETY, EDUCATION AND HOMELESSNESS.
WHY IS IT HOMELESSNESS IS ALWAYS ABOVE? UH, THAT, THAT THE CROWD WANTED TO, THE, THE, UH, PEOPLE ARE VERY INTERESTED IN TAKING CARE OF.
WHY IS THERE ONLY 1% MONEY? TALKS YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT HOMELESSNESS BECAUSE IN THE BUDGET AND IN THE, AND THE BOND ELECTION, IT'S ALWAYS 1%, $500 MILLION FOR, UH, STREET REPAIRS THAT'S BELOW HOMELESSNESS AND ONLY 19 MILLION FOR HOMELESSNESS.
THAT SHOULD END THE QUESTION ABOUT ANY, ANY RUMORS OR ANYTHING.
AND THAT'S BEEN GOING ON FOR ABOUT SEVEN, EIGHT YEARS AT LEAST.
OKAY? YOU HEAR ME, KARA? AND, UH, UM, I'M JUST WORRIED ABOUT YOU AND DR. DANIEL ONE OH STRONG MAGA AND THE OTHER ONE'S STRAIGHT LIBERAL.
HEY, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.
AND THAT'S LIKE I SAID, ERIC JOHNSON.
YOU GOT ME ON, YOU GOT ME ON MY PIECE AND QS NOW.
OKAY? AND, AND, UH, I'M JUST SAYING ONE BEFORE I IS THAT, UM, THE BOARDING HOMES, THEY SIT THERE AND NOT DO ANYTHING, GOES TO THE BUS PASSES.
CAROL, YOU MENTIONED LAST TIME I SAW YOU, YOU MENTIONED YOU KNOW WHERE TO GET THE BUS PASS, BUT YOU DIDN'T SAY WHERE.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE THAT DON'T HAVE ANY MONEY, BUT YOU, YOU GOT THE, YOU GOT THAT OPEN AT THE END OF THE MEETING.
OKAY? SO YOU CAN LET ME KNOW WHERE YOU, WHERE YOU GET THESE BUS PASSES AT.
YOU CAN PLEASE TELL ME, BUT THIS IS NOT POLITICS RIGHT NOW.
OKAY? BUT YOU AND DR. DANIEL AND KARA, YOU GOTTA SPLIT.
YOU GOT TO BECAUSE IT'S LIKE, YES, BECAUSE WHAT, WHAT MR. JOHNSON DID.
KARA THE STRONG ALLY OF MR. JOHNSON.
YOU UNDERSTAND ME? I MEAN, THERE'S NOTHING, NOTHING HARD ABOUT THAT.
OKAY? SO THAT'S YOUR TWO MINUTES.
AND THERE WAS ONE OTHER, ONE OTHER SPEAKER.
OH, SORRY, MY TIMER JUST WENT OFF.
AND, UH, I AM HERE BECAUSE I'M DOING A COMMUNITY INTERVENTION PROJECT AND I HAVE CHOSEN HOMELESSNESS TODAY.
UM, I LIVE IN OAK CLIFF AND, UM, I'VE NOTICED THAT THERE'S AN INCREASE OF HOMELESSNESS IN MY AREA.
SO THAT'S THE REASON WHY I CHOSE, UM, HOMELESSNESS TODAY.
UM, I, AS I WAS DOING MY RESEARCH, I FOUND OUT THAT THERE'S A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, OTHER COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS THE HERITAGE OAK, CLIFF, OAK CLIFF, CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, MISSION, OAK CLIFF, AND JUST OTHERS THAT, YOU KNOW, TRY TO KEEP, UM, OAK CLIFF TOGETHER.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, OAK CLIFF HAS BEEN EXPERIENCING A HIGH END CITIZEN HOMELESSNESS.
AND SOME OF THE COMMON CAUSES ARE, UM, POVERTY, LACK OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING, PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES.
SO ONE OF MY PROPOSAL, UM, HAS BEEN, UH, TO WORK WITH ORGANIZATIONS THAT SPECIALIZE IN HOMELESSNESS SUCH AS HOUSING FORWARD AND THE OUR NEIGHBORS COALITION.
UM, ALSO, UM, I FEEL THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO ENGAGE WITH LOCAL RESIDENTS, BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITY LEADERS TO, AND JUST STAND THE CONCERNS AND GATHER INPUT ON FINDING THE BEST WAYS TO ADDRESS HOMELESSNESS.
ALSO INVOLVING CITY OFFICIALS, UH, PUBLIC AGENCIES IS ALSO CRUCIAL FOR CREATING EFFECTIVE POLICIES AND SECURING NECESSARY RESOURCES AND IMPLEMENTING COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTIONS.
ANOTHER, UH, PROGRAM THAT I, YOU KNOW, THINK THAT IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA WOULD BE TO CREATE, UH, WHAT I CALL A NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH PROGRAM, UM, WHICH WOULD BE A PROGRAM THAT IT'S, UM, ONLY IN IN OAK CLIFF.
I FEEL THAT IF WE CAN, UH, GET LOCAL, UM, VOLUNTEERS THAT ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE AREA, WE COULD HAVE, YOU KNOW, BETTER, BETTER, MORE SUCCESS.
WE COULD OBTAIN GRANTS FROM DON, UH, FROM DONATIONS, FROM INDIVIDUALS CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS, UH, CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS, AND ALSO GOVERNMENT, UH, SOURCES.
OKAY? I'M SORRY, THAT'S YOUR TWO MINUTES, BUT FEEL FREE TO SEND AN EMAIL TO US YES.
OKAY, BECAUSE IT WAS ACTUALLY LONGER, SO I TRY TO MAKE IT SHORT.
THAT CONCLUDES YOUR SPEAKERS, MADAM CHAIR.
UM, SO OUR NEXT ITEM IS APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM APRIL 4TH.
[00:35:01]
IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE? IS ANYBODY HAVE ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS, CORRECTIONS, CHANGES? NO.ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE SAY AYE.
MOTIONS ARE APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.
OUR NEXT ITEM IS, UM, A PANEL DISCUSSION, AND I WANNA WELCOME TODAY'S PANEL DISCUSSION.
IT'S OUR NON-FAMILY VIOLENCE, FAMILY HOMELESS PROVIDERS, AND WE'RE SO GLAD TO SEE YOU TODAY.
FEEL FREE TO MOVE UP TO, UM, THE FRONT.
SO, BECAUSE OF THE VERY POWERFUL PRESENTATION WE HAD AT THE DALLAS AREA PARTNERSHIP ON ANY HOMELESS MEETING BY THE DALLAS ISD HOMELESS LIAISON, IT WAS CLEAR THAT A DEEPER DIVE INTO THE STATE OF HOMELESSNESS FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES WAS NEEDED.
SO OUR SUMMER RETREAT FOR THE DALLAS AREA PARTNERSHIP DIDN'T WORK OUT WITH CALENDARS, BUT SO LAST MONTH I WAS VERY HAPPY TO ACT IN MY CITY COUNCIL CAPACITY TO CO-HOST THE PANEL DISCUSSION ALONG WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT RANDY, UH, SHACKMAN FROM CARROLLTON FARMERS FRANCHISE D CHRIS POTE, THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT FROM RICHARDSON, ISD, NANCY HUMPHREY, THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESIDENT FROM PLANO, ISD, AND TRUSTEE MAXIE JOHNSON FROM DALLAS ISD.
AND WE WERE HONORED TO HOST THE HOMELESS LIAISONS FROM EACH OF THOSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS FOR AN EXTREMELY INTERESTING PANEL.
THE HOMELESS LIAISONS WERE IMPRESSIVE.
THEY'RE DOING THE KIND OF INTENSE, INSPIRING WORK THAT I THINK WE ALL LOVE TO SEE.
WHAT WE HEARD FROM THE PANEL, THOUGH, WAS TRULY DISHEARTENING AND FRIGHTENING FOR WHAT SO MANY OF OUR YOUTH ARE GOING THROUGH AT SUCH A PIVOTAL TIME IN THEIR LIFE.
AND MANY OF THE ATTENDEES HAVE SHARED WITH ME SINCE THAT THEY LEARNED IMPORTANT THINGS AND IT CHANGED HOW THEY VIEWED THE NEED OF THE STUDENTS AND FAMILIES AS WELL AS THE STAFF.
SO I HOPE YOU HAD A CHANCE TO WATCH IT.
A LINK WAS PROVIDED WITH, UM, THE AGENDA NOTICE.
I'M NOT SURE IF IT WAS ACTUALLY POSTED ON THIS AGENDA, IT WAS NOT.
UM, BUT IF WE COULD GO AHEAD AND INCLUDE THAT LINK TO THAT, UM, SESSION IN OUR MINUTES, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT SO THAT IT'S EASY FOR PEOPLE TO FIND.
DURING THE PANEL THAT WE HAD, UM, I STARTED GETTING A NUMBER OF MESSAGES AND THEY WERE ASKING IF WE WOULD CONTINUE THIS CONVERSATION WITH THE FAMILY, HOMELESS SERVICE PROVIDERS, AND POSSIBLY HAVE OTHER PANELS WITH LIKE-MINDED GROUPS TO SHED LIGHT ON VERY SPECIFIC ISSUES THAT AREN'T USUALLY HIGHLIGHTED.
SO I'M VERY HAPPY TO REPORT THAT OUR TWO GUESTS IMMEDIATELY SAID THEY'D BE VERY HAPPY TO COME TALK TO US IN THAT SAME KIND OF FORMAT.
AND SO TODAY'S PLAN IS FOR US TO ASK THEM AN INTRODUCTORY QUESTION, WHICH WILL PROBABLY TAKE ABOUT FIVE MINUTES FOR EACH OF THEM TO ANSWER.
AND THEN JUST DO A ROUND ROBIN OF OUR COMMISSION MEMBERS PRESENT.
AND IF YOU'D LIKE TO ASK THEM A QUESTION, ANYTHING THAT'S ON YOUR MIND, UM, YOU'RE CERTAINLY WELL WELCOME TO DO SO.
THOSE QUESTIONS WILL PROBABLY LIMIT TO JUST ONE OR TWO MINUTES, UNLESS YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S A NEED TO GO FURTHER.
UM, OUR TWO GUESTS KNOW EACH OTHER VERY WELL, LITERALLY WORK IN THE SAME BUILDING AT THE SAME AT THIS TIME.
AND SO I THINK THAT THERE'LL BE SOME INTERESTING INTERPLAY BETWEEN THEIR ANSWERS.
SO JOINING US TODAY, WE HAVE TWO EXTREMELY ACCOMPLISHED WOMEN WHO I GREATLY ADMIRE.
UM, ELLEN MAGNUS IS THE CEO FOR FAMILY GATEWAY, KAREN HUGHES, CEO FOR VOGEL ALCOVE.
THEY BOTH HAVE AN EXTREMELY IMPRESSIVE TRACK RECORD AND ARE WIDELY KNOWN IN THE COMMUNITY FOR THEIR LEADERSHIP AND RESULTS.
I'D LIKE TO CONGRATULATE FAMILY GATEWAY, WHO JUST LAST WEEK WAS AWARDED THE D MAGAZINE, NONPROFIT LARGE ORGANIZATION OF THE YEAR.
I HOPE YOU'LL BE ABLE TO LISTEN, LEARN, ASK QUESTIONS, AND CONTRIBUTE IDEAS.
SO LET'S GET STARTED WITH ELLEN AND KAREN INTRODUCING THEMSELVES AND THEIR AGENCY.
AND IF YOU CAN TELL US HOW LONG YOU'VE BEEN THERE AND JUST SORT OF AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT THE AGENCY DOES AND HOW THINGS ARE GOING AT YOUR NONPROFIT.
THAT'S YOUR, YOUR BIG WIDE FIVE MINUTES.
TELL US WHAT YOU WANT US TO KNOW.
HOW'S THAT? EVERYBODY CAN HEAR ME ONLINE.
I'M ELLEN MAGNUS, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF FAMILY GATEWAY.
I HAVE BEEN HERE, I JUST FINISHED MY EIGHTH ANNIVERSARY, SO JULY.
UM, IT'S BEEN A VERY LONG EIGHT YEARS.
I WILL TELL YOU, UM, WE HAVE, UM, OUR AGENCY ACTS AS THE PRIMARY ACCESS POINT FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN WHO ARE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS IN DALLAS AND COLLIN COUNTIES, WHICH MEANS WE ANSWER A 24 7 HELPLINE AND FAMILIES WHO MIGHT APPEAR AT OTHER AGENCIES WHO ARE EITHER IMMINENTLY OR LITERALLY HOMELESS, ARE ROUTED TO US TO TAKE CARE OF.
AND SO WE OPERATE THE ONLY EMERGENCY SHELTERS FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN THAT ARE NOT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RELATED, UM, IN DALLAS AND COLLIN COUNTY.
[00:40:01]
UM, WE HAVE ALSO CHANGED OUR MODEL OF OPERATING OVER THE LAST, I WOULD SAY, SEVEN YEARS TO TRY TO BUILD ADDITIONAL CAPACITY TO SERVE MORE FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN.OH, NOW, HI, I'M KAREN HUGHES.
I'M THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OF VOGEL.
UM, AND I'VE BEEN THERE FOR 14 YEARS.
UM, VOGEL, AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, HAVE BEEN AROUND LITERALLY 38 YEARS.
AND I ALWAYS TELL THE STORY WITH ELLEN.
UM, VOGEL LITERALLY STARTED 38 YEARS AGO IN A ALCO IN THE DOWNTOWN FAMILY SHELTER, WHICH IS NOW FAMILY GATEWAY.
SO, UM, WE LITERALLY HAVE BEEN JOINED AT THE HIP FROM THE BEGINNING, BUT VOGEL'S A LITTLE UNIQUE AND ACTUALLY WE'VE GROWN AND A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE ALL THAT VOGEL DOES.
UM, SO WE KINDA ARE THE CENTER, WHAT I CALL THE CENTER OF THE SPOKE WHEN IT COMES TO CHILD AND FAMILY HOMELESSNESS, BECAUSE VOGEL PROVIDES THE SUPPORT SERVICES.
WE DO NOT PROVIDE HOUSING, WE PROVIDE THE, UM, SUPPORT SERVICES THAT GO AROUND THAT.
AND FOR THAT REASON, WE DO NOT RECEIVE HUD FUNDING, UM, IN ORDER TO DO OUR WORK BECAUSE WE, HUD DOES NOT FUND SUPPORT SERVICES.
BUT THE THING THAT'S IMPORTANT TO MOBILE IS THAT IN TERMS OF OUR PROGRAMS, THE KIDS THAT COME TO US ARE ALL HOMELESS UPON ENTRY, BUT WE DO EXPAND IT.
SO OUR, WE USE THE HUD DEFINITION OF HOMELESSNESS WELL AS THE BIKINI BENTO DEFINITION OF HOMELESS.
SO SOME OF THE CHILDREN THAT COME TO US ARE ALSO DOUBLED UP.
THEY MAY BE IN HOTELS, THEY MAY BE IN THEIR CARS, SO THAT'S WHEN THEY COME IN.
BUT THE OTHER IMPORTANT THING IS, IS THAT ONCE THEY GET INTO THE VOGELS PROGRAMS, WHEN THEIR CHILDREN AND WE HELP THEM GET HOUSING AND HO AND, UM, JOBS, THEY DO NOT HAVE TO LEAVE VOGEL.
SO THEY ACTUALLY CAN STAY WITH US TO RE CONTINUE TO RE SERVICES UNTIL THEIR CHILDREN GO TO KINDERGARTEN.
AND SO THAT MEANS THAT WE ACTUALLY ARE ABLE TO HELP PEOPLE THAT ARE RECOVERING FROM HOMELESS AS WELL AS THOSE THAT ARE VIRTUALLY HOMELESS.
AND ON A GIVEN DAY, IT'S ABOUT 50 50.
UM, BUT THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHAT WE FIND IS THOSE ARE THE MOMS THAT REALLY NEED THE EXTRA SERVICES THAT ARE LITERALLY OUT THERE IN THE COMMUNITY ON THEIR OWN.
BUT THE OTHER THING I'D LIKE TO THINK OF IS A LOT OF PEOPLE WHEN THEY HEAR VOGEL OR KNOW ABOUT VOGEL, THEY SAY, OH, THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT DO CHILDCARE, UM, FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD FOR, FOR HOMELESS KIDS.
AND WE ARE VERY PROUD OF OUR QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM THAT WE LITERALLY ARE NOW ABLE TO OFFER IN THREE SITES AND SOON WILL BE FOUR SITES.
BUT WE ALSO OFFER DEVELOPMENTAL SERVICES, UM, SPEECH THERAPY, OCCUPATIONAL PHYSICAL THERAPY ON SITE FOR OUR KIDS.
WE OFFER A FOOD SERVICE PROGRAM.
WE OFFER, WE HAVE A HEALTH CLINIC ON SITE, UM, WITH OUR NURSES ON SITE.
WE ALSO HAVE, UH, WORK WITH PARKLAND OF COURSE, BUT WE ALSO HAVE A, A MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM THAT LITERALLY HAS BEEN BURSTING AT THE SCENE.
SO WE HAVE TWO CHILD THERAPISTS ON SITE.
WE ALSO HAVE TWO ADULT CLINICAL MENTAL HEALTH THERAPIST ON SITE.
UM, AND WE ALSO PROVIDE THAT AFTER HOURS SO THAT MOMS THAT ARE WORKING CAN ACTUALLY CONTINUE THEIR MENTAL HEALTH THERAPY.
WE ALSO HAVE A MAJOR TEAM OF MASTER LEVEL LICENSED, UH, CASE MANAGERS THAT WORK WITH EACH OF OUR FAMILIES TO MOVE THEM FROM CRISIS TO STABILITY TO THRIVING.
AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A PARENT OPPORTUNITY CENTER THAT PROVIDES JOB READY TRAINING, LIKE GED CLASSES, WHICH WE ALSO OFFER IN THE EVENINGS.
UM, AND OTHER JOB READY THINGS.
WE HAVE A PROGRAM CALLED PROFESSIONAL U.
WE DO CAREER READY TRAINING, AND THEN WE ALSO DO NETWORKING AND SUPPORT FOR OUR FAMILIES AND PROVIDE THEM RESOURCES, UM, THAT THEY MAY NEED.
WE DO HAVE IT, WE OPERATE AT OUR MAIN SITE, UM, WHICH IS AT, AT GANO STREET, BUT WE'VE ALSO OPERATE, UM, AT THE EMERGENCY SHELTER, UM, WITH FAMILY GATEWAY IN NORTH DALLAS.
AND SOON, HOPEFULLY IN THE FALL, WE WILL BE OPENING OUR NEW SITE AT REDBIRD.
SO A LOT'S GOING ON, I HOPING.
WELL, I, I THINK YOU'VE JUST PROVED THE POINT ABOUT HOW ACCOMPLISHED BOTH OF YOU ARE.
SO I'D LIKE TO KICK IT OFF AND ASK, UH, MY VICE CHAIR IF SHE WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE FIRST QUESTION.
AND FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR COMING AND TAKING TIME OUT OF YOUR DAY, WHICH I KNOW IS AS FRANTIC AND FULL OF DOING THE SERVICES THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
UM, PROBABLY MORE HOURS THAN THAN ANY OF US WOULD LIKE TO, UM, ADMIT TO.
UM, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I GET OUT OF BOTH OF YOUR, YOUR PRESENTATION SO FAR IS HAVING, HAVING WORKED WITH HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS FOR A LITTLE BIT, PART OF IT IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE ARE WE CREATING A BENCHMARK SO THAT YOU CAN FIGURE OUT WHETHER THE THINGS THAT WE ARE DOING ARE HELPING.
AND SO I GUESS IT'S A TWO PART QUESTION.
FROM THE NUMBERS THAT HAVE BEEN PRESENTED, IT APPEARS THAT RAW NUMBERS
[00:45:01]
OF HOMELESSNESS, HOWEVER YOU'RE GONNA DEFINE IT, HAVE BEEN INCREASING.AND SO PART OF IT IS, IS THAT THE SAME PEOPLE? AND THEN THE SECOND PART OF IT IS IN YOUR ESTIMATION OF THE NUMBER OF, UM, STRATEGIES THAT YOU USE TO ADDRESS HOMELESSNESS, WHICH ARE, DO YOU THINK ARE MORE PRODUCTIVE? AND THEREFORE, YOU KNOW, SHOULD WE REALLY BE, UM, UH, GEARING TOWARDS, IN ORDER TO BETTER ADDRESS THE CURRENT SITUATION? OH, THAT'S GREAT.
YOU WANT ME TO GO? UM, IF, IF WE CAN PULL UP, I BROUGHT JUST SOME DATA TO SHARE.
THERE'S A COUPLE OF SLIDES THAT I WANNA JUST TALK THROUGH TO HELP ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
SO AS THE CENTRAL ACCESS POINT, WE DO ASSESSMENTS ON FAMILIES WHO WALK IN, CALL IN OR HIT OUR WEBSITE, AND WE DO AN INITIAL TRIAGE ASSESSMENT.
AND THESE, UM, THIS TOP LINE SHOWS PRE PANDEMIC 2019 TO LAST YEAR, 2023, THE LAST FULL YEAR THAT WE HAVE.
SO THESE ARE UNDUPLICATED ASSESSMENTS THAT WE DID AT THE POINT WHERE A FAMILY APPROACHED US.
AND SO YOU CAN SEE FROM 2019, WE DID ABOUT 3000 ASSESSMENTS IN 2023, ABOUT 5,600 ASSESSMENTS.
SO THOSE ARE ALL FAMILIES WHO HAVE REACHED OUT TO US, UM, OR HAVE BEEN BROUGHT TO US BY A PARTNER, YOU KNOW, YOU NAME IT, ANY WHICH WAY THEY COME IN.
NOW, SOME OF THOSE ARE JUST INELIGIBLE.
THEY CALL, THEY'RE LOOKING, THEY DON'T HAVE ANY CHILDREN MAYBE THERE FROM TARRANT COUNTY.
WE TURN THEM AROUND AND SEND 'EM RIGHT BACK TO TARRANT COUNTY, RIGHT? SO THEY'RE OUTSIDE OF OUR SERVICE AREA, OR THEY'RE CALLING FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY TO SEE IF THEY CAN COME HERE.
AND WE SAY, NO, WE ONLY HAVE FAMILIES WHO HAVE, UM, A, A RELATIONSHIP IN DALLAS AND IN COLLIN COUNTY.
SO THERE'S A, A, A GROUP OF THOSE FAMILIES WHO ARE JUST NOT ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICES.
AND THEN WE LOOK AT THE URGENCY AND WE PRIORITIZE THOSE WHO ARE MOST URGENT AND IN NEED OF CARE AS THE PEOPLE WE HIT FIRST, SORT OF LIKE AN EMERGENCY ROOM IS GONNA TAKE THE MOST CRITICAL PATIENTS TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE.
SO YOU'LL SEE IN 2019, THE 738 FAMILIES REPORTED TO US THAT THEY WERE LIVING IN THEIR CAR LAST YEAR, THAT WAS 1,241.
AND THEN YOU CAN GO DOWN THIS LIST TO SEE WHERE ELSE ARE THEY, THEY'RE LIVING OUT OF HOTELS, THEY'RE RUNNING OUTTA MONEY, THEY'RE IN ANOTHER SHELTER.
THIS IS TYPICALLY A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTER, AND THEY'RE TIMING OUT.
UM, AND IT'S TIME FOR THEM TO LEAVE OR, UM, A NUMBER THAT IS GROWN SIGNIFICANTLY IS PENDING EVICTION.
THAT'S A BIG NUMBER THAT'S GONE UP SINCE PRE PANDEMIC.
SO PRE PANDEMIC 218 FAMILIES LAST YEAR, 7 0 9.
SO WHAT WE CAN SEE IS THAT THERE ARE MORE FAMILIES TRYING TO ENTER THE SYSTEM.
UH, THERE IS ANOTHER CATEGORY OF FAMILIES, UH, THAT FIT THAT BROADER MCKINNEY-VENTO DEFINITION, WHICH MEANS THEY DON'T HAVE A STABLE PLACE TO LIVE, BUT THEY'RE NOT IN A PLACE OF CRISIS YET.
WE CAN'T GET TO THOSE FAMILIES.
WE ARE SO CONSUMED WITH ALL OF THESE FAMILIES WHO HAVE URGENCY THAT WE ACTUALLY CAN'T DIP DOWN INTO THAT POPULATION YET.
AND SO WHAT YOU CAN SEE IS, AND IF YOU'LL GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, WE THEN TARGET OUR RESOURCES ON THOSE FAMILIES WHO ARE MOST URGENT, SO WHO ARE LIVING IN THEIR CARS, ET CETERA.
AND SO THE BIG STRATEGY THAT WE SHIFTED TO ABOUT SEVEN YEARS AGO WAS PUTTING RESOURCES INTO A PRACTICE CALLED DIVERSION.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO DIVERT THEM OUT OF THE SYSTEM INSTEAD OF HAVING THEM HIT THE SYSTEM.
SO LAST YEAR WE WERE ABLE TO DIVERT 1200 OF THOSE FAMILIES WHO WE DETERMINED WERE IN A STATE OF URGENCY.
THEY DID NOT HAVE TO ENTER THE SYSTEM.
ANOTHER 872 FAMILIES REQUIRED EMERGENCY SHELTER.
AND OF THOSE, WE SERVED ABOUT 639 OF THOSE.
AND WHEN OUR EMERGENCY SHELTERS ARE FULL FOR FAMILIES, WE OVERFLOW INTO HOTELS TO SORT OF INCREASE AND EXPAND OUR CAPACITY WHEN WE HAVE TO.
SO, UM, AND THEN THERE'S A GROUP OF FAMILIES WHO CALL US OR WALK IN AND SAY THEY'RE IN THIS PLACE OF CRISIS.
AND THEN ONCE WE START TALKING TO THEM, OR MAYBE THEY CALL AND THEN WE CALL THEM BACK, THEY'VE ALREADY RESOLVED THEIR ISSUE OR THEY'VE, UM, THEY HAD A VERY PARTICULAR THING IN MIND THAT THEY WANTED.
I I WAS COMING TO YOU TO GET A VOUCHER.
WE'RE NOT THE HOLDERS OF THE VOUCHERS.
SO THERE ARE FAMILIES WHO JUST COME OFF AND, AND WE DON'T PROVIDE ANY SERVICES TO IN THAT.
SO, SO THAT'S A LONG WAY TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION.
WE'RE SEEING MORE FAMILIES IN CRISIS COMING TO US FOR SERVICES IN ONE OF THE PRIMARY WAYS THAT WE'RE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT IS BY
[00:50:01]
DIVERTING THEM.AND SO WE'VE, WE'VE SPENT A LOT OF RESOURCE OVER THE LAST SEVEN YEARS TO DIVERT FAMILIES SO THAT THEY DON'T HIT THE SYSTEM.
AND IF YOU LOOK AT, WE KNOW THE POINT IN TIME COUNT IS IMPERFECT.
THESE DATA ARE IMPERFECT, ALL OF IT'S IMPERFECT.
BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE DATA FROM THE, THIS YEAR'S POINT IN TIME COUNT TO LAST YEAR'S, WE ACTUALLY SAW A DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF FAMILIES WHO HAD HIT THE SYSTEM.
SO THAT TELLS US DIRECTIONALLY WE'RE DOING THE RIGHT THING.
SO HOW DO YOU RECONCILE THOSE PIECES OF INFORMATION? BECAUSE WE DIVERTED MOST OF THEM AWAY.
SO YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE THAT THE PIT COUNT, UM, EVEN THOUGH THE NUMBERS MAY BE A LITTLE INACCURATE, BUT THE POINT OF IT BEING IS THAT THE, UH, NUMBER OF PEOPLE LIVING ON THE STREETS ON THAT NIGHT FOR, FOR FAMILIES, FOR FAMILIES.
SO LET ME, LET ME CLARIFY WHAT GETS COUNTED DURING THE PIT COUNT FOR FAMILIES? OKAY, THE FAMILIES IN SHELTER, THE FAMILIES WE'RE PAYING FOR IN HOTEL ROOMS, THE FAMILIES IN TRANSITIONAL SHELTERS.
AND ANYBODY FOUND LIVING OUTSIDE FAMILIES ARE NOTORIOUSLY DIFFICULT BECAUSE TO COUNT IF THEY'RE OUTSIDE, BECAUSE THEY'RE IN THEIR CARS.
SO THAT'S NEVER GONNA BE PERFECT.
BUT WHAT WE KNOW IS THAT THESE INVESTMENTS THAT WE'VE MADE IN DIVERSION HAVE KEPT MORE FAMILIES FROM COMING INTO SHELTER.
AND WE LOOK BACK EVERY YEAR TO SEE THE DIVERTED FAMILIES, DID THEY COME BACK INTO THE SYSTEM? AND ABOUT 80% OF THE TIME, THAT ANSWER IS NO.
SO WE LIKE THAT INVESTMENT BECAUSE IT'S LESS EXPENSIVE AND IT KEEPS FAMILIES FROM COMING IN.
THE BIG CHALLENGE IS WE'VE BEEN RIDING ON SOME WONDERFUL JEFF BEZOS MONEY FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
THAT MONEY WILL BE GONE AT THE END OF THIS YEAR.
WE ALSO HAVE NO ARPA MONEY LEFT.
WE, WE, THAT HELPED US LAST YEAR.
WE WON'T HAVE ANY CITY MONEY LEFT AFTER THE END OF THIS YEAR.
SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS AND TO SORT OF HOLD THE DOOR AND KEEP PEOPLE FROM COMING IN BECAUSE WE'VE HAD THIS ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF EXTRA RESOURCE ALONG WITH ALL THAT PANDEMIC HOUSING MONEY THAT'S NOW GONE.
SO WE'RE NOW TO THE POINT WHERE I'M STARTING TO GET ANXIOUS ABOUT WHAT NEXT YEAR'S POINT IN TIME COUNT MIGHT LOOK LIKE, BECAUSE WE WON'T HAVE AS MUCH FUNDING TO SUPPORT DIVERTING ALL THESE FAMILIES.
WELL, FOR ME, I THINK THE ISSUE THAT WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT WHEN IT COMES TO FAMILIES IS, AGAIN, HUD'S MONEY IS GONNA BE USED TO HOUSE THOSE THAT ARE THE MOST CRITICAL.
THAT'S THE PURPOSE OF THAT MONEY, AND IT'S WHAT THEY HAVE TO BE USED FOR.
HOWEVER, WHAT WE'VE SEEN, IF YOU DON'T STAY WITH THESE FAMILIES AND HELP THEM AND CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THEM, IT'S INTERESTING, THE DATA WE HAVE IS THAT WHEN WE OPENED THE SHELTER AND HAVE THE CHILDREN THAT ARE IN OUR CHILDCARE CENTER AT THE SHELTER UP NORTH WITH FAMILY GATEWAY, I REALLY THOUGHT THOSE CHILDREN WOULD HAVE MORE CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS, MORE TRAUMA ISSUES ACTUALLY THAT'S, THAT HAS SEEN, THAT HAS COME TO BE NOT THE SAME.
THE KIDS THAT WE HAVE AT THEIR MAIN CAMPUS THAT ARE ACTUALLY IN HOUSING, THEY HAVE MUCH MORE PROBLEMS IN TERMS OF THEIR CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS, THEIR DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS, ALL OF THOSE THINGS, BECAUSE THAT WE'VE GOT TO KEEP THOSE SUPPORTS WITH THOSE FAMILIES.
AND SO IN OUR MINDS, SOMETIMES WE SEPARATE POVERTY AND WE SEPARATE HOMELESSNESS.
AND YES, FOR FUNDING IT HAS TO BE DONE.
BUT AS WE LOOK AT HOLISTICALLY FOR THE ORGAN FOR THE COMMUNITY, WE'VE GOT TO CONTINUE TO KEEP OUR ARMS WRAPPED AROUND.
I HAVE A PROGRAM CALLED CONNECTIONS, WHICH MEANS THAT OUR FAMILIES CAN STAY CONNECTED TO VOGEL A YEAR AFTER THEY LEAVE US.
JUST LAST WEEK WE RECEIVED SEVEN EMERGENCY CALLS FROM THAT POPULATION OF MOBS AND FAMILIES THAT WERE IN CRISIS.
SO WHAT WE DO, BECAUSE WE CONTINUE TO SERVE THEM, WE KEEP THEM FROM COMING BACK AROUND AND COMING BACK THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR AGAIN.
AND IF WE DON'T DO THAT, WE'VE GOTTA LOOK AT BOTH DOORS, WHAT THE INFLOW IS, WHAT THE OUTFLOW IS, AND THEN THAT WE'RE NOT HAVING THEM COME BACK AROUND.
AND MY MAJOR GOAL IS THAT THE CHILDREN IN MY CARE TODAY AT VOGEL WILL NOT BECOME HOMELESS ADULTS.
AND THAT IS WHAT WE HAVE TO STOP, THAT THESE, THIS RECURRING CYCLE.
AND I HAVE KIDS THAT THEIR MOTHER WAS HOMELESS AND THEIR GRANDMOTHER WAS HOMELESS, BUT WE HAVE TO STOP THAT CYCLE.
AND UNTIL WE CAN PUT POVERTY, THE WORK ORGANIZATION'S WORKING ON POVERTY AND HOMELESSNESS TOGETHER, THEY HAVE TO WORK HAND IN HAND.
UM, BUT SO MANY TIMES WE PUT THEM INTO DIFFERENT BUCKETS AND SILOS.
IT CERTAINLY SEEMS AS IF THERE ARE REASONS TO BE MODERATELY, UM, UH, HOPEFUL FROM BOTH OF YOUR EXPERIENCES WITH YOUR, THE CLIENTELE COMING TO THE RESIDENTS, THE PEOPLE COMING THROUGH YOUR ORGANIZATIONS,
[00:55:01]
UM, DOES THE, 'CAUSE I'VE ALSO HEARD FROM A VARIETY OF PLACES, THE, THE NUMBERS THAT YOU HAVE ON THE COMPARISON YEAR OVER YEAR, AND IT LOOKS LIKE OVERALL THAT THE NUMBERS ARE STILL INCREASING.SO DO THEY'RE THEY'RE INCREASING, BUT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO KEEP THEM OUT OF THE SYSTEM WITH THIS DIVERSION PRACTICE.
UM, ONCE THAT DIVERSION MONEY STARTS DRYING UP, IF WE'RE NOT ABLE TO REPLENISH IT, THEY WILL HIT THE SYSTEM, THEY WILL HIT THE STREETS AND WE WILL BE ABLE TO COUNT THEM MUCH MORE EASILY, WHICH IS NOT WHAT WE WANT.
WELL, AND ALSO FAMILY HOMELESSNESS IS HIDDEN.
YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ASK ME ALL THE TIME, WELL, WHY WOULD THERE BE HOMELESS FAMILIES? WHERE'S CPS? IT'S NOT A CPS OFFENSE TO BE HOMELESS.
IT'S A CPS OFFENSE TO BE NEGLECTFUL SO YOU WON'T SEE THEM.
AND EVEN IF THEY ARE ON THE STREET, THEY ARE SO HIDDEN BACK IN THE FOREST THAT YOU WOULD NEVER FIND THEM.
UM, BUT SO THAT'S THE OTHER THING IS BECAUSE IT'S NOT FRONT AND CENTER TO THE COMMUNITY, PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE IN CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS THAT YOU SEE ON THE STREET AND FAMILY HOMELESSNESS AND IT EXTREMELY DIFFERENT AND YOU HAVE TO SUPPORT THEM DIFFERENTLY.
TO GET AN APARTMENT FOR A SINGLE ADULT ON THE STREET IS A LOT EASIER THAN HAVING TO HAVE A MOM THAT WE JUST HAD COME INTO THE EMERGENCY SHELTER THAT HAD SIX KIDS ATTACHED TO HER.
I'VE GOTTA, WE'VE GOTTA THEN FIND HOUSING FOR THAT KIND OF A FAMILY.
AND THOSE KIND OF APARTMENTS ARE NUMBER ONE, THE COST IS VERY HIGH AND THE INVENTORY IS VERY HIGH.
SO THEY HAVE FAMILIES IN AND OF THEMSELVES HAVE A LOT MORE COMPLICATIONS THAN JUST HOUSING A CHRONIC ADULT.
AND I JUST WANNA SAY, I THINK YOU JUST SAID THE WORD BACKWARD, WHICH IS THAT THE COST IS VERY HIGH, BUT THE INVENTORY'S LOW.
UM, CHIEF HURLEY, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION TO ASK? UH, NO MA'AM.
I WAS JUST AGREEING WITH, UH, HER ASSESSMENT OF SINGLE PERSON VERSUS A FAMILY, UM, BECAUSE WE SEE THAT QUITE OFTEN AND THEN, UM, THE POINT IN TIME COUNTS, BUT NO MA'AM, I DID NOT HAVE A QUESTION.
UM, CAROL, LUCKY, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION? OKAY.
I'M JUST GOING DOWN THE LIST HERE.
HOW ABOUT YOU DAN? DAN ISHK? KEN, QUESTION? NO QUESTION.
KEN, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION? UH, NOT FOR ME.
UM, WHO WE GOT? AMANDA? NO, MA'AM.
I THINK NEXT UP I SEE ASHLEY, NO QUESTIONS.
DID I MISS ANYBODY?
I HAVE A, YEAH, SO I HAVE A QUESTION.
I, I GUESS MY ONE QUESTION WAS ON, UM, ON THE FUNDING SIDE, YOU, YOU MENTIONED, UH, YOU HAD KIND OF, UH, UH, BEZOS, YOU KNOW, AMAZON MONEY RUNNING OUT, ARPA RUNNING OUT, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE, UM, ADDITIONAL NEW SOURCES OF FUNDING THAT, OR ARE THERE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THAT, UH, VISA MONEY TO BE RENEWED FOR SOME PERIOD OF TIME? OR ARE YOU ALL HAVING TO GO OUT AND FIND JUST COMPLETELY NEW SOURCES OF FUNDING TO TRY TO BACKFILL THAT LOSS? MM, THANKS FOR THAT QUESTION, ROB.
SO THE WAY JEFF BEZOS'S FOUNDATION OPERATES IS HE, UM, ORGANIZES A NATIONAL COMMITTEE TO RECOMMEND SPECIFIC AGENCIES TO BE FUNDED.
AND SO BACK MULTIPLE YEARS AGO, I THINK 2019, WE GOT A SURPRISE OF $2.75 MILLION TO SPEND OVER A PERIOD OF YEARS.
HE TYPICALLY ONLY GIVES ONE TIME TO THAT AGENCY.
AND THEN AS A SORT OF A FOLLOW ON, HE WILL GIFT THE SYSTEM WITH SOME MONEY.
SO HOUSING FORWARD GOT A NICE GRANT FROM HIM, WHICH WE WERE THE AWARDEE OF THAT MONEY.
SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO RIDE ON HIS MONEY NOW IN THE TWO WAYS THAT HE GIVES TO AN INDIVIDUAL ORGANIZATION ONE TIME AND THEN TO THE SYSTEM.
ONE TIME, OF COURSE, I'VE GONE BACK TO THEM TO SAY, WE'VE HAD ALL THIS FANTASTIC SUCCESS AND I'M REALLY WORRIED NOW WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THIS MONEY GOES AWAY.
SO WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR WAYS TO REPLENISH THAT, AND WE'RE ASKING OTHER, UM, FOUNDATIONS AND INDIVIDUAL DONORS WHO ARE BIG
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DONORS OF OURS TO INCREASE THEIR GIVING TO HELP US OFFSET THAT LOSS.UM, AND WHAT, AND, AND WHAT, AND ALAN, WHAT, WHAT PERCENTAGE OF YOUR BUDGET IS THAT, YOU KNOW, ROUGHLY IS THAT GOING TO UH, YEAH, HOW MUCH THAT IMPACT YOU? YEAH.
UH, LAST YEAR WE HAD MORE THAN A MILLION DOLLARS OF ARPA MONEY AND WE HAD ABOUT $500,000 OF BEZOS MONEY.
SO WE HAVE A, A $6 MILLION BUDGET THIS YEAR.
SO WE'RE LOOKING AT A PRETTY BIG HIT FOR NEXT YEAR, BUT WE ARE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WAYS TO REPLENISH.
UM, BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S HARD TO GET THOSE KINDS OF DOLLARS.
THOSE ARE BIG DOLLARS FOR SURE.
OH, NO, I'VE GOT, SHE'S GOT A WHOLE LIST.
OH, LISTEN, I JUMP DOWN TO ONE BECAUSE PART OF IT IS WHILE WE'RE IN THIS PARTICULAR SETTING, WHAT CAN LOCAL GOVERNMENT BE DOING TO ASSIST TO BETTER HELP? I KNOW THAT BOTH THE CITY OF DALLAS AND DALLAS COUNTY HAVE EXPENDED A LOT OF MONEY IN A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS.
IS THAT, DOES, IS IT MATCHING UP IN YOUR OPINION, IN YOUR, THROUGH YOUR WORK, THROUGH YOUR EXPERIENCE? UM, ARE THERE OTHER THINGS THAT WE COULD BE THINKING OF IN PARTICULAR ON, OKAY, WHAT HAPPENS NOW WHEN ARPA FUNDS ARE NO LONGER HERE, THEN WE HAVE FEWER FUNDS TO SERVE THESE FAMILIES FROM A DIVERSION PERSPECTIVE, AND WE WON'T BE ABLE TO OVERFLOW INTO HOTELS WHEN SHELTERS ARE FULL.
AND SO THEN WE WILL START SEEING MORE PEOPLE OUTSIDE.
YOU SAY LOCAL GOVERNMENT CAN, CAN BRING MONEY, LOCAL GOVERNMENT CAN, HERE'S WHAT LOCAL GOV GOVERNMENT CAN DO.
THEY CAN ALLOCATE RESOURCES TO FAMILY HOMELESSNESS.
THEY CAN FIGHT FOR THINGS THAT WORKED DURING THE PANDEMIC THAT REALLY HELPED US.
AND THAT IS THINGS LIKE THERE DURING THE PANDEMIC, WE WERE THE RECIPIENT OF EMERGENCY HOUSING VOUCHERS FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO THE PUBLIC HOUSING AUTHORITIES.
AND THOSE VOUCHERS WERE SPECIFIC TO HOMELESSNESS, NOT IN THE LOTTERY.
SO ANY, SO THE WAY YOU GET A HOUSING VOUCHER IN OUR COMMUNITY IS YOU PUT YOUR NAME IN THE BUCKET AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY DRAWS ON A LOTTERY BASIS.
IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU'RE HOMELESS OR NOT HOMELESS, WE WOULD LOVE TO GET PRIORITY AND, UM, VOUCHERS DEDICATED TO HOMELESSNESS, MORE AND MORE OF THOSE RATHER THAN ANOTHER PERSON WHO IS HOUSED THAT MAYBE IS LOW INCOME AND CAN'T AFFORD, THEY'RE STABLE.
WE WOULD LOVE THAT TO SHIFT, LIKE WE SAW DURING THE PANDEMIC, WE GOT AN ABUNDANCE OF EMERGENCY HOUSING VOUCHERS, WHICH HELPED US MOVE FAMILIES OUT OF SHELTER EVERY 60 DAYS INSTEAD OF NOW EVERY 90 TO 120 DAYS.
SO TO INFLUENCE HOW VOUCHERS ARE MANAGED WOULD BE HUGE FOR US.
I WOULD ALSO SAY THAT DURING THE PANDEMIC, IF YOU REMEMBER, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CHANGED THE CHILD TAX CREDIT, WHICH PUT MORE MONEY INTO THE HANDS OF FAMILIES THAT SHOWED A UNBELIEVABLE RESULT IN DROPPING OR PULLING FAMILIES OUT OF POVERTY THAN IT WENT AWAY.
AND SO WHEN THE MONEY GOES INTO THE HANDS OF FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN, THEY'RE ABLE TO SUSTAIN THEMSELVES.
SO YOU COULD INFLUENCE FEDERAL POLICY THROUGH YOUR LOCAL MECHANISMS TO TRY TO GET THOSE GOOD, UM, PRACTICES BACK IN PLACE.
AND ACTUALLY THERE, THERE WAS A BILL ON THE FLOOR THIS WEEK, I'M SURE IT DIDN'T PASS, UM, TO RE-ESTABLISH THAT HIGHER AMOUNT FOR THE CHILD TAX CREDIT.
BUT THOSE ARE SOME THINGS THAT COULD BE DONE.
UM, THE OTHER THING YOU COULD DO IS HELP US INFLUENCE SO THAT WE GET AN ALLOCATION OF FUNDING FOR RAPID REHOUSING.
UM, MOST HOUSING FUNDING THROUGH FROM HUD GOES TO INDIVIDUALS, NOT AS WE GET A SMALLER PROPORTION.
WE'RE A SMALLER POPULATION OF COURSE, BUT IF WE HAD MORE RAPID REHOUSING TO EXIT FAMILIES TO, THEN WE COULD MOVE THEM THROUGH SHELTER QUICKLY AND USE, USE OUR RESOURCES MORE EFFICIENTLY.
SO YOU'RE, WHAT I'M GETTING FROM WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS LOOKING AT THE WHOLE PROCESS FROM THE LEGISLATIVE REGULATORY PIECE.
JUST BROADENING OUR PERSPECTIVES ON WHAT IT IS AND FOCUSING ON THAT.
YEAH, THOSE WERE SOME VERY EFFECTIVE THINGS THAT WE GOT DURING THE PANDEMIC.
AND THEN, AND THEN THEY WENT AWAY.
SOME SUGGESTIONS, THERE WERE OTHER GOOD THINGS THAT HAPPENED DURING THE PANDEMIC, SUCH AS ALL OF THE PRIVATE FOUNDATIONS IN OUR COMMUNITY LET US APPLY THROUGH ONE APPLICATION, AND THEN THEY ALL REVIEWED IT.
WE'RE RIGHT NOW, NOW THAT THE NEEDS ARE GREATER, WE'RE BACK TO SUBMITTING ONE APPLICATION AT A TIME.
SO YOU COULD INFLUENCE OUR PRIVATE FUNDERS TOO.
SO LET ME ASK YOU, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT STRUCK ME WHEN PEOPLE WERE ASKING FOR THIS DISCUSSION ABOUT FAMILY HOMELESSNESS
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AND, AND YOUTH IN GENERAL IS THERE WERE ONLY THE TWO OF YOU TO ASK, DO YOU THINK THERE ARE GAPS? DO YOU THINK YOU GUYS ACTUALLY HAVE EXPANDED YOUR PROGRAMS ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO FILL THE WHOLE NEED? AND IT'S OKAY THAT WE ONLY HAVE THE TWO PROVIDERS.UM, YOU CLEARLY WORK HAND IN HAND AND YOU KNOW, A GREAT MODEL OF THAT.
BUT WHAT DO YOU THINK NEEDS TO BE DONE TO ADDRESS THE RESPONSE TO FAMILY HOMELESSNESS IN OUR AREA? WELL, I THINK ONE THING IS WE'RE NOT, I MEAN, I KNOW YOU MAY HAVE BE HAVING ANOTHER DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS LATER, BUT THE WHOLE ISSUE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVEN'T REALLY TALKED ABOUT THAT BECAUSE WE'RE NOT A DB SHELTER.
BUT THE REALITY IS, YOU KNOW, 80 TO 90% OF THE WOMEN THAT WALK THROUGH OUR DOORS ARE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND ARE STILL DEALING WITH THAT TRAUMA.
SO IF WE LOOK AT WHERE THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME MORE RESOURCES IN THIS CITY IS, IS MORE SPACES FOR EMERGENCY CARE, FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, UM, BECAUSE THAT AFFECTS ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS. UM, BUT AGAIN, I, I, I THINK IN TERMS OF WHERE THE FAMILIES ARE, I THINK THE SUPPORT SERVICES ARE CRITICAL.
UM, AND I CONTINUE TO TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, CHILDCARE BECAUSE THAT'S OUR BIGGEST PROGRAM, EVEN THOUGH WE DO A LOT OF OTHER THINGS.
BUT YOU SAW THE ARTICLE IN THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS JUST YESTERDAY ABOUT THE CHILDCARE DESERTS IN THE CITY AND HOW MUCH MONEY THE CITY IS GIVING.
I MEAN, VOGEL SCOTT, WE DO ALL OF THESE AMAZING PROGRAMS FOR THESE FAMILIES ACROSS SOME COMMUNITY.
I GET $50,000 FROM THE CITY OF DALLAS.
SO THERE'S JUST NOT MONEY BEING FUNNELED INTO THOSE KIND OF SUPPORTIVE SERVICES AND, UM, CHILDCARE IS HUGE.
I KNOW THE COUNTY IS WORKING ON SOME PILOT KIND OF PROGRAMS FOR THAT, BUT TALK ABOUT DIVERSION.
IF A SINGLE MOM THAT'S DOING HER BEST AND, AND DOING HER JOB, BUT HER CHILDCARE BILL IS CLOSE TO 1500 AND $2,000 A A A MONTH, WHICH IS NOT UNCOMMON IF YOU HAVE SEVERAL INFANTS OR TODDLERS, HOW ARE THEY GONNA ABLE TO AFFORD THAT AND GO BACK TO WORK? AND SO THAT WHOLE CHILDCARE PIECE IS A BIG DIVERSIONARY THING.
IF WE CAN'T SOLVE THAT, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE MORE FAMILIES THAT ARE OUTTA WORK OR CAN'T WORK.