Destination: Home

Our community’s homelessness crisis is SOLVABLE. We have evidence-based strategies underway that are ending and preventing homelessness. The ?? is scaling these proven solutions and building more homes everyone in our community can afford – especially families living on the edge of homelessness. #HousingEndsHomelessness Learn more by visiting https://lnkd.in/gAcrCDsM

Our community lost a precious life this month when 14 year old Jose Zamora died by suicide, after being bullied by his classmates for being unhoused. Jose’s death is a heartbreaking reminder of the consequences that hate and exclusion can have on our community. It should never take the loss of a young life to force us to confront the pain caused by dehumanizing those who’ve been pushed into homelessness. Let this serve as a wake-up call: the words we use, the attitudes we hold, and the actions we take—or fail to take—have profound, lasting impacts on the most vulnerable among us. When we speak negatively about those who are unhoused, we are sending dangerous messages to our children. They are listening, internalizing, and in some cases, acting on those words. We all have a role to play in dismantling the harmful narratives around homelessness that are rampant in our country and ensuring every member of our community is treated with dignity. https://lnkd.in/gkttyYYZ.

Everyone deserves to be in good company during the holiday season. Santa Clara Valley Medical Center's Valley Homeless Healthcare Program (VHHP) is going above and beyond by not only providing essential healthcare services to those of us experiencing homelessness but also bringing warmth and cheer in the form of a "Living Room Thanksgiving" celebration – aptly named by their patients who feel the clinic offers the support and space to live their most authentic lives. We're thankful for all that you do for our community!

Last week, local leaders, advocates and community members joined in a community celebration at Art As Testimony: The Power of Lived Experience as part of the 2024 National Lived Experience Leadership Conference. This evocative and deeply moving art exhibition showcased a range of creative expression including paintings, drawings, photography, poetry, and sculptures crafted from found objects by people with lived experience of homelessness and/or incarceration. You can purchase art pieces from this exhibition via the link below through the end of November. Don’t miss this opportunity to support the creatives who are rendering their personal stories into beautiful and impactful displays of art! ?? https://lnkd.in/gQTnk-yZ #NLELC24

Santa Clara County is setting the standard with its flexible funding pool to prevent homelessness before it starts. This innovative system addresses unique household needs, such as: ?? A $300 car repair to keep someone employed and housed. ?? Short-term rent subsidies to stabilize families after unexpected crises. This cost-effective approach, initially funded by corporations and philanthropy, is now sustained by the county and is making a real difference. Santa Clara County’s impactful work was recently recognized at the National Association of Counties (NACo) Committee Meeting by U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, solidifying its status as a leader in homelessness prevention strategies. Thank you to the hardworking community organizations and leaders who work tirelessly to prevent homelessness, support vulnerable families, and create pathways to lasting housing stability. #HomelessnessPrevention #SantaClaraCounty #NACo #HousingStability #CommunitySolutions

More than 350 of our peers from across 40 states and two Canadian provinces convened at the 2024 National Lived Experience Leadership Conference this week! ???? We’re overjoyed at the level of enthusiasm, dedication and generosity we’ve just experienced and extend our deepest gratitude to all of you who joined us in building power and unity – and mobilizing for action to end homelessness. Special thanks to the attendees who shared their conference highlights in the photos they provided. #NLELC24 #CenteringLivedExperience

To recognize youth experiencing homelessness in our community, we celebrated with our partners Bill Wilson Center, Jamboree Housing Corporation, City of San José, and County of Santa Clara, the Grand Opening at Sunrise Pavilion, adding 43 homes for transition-age youth, empowering them with a safe place to thrive. #YouthHOPEmonth #HopeforHomelessYouth

This conference ended up being all about joy. We are so grateful for the 350+ amazing leaders who joined us this week for so much laughter, love, solidarity and purpose. Our hearts are full.

Thank you to everyone who attended the 2024 National Lived Experience Leadership Conference cohosted by National Coalition for the Homeless and Destination: Home – held for the first time on the West Coast. We echo the heartfelt closing remarks spoken by Destination: Home Director of Lived Experience & Innovation Claudine S., “[Your] stories matter. [Your] leadership matters. Together, [you’re] not just sharing experiences, [you’re] shaping the future of how our nation addresses homelessness in a dignifying way and in a humanizing way.” #NLELC24 #CenteringLivedExperience

Last but not least, the final session at this year’s National Lived Experience Leadership Conference brings together elected officials and community advocates to discuss initiatives leveraging lived experience to shape effective policies on homelessness. When asked what people with lived experience can do to help advance solutions to homelessness, City of Allentown Councilperson Ce-Ce Gerlach urged the audience to “show up to everything that you can show up to, within your own ability and time, and really network.” Tenant Organizer at Network Delaware HOMES Campaign Branden Fletcher shared, “I started off with literally just a clipboard and knocking on doors in my neighborhood to talk with my neighbors about increasing rents and about what we can do during the eviction moratorium. Also I got involved in local civic associations within my city.” #NLELC24 #CenteringLivedExperience