February at Care for the Homeless

February 2018

News from the Front Lines

Thank you for being with us on the front lines of fighting homelessness in NYC.

Greetings!

An Alarming Fact: More than 50% of NYC's Homeless Population is African American

Black History Month is a time to honor the incredible breadth and depth of contributions African Americans have made to every aspect of our society, including the arts, politics, science, education, and so many more. At Care for the Homeless, we admire those who fought for social and economic equality before. Civil Rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Fredrick Douglas, Marcus Garvey inspire us to continue the fight for social and economic equality in the United States. Which is why we are choosing Black History Month to address the reality of the headline above.

There is an unacceptable number of homeless persons living in NYC’s shelters and on the streets. But a lesser known fact is that homeless individuals in New York City are disproportionately single, male, and persons of color. Approximately 58% of the city’s homeless shelter residents are African-American (more than double the general population) and 31% are Latino; an estimated 80% of homeless living on the street (unsheltered homeless) are single men. What is the cause of this? There are many contributing factors, a primary one being a decades long racial gap in income and wealth in the United States. A gap that has only increased over the years.

Together we can fight homelessness in multiple ways so for this Black History Month, we ask that you join Care for the Homeless to address the injustices that homeless African Americans and people of color face in our city. Click the link below to read more about how you can make a difference and as we always say, “to end it in years, not decades.”

How Can I Help?

One Important Step Towards Ending Homelessness

Living in a homeless shelter is never anyone’s first choice. But if there is some good to come out of the experience, it could be the services offered that strengthen a resident’s knowledge and skills, preparing them for living independently once again. Financial setbacks and a lack of basic understanding about budgeting and saving, frequently play a role on the path into homelessness so it makes sense that achieving financial security is an important tool on the path out of homelessness. The women of Susan’s Place are on that exciting path.

On February 8, Ely Nunez a financial counselor at Ariva, visited Susan’s Place and held one-on-one financial counseling sessions with the residents. She works with the women so that they may reach their ultimate goal of moving out of the shelter. Ely says that some of her clients have applied for housing, but were rejected by multiple housing entities because of their credit score. When Ely works with them, the first step she takes is checking a client’s credit. If a client’s credit is bad, she helps them send dispute letters, setup payment plans, and more, to improve it. Ely says so far, she has helped three residents improve their credit score, which lead to housing applications getting approved.

Sylvia is one resident who recently received assistance from Ely and is very happy with the help she received. “I am a victim of identity theft, there were a lot of things that were in my name – a house in Florida, an apartment upstate, and phone bills. I had to clear my name,” Sylvia said. Ely helped Sylvia clear all the discrepancies with her credit, and with opening a bank account. “Now my credit is beautiful,” Sylvia said. And we are thrilled that Sylvia recently ended her homelessness after reconnecting with her son and moving in with him. Now that she has stabilized her credit, Sylvia hopes to save enough money so that she can buy her own home one day.

YOU are the reason we believe this is possible for Sylvia and other Susan’s Place residents because YOU believe in our work. Thank you! Click below for more about these financial success stories.

Meet the Man Behind the Photo

The above photo was taken by Steve Latimer, a volunteer photographer for Care for the Homeless (CFH) since December 2016. He first got involved with CFH after answering a request for a photographer on Volunteer Match. Steve says during his first encounter with employees at CFH, he saw “a group of dedicated individuals that are committed to working with people who are experiencing homelessness.” “I could tell CFH employees were trying to make life better for clients,” he said. But volunteering with CFH is not Steve’s first experience with helping individuals who are homeless.

In 1966, Steve retired from his position as an officer in the Navy and in 1968, graduated from law school. He worked at a few law firms before starting to use his skills to help people who are experiencing homelessness while working for Bronx Legal Services. Having worked in the South Bronx for several years and in other low-income communities, he became very familiar with the problems that people experiencing homelessness face. It was while working as a civil rights attorney, that he began utilizing his skills photographing cultural events for the Middlesex County Cultural and Heritage Commission. Click here to learn more about Steve and his work with CFH.

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News From the Front Lines is a monthly update about Care for the Homeless' efforts to fight homelessness in New York City.

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