Facing Homelessness

deepGRATITUDE: As we begin the year 2025, we move forward with a deep gratitude and love for all those in the Facing Homelessness community, both housed and unhoused. Gratitude for the small acts of kindness. Gratitude for the simple acts of listening. Gratitude for nonjudgement and acceptance. Gratitude for those in service to others. Gratitude for believing in love. The Facing Homelessness Board is extremely grateful to everyone in this community for helping us reach our $50,000.00 end of year fundraising goal, with $50,581.00 donated! If you have not donated?and wish to do so, please know that your funds will go towards helping our programs fulfill our mission of creating a healthy community for addressing and ending homelessness. We are an all-volunteer organization hoping to create the world we all want to live in! Please continue to help us!! https://lnkd.in/g7pA58hV This photo is of Gloria Blue. For those of you who were fortunate enough to have met her and become friends with her before she passed, you know how a wonderful of a person she was. The dignity she held while living homeless was courageous and beautifully profound. For all those struggling on our streets, we can not let homelessness be normalized. It's not who we are. LOVE from the Facing Homelessness Board - Karina, Sean, Blair, Christy, Rex

choosingKINDNESS: https://lnkd.in/g7pA58hV Our Facing Homelessness Board Secretary Blair Jordan Lorenzo was a student at the University of Washington getting a business degree when she began to read stories about James on this page. James had been homeless for 40 years, was illiterate, and often treated poorly due to his appearance and erratic behavior. From the shared photos Blair recognized James at the 520 Montlake exit ramp, lowered her window, and said, "Hey James!" That moment changed both of their lives. Blair graduated from the UW with her degree and rather than going into land development as she had planned, she went into social services doing outreach for those living on our streets. As his friend, Blair worked to get James into housing, which she did, which allowed him to spend his last days inside. This is the heart centered work of the Facing Homelessness community. We believe through relationship we can successfully address and end homelessness. We need your help to make this happen. https://lnkd.in/g7pA58hV We have an end of year fundraiser hoping to raise $50,000.00. Currently, as of 4:00 PM on Sunday, December 29, 2024, $14,086.00 has been donated on our Givebutter donation platform and $25,750.00 promised in checks, wowWOW!! Which means we only have $10,164.00 left to raise to reach our goal of $50,000.00! I know we can do this! A heartfelt THANKS to everyone who has supported us now and in the past! If you are interested, please read through the past (4) posts to hear more information about this request for funds. https://lnkd.in/g7pA58hV LOVE, from the Facing Homelessness Board Karina, Sean, Blair, Christy, Rex

This is not the news we hope to close out the year with. It puts an big exclamation point on how important our work is. Together we can make a difference. Facing Homelessness is an all volunteer organization. No funds go to our staff. We currently have six (6) programs, all designed to bring the community closer around the issues of homelessness. All funds from our annual fund drive go to covering needed overhead expenses such as insurance, licenses, software programs, etc. please help us meet our $50K goal. https://lnkd.in/e-m46kfM

needingYOU: Six months ago Facing Homelessness made the difficult decision to close its doors. A great many of you reached out expressing a deep desire for continuing the important community building work this organization has been doing over the last decade. We listened to you by bringing on a total new board, recommitting to our vision and values, and making beautiful changes. Now WE NEED YOUR HELP to raise $50,000.00! Facing Homelessness is now operating as an all volunteer organization, a scrappy one at that, with people holding day jobs while running our programs - Photojournal Storytelling, You Know Me Now podcast, Just Say Hello Campaign, The Window of Kindness, The Circle, and the BLOCK Project which is currently on hold. Despite our scrappiness, all of our programs have expenses we are unable to avoid. Insurances, software programs, domain names, and more, it adds up. Please help us continue the beautiful forward motion this community is building! https://lnkd.in/g7pA58hV The photo is of Arcadia. She is a young poet friend experiencing homelessness who shared, "When we are born we are given a small slice of the giant map of humanity and that is all you know. When you meet someone and become friends you get to see their slice of the map. The more slices you get to see, the more you understand humanity, and in turn, you beautifully find out about yourself." We have all learned the benefit of putting aside the negative stereotype on homelessness to see and feel the humanity in each and every person. We know that by coming closer we can and will find the needed solutions for addressing and ending homelessness. A heartfelt BLESSING to every person sharing their slice of the map of humanity, helping us better understand each other so we can create the world we all want to live in! https://lnkd.in/g7pA58hV LOVE, Karina, Sean, Blair, Christy, Rex

You Know Me Now Podcasts are conversations that strive to amplify the unheard voices in our community. Through vulnerability and courage, contributors share a common hope that by giving us a window into their world, they open increased awareness, understanding, and connection within our community. In this episode, Preacher, an incredibly talented musician and songwriter, shares through song and conversation his story of learning the blues from his grandfather as a child. Then learning it again after a brain injury in his early adulthood when he found his beautiful voice again. Against the odds through a journey that included serious health issues, addiction, and homelessness, he has kept his family's musical tradition alive. He shares stories of playing clubs from New Orleans to North Bend and Seattle; becoming homeless and busking in Seattle; and his journey inside again. God and family are Preacher's rock, they always get him through. His story and music will move you. EPo16: Just Say Hello Link to Podcast in Comments

Facing Homelessness welcomes a new Board of Directors! With gratitude to the prior board for the thoughtful transition, our new leadership will continue the past decade's work of community building while adding a brilliant new chapter of bringing the unhoused and housed together to build loving relationships! For the foreseeable future Facing Homelessness will be an all-volunteer organization. Which means we need your involvement more than ever. To truly create the world we want to live in, we need your support, involvement, and LOVE. One of the beautiful changes we are making involves our leadership structure. Think of the organization as having two rows. LEADERSHIP: This is front row will be filled by folks who have lived experience in homelessness, drug addiction, incarceration as well as BIPOC and LGBTQI identities. SUPPORT: This second row is filled by people who've had the advantage of lived opportunities and experiences in life and who want to give back by helping other leaders rise and move forward on their paths. Meet our new board members! Karina Wallace, President Sean Byars, Vice President Blair Jordan Lorenzo, Secretary Rex Hohlbein, Founder & Communications Director Christy Marble, Treasurer If you're as excited as we are about the future of Facing homelessness, join us! #givingtuesday (social media links in comments)

Updates from the Facing Homelessness Board of Directors: As we navigate the closure of Facing Homelessness, we have a few updates to share with you. We are heartened to share that the majority of our BLOCK Project hosts have decided to continue housing their residents, ensuring that these individuals will maintain the stability and community support they have found through the BLOCK Project. The spirit of compassion and dedication shown by our hosts lives on and we are so grateful. Conversations are ongoing about the next steps for our BLOCK Home construction program. In the meantime, we have secured safe storage for our construction tools and jigs. We remain hopeful that these resources will be put to use again in the future to create more homes and opportunities for those experiencing homelessness. While winding down the Window of Kindness, we have been able to connect our clients with other organizations in the area that can continue to provide the support and resources they need. We held a goodbye event last month to celebrate the connections and community we have built together and to distribute the last of our supplies. For those who wish to continue supporting the cause of ending homelessness, we encourage you to donate or volunteer at the following organizations that are doing incredible work in our community: Our Partners: Mary’s Place? REST Chief Seattle Club? Lake City Partners? Elizabeth Gregory Home? Sound HEALTH University District Providers: The People’s Harm Reduction Alliance University Heights? Doorway Project? University District Street Medicine Other Organizations Addressing Homelessness: Ballard Food Bank? Urban Rest Stop Nickelsville Solid Ground Please note that as we navigate this transition, our social media pages are not being actively monitored. For the most up-to-date information about the closure of Facing Homelessness, please refer to the details provided on our website. We want to express our deepest gratitude to every member of our community who has supported our mission over the years. Your compassion, dedication, and generosity have made a world of difference in the lives of those we have served. Though Facing Homelessness is coming to an end, we believe that the spirit of our work will live on through the kindness and commitment of people like you. With gratitude, The Facing Homelessness Board of Directors

Dear community, After exhausting every avenue possible to keep our organization moving forward to fulfill our mission of ending homelessness, we have made the simultaneously difficult and compassionate decision to rehome our programs due to a lack of sustainable funding sources. We are working to place our programs with partner organizations so that the last of our resources can be used to serve our community in need. The Board of Directors of Facing Homelessness has voted to close our programs on the following timeline: Window of Kindness - April 2, 2024 BLOCK Community Programs - May 31, 2024 We know this decision is a painful one, for our staff, for our community, and most especially for the individuals we serve. We still firmly believe in the importance of the work and the impact it has on the lives of individuals experiencing homelessness and our broader community. We are currently exploring options to rehome our Window of Kindness and BLOCK Project programs, and we hope that these unique services can live on in new forms. For the full letter and more information, please visit the link below. Thank you for being a part of the Facing Homelessness family. Together, we have made a lasting impact, and we trust that our mission will live on through the work of our partners and the compassion of our community. With gratitude and hope, The Facing Homelessness Team https://lnkd.in/ePDN_zBr

whatisHOME? “Home isn’t where you’re from, it’s where you find light when all grows dark.”? ― Pierce Brown, Author For many individuals experiencing homelessness, "home" is found in the strong, supportive communities they form with others who understand their struggles and approach them without judgment. Something housed individuals may not realize is how deeply connected these communities can be. The bonds formed through shared experiences and mutual support often become a source of light in dark times – a place of belonging, purpose, and resilience. What does "Home" mean to you?

How to “just say HELLO” #2, the importance of respecting where someone is at. Experiencing homelessness can be deeply traumatic, so it's crucial that we approach with sensitivity and care to avoid adding to someone's pain. If a person seems uncomfortable with an interaction, it's best to kindly give them space. We all have days when we need some solitude. However, there are also times when someone may be craving caring attention and a listening ear. So how can you navigate this with sensitivity? - Opening with a invitation to connect, and follow their lead - Watch body language and respond to cues - Don't assume or take reactions personally - Sit and listen if they seem open - Ask before making physical touch; hold a hand if it feels right - Lead with empathy, let them guide the level of interaction There is a fine line between respecting someone’s space and autonomy, while also recognizing the person in front of you may be hungry for human contact. Let their words and body language help guide you; and when in doubt, just smile and say “hello!” Tips credited to Shelli, a former Facing Homelessness Board Member.