Brandi is honored to be a Hometown Hero!
On March 24, Path Home executive director Brandi Tuck was recognized at a Portland Trail Blazers game as a Hometown Hero for making a significant positive impact in our community.
On March 24, Path Home executive director Brandi Tuck was recognized at a Portland Trail Blazers game as a Hometown Hero for making a significant positive impact in our community.
Brandi was invited to attend the game and hang with the team mascot, Blaze—and it was all captured on the big screen! Path Home’s mission and impact were shared with Blazers fans as well. Plus Brandi got some really cool Blazers Hometown Hero gear to wear.
We are so grateful for this honor and platform to share our vital work!
Path Home awarded $500K to expand housing and services for homeless families with children
“This $500,000 award propels us closer to our goal to help an additional 75 families per year, as well as provide 12 units of additional transitional housing, and an additional 30 units of affordable housing to the community, “said Path Home Executive Director Brandi Tuck.
PORTLAND, Ore.—April 5, 2023 — For 15 years, Path Home has been at the forefront of providing innovative services to families with children who are experiencing homelessness. Recently, Multnomah County awarded the organization $500,000 to purchase two houses adjacent to Path Home’s Family Village campus. These properties will be used as staff office spaces now until Path Home redevelops the land into permanent affordable housing over the next few years.
This plan is part of Path Home’s larger strategic vision to become a one-stop-shop for families experiencing homelessness where they can receive the tools, resources, and relationships they need to thrive. The vision for Family Village campus is to provide a spectrum of housing resources including shelter, transitional housing, and permanent housing, as well as wrap-around services including domestic violence advocacy, substance abuse recovery support, mental health care, employment training, and childcare. Other plans include a playground, basketball court, trauma-informed gardens, and parking.
“This $500,000 award propels us closer to our goal to help an additional 75 families per year, as well as provide 12 units of additional transitional housing, and an additional 30 units of affordable housing to the community, “said Path Home Executive Director Brandi Tuck. “We will also provide every family with access to essential wraparound services such as mental health support, domestic violence advocacy, job training, and parenting classes—all in one location. Eighty-eight percent of our Path Home families retain their housing long-term. With these new funds, we will significantly transform the lives of those in need across our local community.”
The $500,000 grant from Multnomah County comes on the heels of a 2022 $2.5 million grant from the Bezos Day One Fund to help Path Home scale up its services. Based on the latest data, Path Home estimates that more than 5,000 children are currently homeless in Multnomah County. The organization served 2,000 children and parents in 2022, and its current wait list exceeds 800 families.
“These awards help our partners undertake and expand the critical work they do to serve our communities, “ said Chair Vega Pederson. “From the construction of affordable housing to the creation of community space, from preschool classrooms to supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs, these grants make a meaningful difference throughout our country.”
Path Home’s multifaceted housing model focuses on prevention, shelter, wrap-around services, and long-term housing stability. The organization takes a trauma-informed approach to helping families heal from the challenges of being homeless and housing insecure. According to Path Home, long-term stability is the solution to ending the cycle of homelessness.
Farewell, Emma!
We have some big news to share with our community today. Path Home’s long-term Development Director, Emma Hoyle, is leaving Path Home after seven years. We’re so grateful to her for her critical role in the significant growth we’ve experienced these past few years and wish her much success in her new role at College Possible.
We have some big news to share with our community today. Path Home’s long-term Development Director, Emma Hoyle, is leaving Path Home after seven years. We’re so grateful to her for her critical role in the significant growth we’ve experienced these past few years and wish her much success in her new role at College Possible.
With support from Emma’s stewardship, Path Home’s contributed revenue has increased from $607,661 a year to more than $2m a year. Her most notable success was completing a $5.2m Capital Campaign to purchase and remodel the Family Village Campus, modeling the transformative impact of trauma-informed practice and design. She helped expand Portland’s first Family Homelessness Prevention Program, entirely funded by individuals and foundations. And most recently, Emma was instrumental in changing our name and growing our brand from Portland Homeless Family Solutions to Path Home.
“My work at Path Home has been the most meaningful of my life. It has been an immense privilege to raise money to support families and children experiencing homelessness and housing instability. I am so grateful for the relationships I have built with donors, volunteers, staff, and this community. I will remain a big supporter and advocate of the organization, I’ll just be joining the community side as a donor and volunteer.”
Emma has accepted the position of Individual Giving & Major Gifts Officer for College Possible, another wonderful organization empowering youth in our community. We know you’ll join us in wishing her well.
Family Reunion 2016 with Brandi Tuck - the first of seven Family Reunions Emma planned.
Presenting to the ninety-nine girlfriends in 2019 with board member Phyllis Leonard.
Emma and Bethany Rocci with Quilts of Love in 2019.
Family Reunion 2020 - the first virtual event.
Accepting a grant at the Trail Blazers halftime show!
Emma’s baby shower at Family Village in 2022.
Celebrating 10 years at Path Home
Housing Manager, Carl Knudson, celebrated ten years at Path Home last month. Carl helped create the first Housing First program in Multnomah County in 2012 to help families move back into homes, which was replicated across the whole county. Since then he has helped hundreds of families move back into housing. When Carl started, he was one of two Housing staff, now he co-manages our Housing team of eleven people.
Housing Manager, Carl Knudson, celebrated ten years at Path Home last month. Carl helped create the first Housing First program in Multnomah County in 2012 to help families move back into homes, which was replicated across the whole county. Since then he has helped hundreds of families move back into housing. When Carl started, he was one of two Housing staff, now he co-manages our Housing team of eleven people.
We are so lucky to have Carl's expertise, kindness, and humor at Path Home. Hear from him about what has inspired his work for so many years.
What initially brought you to Path Home?
Carl with Path Home Executive Director, Brandi Tuck, and Program Director, Fay Schuler, at the 10-year celebration brunch.
I was referred to Path Home by Marc Jolin (who was the Executive Director at JOIN at the time). I had just moved to Portland from Denver, where I had spent the last 10 years working with homeless youth and chronically homeless adults. I had some crossover working with families, but never in such a direct way as with Path Home. I liked the idea of working at a smaller organization that was not very admin-heavy (less paperwork), and that prioritized funding that directly helps families in need through the housing first approach. Sometimes organizations are so reliant on government funding that staff ends up spending the majority of their time tied to a computer doing documentation, rather than actually having face time and interactions with the people who need the help. Path Home continues to prioritize meaningful, direct work with families to help them get back into housing and stay there. This is why I am here 10 years later.
What was the organization like when you started?
Carl with other founding Path Home Housing Specialist, Mary Babcock, and County Chair, Deborah Kafoury, winning Multnomah County’s “Program of the Year” award in 2013.
Path Home was Portland Homeless Family Solutions and was located at the First United Methodist Church in the Goose Hollow neighborhood. Everyone in the organization shared the same office (Executive Director, Brandi, included!). I think there were only 10-12 staff (maybe less) and I was one of 2 Mobile Housing Specialists, the other worker was Mary Babcock who was already legendary at Path Home. We spent very little time in that office because there was little privacy. Most of our time was spent in coffee shops, Fred Meyers, or Libraries meeting with families. It actually worked out well because our job was to be out in the community, meeting families where they were so we could help in their transition back to housing. It really helped us to work remotely and be creative in meeting with families on neutral ground. It can be intimidating to families to come into an office, and I think they appreciate our flexibility in meeting wherever is most convenient for them. Our housing team continues to be mobile to this day.
What is Path Home like now?
Path Home is way different now! Early in my tenure at Path Home, I would describe us as a small organization that does big things. Now we are a medium size organization that does bigger things. The housing team is as large as the whole organization was, and housing now has a budget of more than 1 million dollars to help families! Having the Family Village Campus still feels dreamy every time I walk in. But there is a part of Path Home that still feels the same - that we are really focused on finding housing and helping families stay there. Path Home does a great job of sticking to the mission and not trying to change what we do when an enticing new funding source comes our way. I feel like although the look, location, and physical size have changed, the heart of the organization is the same. We can still quickly get more families back into housing and help them stay there or prevent them from becoming homeless with our prevention program.
How is your job different now than when you started?
I started off as a Housing Specialist, and now I am the Housing Manager with my co-manager Paty Elguera. Managing is very different from direct service work but very fulfilling. I get to support staff doing the work I did for so many years.
What inspires you to keep doing the work?
The families! And ensuring we have enough resources to support them as long as they need our help. I also enjoy my co-workers and all the staff at Path Home. I feel we have a wealth of experience but everyone is so humble. Nobody thinks they have all the answers and we rely on each other through thoughtful conversation to help guide our work.
Is there anything else you’d like to share as you reflect on ten years of service?
Just to continue to advocate. I have found through 20 + years of working in this field is that there is less and less focus on youth and children in this country. When you learn people’s stories, over time, you learn that things start early in life, sometimes before the kids are even born. Housing is a basic human right and we need the resources, political willpower, and community support for that. If we cannot supply that for everyone today, let’s at least start with the most vulnerable: children and their parents.
Giving Tuesday
This year, Path Home helped 424 families end their homelessness for good.
With your continued support, we can empower even more families facing housing insecurity to find a permanent home (or remain in their home) through our prevention, shelter, and housing programs.
This year, Path Home helped 424 families end their homelessness for good.
With your continued support, we can empower even more families facing housing insecurity to find a permanent home (or remain in their home) through our prevention, shelter, and housing programs.
Give $10 or more today through Willamette Week's Give!Guide and you could win a one-night stay at Salishan Coastal Lodge.
Thanks to Stepp Family Trust, the first $15,000 in donations will be doubled!
In-kind donations help provide our families with everything they need while they are guests at our shelters, and assist them in the process of overcoming barriers and securing permanent housing. They’re a crucial part of our support system.
Family Reunion Nonevent Wrap Up
Thanks to everyone who participated in Path Home’s (formerly PHFS) first Nonevent! We raised $244,215 to support families with children on their path to housing stability.
THANK YOU!
Thanks to everyone who participated in Path Home’s (formerly PHFS) first Nonevent! We raised $244,215 to support families with children on their path to housing stability.
Path Home (formerly PHFS) serves more than 400 families made up of 1200 kids and parents each year. The average age of a person in shelter is ten years old, and 58% of our total clients are children.
Every child should have a safe, warm place to sleep at night. Please give so we can continue our critical work helping families gain and retain permanent housing.
Each day we shared a new video highlighting one of our programs.
Check them out below!
In the Outreach program, families experiencing homelessness, who oftentimes are living in tents or in their cars, get help accessing critical shelter and re-housing resources.
Family Village was the first shelter in Oregon to feature trauma-informed design and architecture. It is a place for families to heal through the crisis of homelessness and prepare for permanent housing.
Nearly 90% of the families in the housing program maintain their housing long-term. Listen to Housing Specialist, Ermajean, to find out what makes our program so successful.
The Prevention Program keeps families in their homes, so they never have to experience homelessness with their kids.
Thanks to the Event Sponsors!
Our Name is Now Path Home
For the past 15 years, we have helped families find their own path home through our rapid re-housing, shelter and housing retention programs. To better envision a world where every family facing housing insecurity can find—and keep—a permanent home, our organization has announced a new name: Path Home.
Our new name may be smaller, but we know our work is bigger than ever.
For the past 15 years, we have helped families find their own path home through our rapid re-housing, shelter and housing retention programs. To better envision a world where every family facing housing insecurity can find—and keep—a permanent home, our organization has announced a new name: Path Home.
Our new name may be smaller, but we know our work is bigger than ever.
An estimated 5,200 people are experiencing homelessness in Portland, according to Multnomah County’s 2022 Point-in-Time Count of Homelessness. With only approximately 1,365 shelter beds available, you see many people across the city living in tents, in vehicles and on sidewalks. It is clear there is a humanitarian crisis in our community, and it will take all of us to solve it.
We know housing is a human right and no child should be homeless.
Through our work—and with your support—we will continue to find solutions and provide resources specifically to families at risk of losing their home or that need a permanent home.
Join us in celebrating this new chapter. There is a path out of the homeless crisis and together, we’ll lead the way.
Spring 2022 Update
Thanks for all your past support of PHFS. We wanted to reach out to share what’s going on at PHFS, highlight some of the impact PHFS is having in the community.
Thanks for all your past support of PHFS. We wanted to reach out to share what’s going on at PHFS, highlight some of the impact PHFS is having in the community.
Re-Opening We’re finally coming out the other side after the COVID pandemic. More staff are on campus, and families are coming out of their rooms to engage with us more. Volunteers have been welcomed back into the Family Village main building, and we’re up for in-person meetings again. We hope to see all of you soon!
Cash Transfer Last fall, PHFS started a Cash Transfer Pilot Project to provide $575 cash to families each month for two years. Our goal is that families will increase financial security, reduce debt, have more time to spend with family, and increase their overall wellness and joy. We look forward to keeping you updated.
Housing Capacity We continue to add more staff to our housing team, both to help families move from homelessness to housing and to help families keep their housing long-term. 88% of families served by PHFS keep their housing long-term.
PHFS’s impact is only possible because we have so many people (like you!) that contribute time, good energy, and resources. Thank you for partnering with PHFS to create real impact in the lives of the families we serve.
Cash Transfer Pilot Project
PHFS has been on the forefront of innovation for over a decade, including pioneering rapid re-housing, homeless prevention, and trauma-informed design and practice. We continue to work upstream, helping families reach long-term housing stability. This year, we innovated again and started a Cash Transfer Pilot Project, which provides direct cash support to families each month for two years to increase housing stability.
Cash Transfer participant, Kaundra, and her three girls ages 4, 6, and 8
PHFS has been on the forefront of innovation for over a decade, including pioneering rapid re-housing, homeless prevention, and trauma-informed design and practice. We continue to work upstream, helping families reach long-term housing stability. This year, we innovated again and started a Cash Transfer Pilot Project, which provides direct cash support to families each month for two years to increase housing stability.
This pilot project builds upon the success of models initiated across the globe like the Seed program in Stockton, CA. This evidence-based model provides cash to families to use for whatever they determine their biggest needs are, since they are experts in their own situation. All of PHFS’s programs center the family as the experts in their own lives. We, the service providers, are not here to tell families what their goals are, where to live, and how to run their lives. The families we work with know their lives better than we ever will, and we trust them to come up with their own goals and plans. The Cash Transfer Pilot Project is one of PHFS’s many upstream and innovative approaches to build dignity, restore power, and promote autonomy.
Last summer, a generous, private donor who is very committed to equitable wealth distribution donated the first funding for PHFS’s Cash Transfer Pilot Project. So far, we have enrolled six families in this program, in collaboration with our close partner SEI (Self Enhancement Inc.). We partnered with SEI to intentionally promote equity and transparency in our process. All families enrolled in the program identify as Black and/or multi-racial, all parents are either working or full-time students, and all parents either have a Diploma or some college. Families are all currently housed and have a minimum annual income of $20,180, or 40% of AMI (Area Median Income).
Cash cards in the amount of $575.00 go out monthly between the 25th-28th of each month. Our hope is at the end of this two year project, we will find that offering a guaranteed income source allows families to decrease financial insecurity, reduce debt, have more time to spend with family, and increase their overall wellness and joy. Families have already reported they have been able to use funds for utilities, childcare, medical needs, and food. These are all examples of emergent needs and we expect with time funds will be used for longer term planning and financial stability.
We look forward to continuing to update you all on the progress of the Cash Transfer Program over the two year duration in hopes to replicate for more families in the future!
“I wanted to give some feedback about this program - it has been a blessing! I don’t think I realized how deeply money stress impacted me until now. It’s a very comforting feeling knowing I can count on this monthly. It’s helped drastically with me and my son's quality of life. I know that I can meet most if not all of our needs every month.”
-Cash Transfer Participant
Giving Tuesday
Help Families Get Back into Housing
The solution to homelessness is housing. PHFS is expanding our housing program to serve more families than ever before. Help us achieve this growth so more families can get back into permanent housing in time for the holidays!
Help Families Get Back into Housing
The solution to homelessness is housing. PHFS is expanding our housing program to serve more families than ever before. Help us achieve this growth so more families can get back into permanent housing in time for the holidays!
Host a Holiday Donation Drive
Help make the holidays bright for families in PHFS programs. Collect items like toys, toiletries, bedding, coats, gift cards, wrapping paper, and more.
Support PHFS in the Give!Guide
Donate $10 or more through the Give!Guide and you'll have a chance to win prizes like Trail Blazers tickets, a signed basketball, and more!
Trini & Anisto
How Trini’s 9-year-old son helped their family get back into housing.
Trini, her boyfriend Anisto, and their three kids Elijah, Keivon, and Ishmael moved from Hawaii to Oregon in September 2020. They had planned to stay with family to get support as they started their new life, but when they got here, their family was unable to support them in the ways that they needed. They found themselves staying in a friend’s garage. Anisto was able to get a job at Walmart, but Tini’s passport expired and as a Micronesian citizen, she needed it to apply for jobs.
“Being new in the states was very hard... I was nervous about everything,” shared Trini. “The hardest thing was thinking about my boys. I kept telling them to just go to school and try not to worry about everything. But they were a big help. Keivon talked to his teacher. That’s how we heard about the shelter.”
Keivon shared what was happening at home with his teacher, and she wanted to help. She came to the garage after school with clothes and food, and she called 211 – the coordinated entry point to receive social services. That same week they moved into Family Village.
“Ever since we got into shelter, everything was just so smooth. I felt so relieved. And along came [PHFS Housing Specialist] Herman, he was a big help.”
Herman immediately helped Trini apply for a new passport, but it took two months to process. During this time, Herman worked with Trini and Anisto on budgeting and finance skills, helping them learn how to save money. Once Trini’s passport arrived, she was hired as a Ramp Agent for Alaska Airlines. Two months after that, they moved into an apartment in Beaverton. Anisto transferred to a Walmart nearby, and the kids transferred schools in the fall.
Herman continues to be a resource for whatever Trini and Anisto need, but this month they told him they don’t need rent assistance anymore. They feel confident between their two incomes and all the budgeting knowledge they gained that they can take it from here. Herman continues to call to check in, and remind them that PHFS is always here if they need us.
Every family deserves a place to call home.
Help more families like Trini and Anisto get back into permanent housing.
PHFS Dreams Big... Again!
PHFS Receives $2.5 Million Bezos Day 1 Families Fund Grant
Dear PHFS Village,
We want to say thank you to the PHFS Village for all your tremendous support over the years. Your investments of time and resources have allowed PHFS to not just survive this pandemic, but to actually thrive through it and continue to provide our important services to families.
We are proud of the results our Family Village shelter is producing. Families say that our trauma-informed design makes them feel safe, welcome, and like we care about them.
But we know the solution to ending homelessness is not shelter. The solution ending homelessness is helping people move back into housing, and then providing services to help folks keep their housing. As more of our community members struggle with homelessness, PHFS knows we need to expand our services to help more families than ever before.
We have big dreams to build out our Family Village campus to include on-site housing and wrap-around services like domestic violence advocacy, mental health care, employment training, and childcare. And we always dream about adding capacity to our housing team to help more families move from homelessness to housing.
Well, our dreams just got a huge infusion of rocket fuel to help propel us forward!
Today we are announcing that PHFS is the recipient of a grant from the Jeff Bezos Day 1 Families Fund in the amount of $2.5 million over five years!
This funding allows PHFS to immediately add capacity to our housing team to help more families from shelter move back into housing, and it also allows us to seriously start planning how we use $500,000 a year to build out our Moon Shot vision and invest in wrap-around services to help families end their homelessness for good.
The reason that we are getting this national recognition is because our programs work, and because we have a PHFS Village that stands alongside us and supports us every step of the way. We share this honor with each and every one of you. This holiday season, I hope you’ll continue standing with PHFS and investing in our programs so that we can help more families than ever before.
We always knew that we would accomplish our dreams, but now they feel closer than ever.
With excitement and deep appreciation,
Brandi Tuck,
Executive Director
PHFS Receives $2.5 Million Bezos Day 1 Families Fund Grant
We are thrilled to announce that PHFS has been selected to receive a $2.5 million grant from the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund—the largest grant in our organization’s history.
Launched in 2018 but Amazon founder and executive chair Jeff Bezos, the Day 1 Families Fund issues annual leadership awards to organizations and civic groups doing compassionate, needle-moving work to provide shelter and hunger support to address the immediate needs of young families.
PHFS was selected as a Day 1 Families Fund grant recipient by an independent advisory board comprised of homelessness experts with experience in policy, advocacy, racial equity, child welfare and housing and service delivery, as well as firsthand experience in homelessness. This year, the Day 1 Families Fund issued a total of $96.2 million in grants to 32 organizations across the country.
Family Reunion Wrap Up
We exceeded our fundraising goal and raised $241,580!
Thank you to everyone who watched the event, bid in the auction, and gave generously. We truly felt like we had families supporting families more than ever before.
If you were moved by the stories of resilient families, please share the recording with your friends and families so more people can learn about the important work happening at PHFS.
Thanks to our Sponsors!
Senator Wyden's DASH Act
It was an honor to welcome Senator Ron Wyden to PHFS' Family Village for the announcement of the Decent, Affordable, Safe Housing for All (DASH) Act.
The DASH Act will make a generational investment to end childhood homelessness and tackle the housing affordability crisis that’s taken hold in Oregon and across America.
PHFS Program Director, Fay Schuler, spoke about how this legislation will help the families served at PHFS.
Welcome to Family Village. We are incredibly thankful to have Senator Wyden and others here today to share the news of the reintroduction of the DASH Act.
Senator Ron Wyden
Portland Homeless Family Solutions, or PHFS, empowers homeless families with children to get back into housing, and stay there.
In our Prevention Program - families at risk of an eviction get help keeping their homes so they never have to experience homelessness with their kids.
For families who are experiencing homelessnesses, we operate the Family Village Shelter, the first and only shelter in Oregon using trauma-informed design and architecture. Family Village provides opportunities for playing, healing and rebuilding partnered with a wide range of support to help families reach their goals.
PHFS Program Director, Fay Schuler
In our Housing Program, families get help moving back into homes as quickly as possible. We provide rental assistance and retention services supporting long term housing stability.
Last year we served 334 families made up of 909 kids and parents. More than half of our clients are kids, and half of those kids are younger than five years old.
Senator Wyden’s DASH Act legislation is one of the first to specifically center families and children experiencing homelessness. The DASH Act not only increases housing access for families, it provides real solutions; such as child care, food, and medical access. We believe that housing is a human right and children deserve consideration in our efforts to end homelessness in our communities. Senator Wyden shares this belief and it shows with this proposed legislation.
PHFS Shelter Coordinator & Rent Well Instructor, Denise Millage
Without safe and stable housing, families and children face uncertainty and fear and we all can agree there is enough of that to go around without adding homelessness to the equation. Families are often underrepresented in our efforts because they are unseen, staying with family, friends, cars, etc. Even though we may not see them as readily, they are here in our community and holding out hope for their children. The DASH Act sees them and prioritizes this hope.
On this first day back to school for many communities statewide, it is time for us to consider children and their right for shelter, housing, food and medical care as a requirement for them to thrive in school. The passage of the DASH Act would consider these rights and offer meaningful solutions. Solutions which have direct benefit on the quality of life for our youngest Oregonians. We are thankful for Senator Wyden’s advocacy on behalf of families and children experiencing homelessness and we ask others to fully endorse The Decent, Affordable, Safe Housing for All Act in the upcoming session.
Once again thank you for being here at Family Village today for this important announcement.
August Garden Update
Heat Wave Edition
Hear from Rob, our Shelter Coordinator who tends to all of our plants (both inside and out) about our summer garden. You can read Rob’s spring garden entry here.
Hi everyone! We're hitting the peak of summer, and as I write this the thermometer is crawling above 100 degrees. Not the kind of weather most gardens appreciate. But we made it through the June heat-wave more or less intact, so we'll just water the plants in & hunker down! Aside from the high temps, August is prime time for our veggie garden.
The tomatoes are in full swing. We learned from last year that two cherry tomato plants just weren't enough, so this summer we planted five of them! Especially popular are the Sun Sugars which are a sweeter variety of the famous Sungolds. We give a couple kids an empty bucket or two, a quick tutorial on what to pick (I've learned kids enjoy picking green tomatoes as much as ripe ones), and they do the harvesting for us! As I always say, they're natural gardeners.
Our stalwart zucchini plant has offered up a lot of zukes for roasting, cucumbers have added zest to salads prepared by Shelter Coordinators and guests alike, and the basil has finally started to plump after a slow start. Chili peppers are doing their thing, our herb bed (thyme, sage, oregano, marjoram) is soaking up the sun, and we should have a few eggplants ready by September. We planted some midsummer lettuce greens last month, they're in a very hot & sunny spot but are hanging in there so far. Several varieties of sunflowers and lavender are blooming, to be both enjoyed in the garden and picked for indoors.
After harvesting our spring crops earlier this summer, in some of the empty raised beds we planted moss rose (Portulaca grandiflora, not an actual rose) which is one of my go-to’s for hot low maintenance spaces. It's a semi-succulent low-growing plant with tons of bright flowers that requires almost no care and loves the heat. Win-win! They're filling out nicely and adding some vibrant color.
Volunteer help has been invaluable. Our real game-changer is the in-ground bed installed by volunteers from Mosaic Ecology, which gives us much more flexibility in regulating moisture and temperature than the above-ground troughs. Plus a lot more room. We also had several volunteer crews in to help weed that corner of the property. Premiere Property Group came out for a volunteer session that enabled us to plant the sunflower patch in a spot that had been overgrown, and since then other volunteers have done amazing work with the upkeep. Huge thanks to everyone that has contributed, we really could not have done it without you!
That's it for now! Time to go water (it's always time to water something these days). We'll check back in September about the harvest and what we're planning for the rest of the year.
Disability Pride Month
PHFS celebrates Disability Pride Month this July! This month honors the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 27, 1990. The ADA provides legal protections against discrimination regarding work, public access, school, transportation, and more. Hear from Jay, a PHFS Shelter Coordinator, about what this month means to them.
By Jay Tomlinson, Shelter Coordinator
July is Disability Pride Month. A disability may seem like an odd thing to be proud of, but for many people, their disability is just as much a part of their identity as something like race or sexuality. There are many different types of disability: the ones you can see like someone missing a limb, the ones you can’t see directly but there are generally still visual indications like a blind person using a cane, and there are the truly invisible ones where you would have no way of knowing someone is disabled by looking at them. Invisible disabilities are very common and come in all forms. Mine is a chronic illness that weakens my joints and makes eating difficult. You would have no way of knowing it by looking at me, but my illness impacts every part of my existence and influences how I move through the world in profound ways. I tried to hide my illness for a long time, trying to pass off my restricted diet by saying I’m a picky eater or trying to lose weight, or ignoring my pain. I’ve only recently started to listen to my body and acknowledge the impact it has on me. My illness is not inherently evil or negative, it is simply another part of who I am. I feel just as much right to own my disabilities as I do the right to own my sexuality.
Photos feature the Disability Pride Month display at Family Village, made by Shelter Coordinators Jay and Trista, to inform and inspire shelter guests!
July is an important time to have many conversations. It is a time to lift the voices of disabled people in our communities, recognize how the efforts of disability activities have benefitted all of us, and see what work is still left to do to make our world a truly accessible and safe place for all people of all ability levels.
This month, there are many things you can do to support disabled people in your life and community. I want to highlight giving your vocal support to the “Supplemental Security Income Restoration Act” bill currently in the House of Representatives. This bill would update social security for the first time in decades and grant people living on disability many more rights like being able to marry without losing benefits and letting them gather savings. This bill must get passed for all of us.
A note from Diana
We received the following letter last week from Diana, a mom in our Prevention Program.
We help families truly get past their crisis point and be able to sustainably keep their housing.
Hear from Diana about how this support impacted her and her family.
“In February my 19 year old son had a heart attack and I missed work and couldn’t pay rent. I reached out to Samuel [PHFS’ Prevention Specialist] and he informed me of a program that he’s doing and could possibly help me for longer.
I’ve learned about saving and budgeting and realized living in a survival mode isn’t good for your health. I have felt a sense of calmness and my kids have seen a happier mom. My kids seem happier and it just feels so good to be able to go to sleep at night not worrying about how you’re going to pay this bill or buy groceries. There are no amount of Thank Yous that I could say. I am truly grateful for this program and for Samuel [PHFS Prevention Specialist] coaching me and understanding me. It was so so nice and it was positively helped me and my family in more ways other than the financial part. Thank you again.”
-Diana, mother of four
Reflecting on PHFS' History pt. 3
THE THIRD AND FINAL POST IN A SERIES HIGHLIGHTING OUR LONG-TERM VOLUNTEERS!
Name: Sue Palmiter
Length of Involvement: 9-10 years
Sue (L) with another long-term volunteer, Holly (R)
Do you have any specific memories of Goose Hollow or Thirteen Salmon? I have so many happy memories of reading books with the kids, acting out the stories, and doing craft projects around the holidays. The pre-school children were full of life when they were building the Brio train tracks and full of curiosity when I read books about animals. It was always a gift to meet the children and then carry them in my heart when I left.
Name: Wendy
Length of Involvement: 10-15 years
What has inspired you to stay involved for so long? The dignity and respect the guests receive from the staff is inspiring. Having worked in many shelters one of the most impressive things about PHFS to me is when a guest leaves the shelter they are not alone.
Do you have any specific memories of Goose Hollow or Thirteen Salmon? Listening to families share stories of their lives currently or in the past is so hopeful. If you are lucky enough to hold a baby it is truly a good evening. Sharing a birthday or other life cycle events with guests and staff brings a sense of community.
Name: Blythe Olson
Length of Involvement: 11 years
Do you have any specific memories of Goose Hollow or Thirteen Salmon? One family with two small kids came back to Goose Hollow a year or so after having lost their housing a second time and when the mom saw me there as overnight host, she came up with a big hug and said "when you're here, it feels like home", a memory so warm that it still fills my heart.
Name: Mary Louise McClintock
Length of Involvement: Since the shelter opened in 1994
How have you seen PHFS evolve and change over the years? PHFS has grown and changed in response both to identified needs and evolving thinking about how best to support and empower families. In the early years, we sent families out into the elements without knowing whether they had any place to be during the day — but that changed pretty quickly with the development of the day shelter space at Thirteen Salmon. Similarly, the approach to development of Family Village embodies the ethos of PHFS as a learning organization that applies research-based practices.
Do you have any specific memories of Goose Hollow or Thirteen Salmon? In the early years there were no fold-out cubicles in the Goose Hollow gym; everyone — client families and volunteers — slept spread out around the gym. (That didn’t last long, though — families needed to have private spaces in which to decompress from their days.) Once my family happened to volunteer together overnight when the holiday party was happening, and my kids got to experience a visit from Santa along with a crowd of kids staying in the shelter.
Welcome Fay!
PHFS is pleased to introduce our new Program Director, Fay Schuler.
Fay comes to PHFS with extensive experience operating emergency shelters, rapid re-housing programs, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and leading community based services for survivors of domestic and sexual violence. She is an expert in staff supervision, advocating for program participants and staff alike, and helping create system change. Fay is very much in alignment with the PHFS culture of equity & inclusion, strengths-based practice, trauma-informed care, and assertive engagement. Fay spent the last 14 years as an Executive Director at West Women’s and Children’s Shelter and Call to Safety. She is looking forward to this opportunity to be more directly connected to the community served.
Fay has been serving as the Interim Program Director for the last five months and has already created positive changes in our programs like helping update the shelter handbook, expanding our prevention program, overhauling our hiring processes, among many others. With experience working across adult, youth, and the domestic and sexual violence system of care, Fay is exicted to make connections across systems which elevate the voices of families experiencing homelessness and address the intersections at the root causes.
Fay lives in the Lents neighborhood and is excited to live and work in her community. Time spent away from work is in her backyard with her family, dog, and friends. Tending to the garden and listening to music support her trauma resiliency and she takes every opportunity to be among the trees or swimming in the waters of the Pacific Northwest.
“I have been a long-time partner to PHFS, one who welcomed Family Village to my community of Lents, and now I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity to join the PHFS Family as the Program Director. I am looking forward to our future together as the PHFS community of staff, volunteers, and families.”
Please join us in welcoming Fay to our permanent team!
Wedding at Family Village!
One unmarried couple who stayed at Family Village with their daughter was so impacted by the healing power of the campus and the supportive PHFS staff that they wanted to get married at Family Village. PHFS could not have been more honored to host our first ever wedding April 3rd!
We asked our PHFS Village to help us surprise this couple on their wedding day. You all donated a wedding cake, wedding flowers, a professional photographer, wedding dress alterations, a night at the Heathman Hotel, dinner at Ringside Steakhouse, gift cards to Ikea and Target, and so much more. The bride and groom were so surprised and grateful for such a memorable wedding experience. This is the impact we make together at Family Village.
“We have so much love PHFS. We couldn't have asked for a better wedding. It was one of the most special days of my life - we'll never forget it. Only goodness has happened since PHFS came into our lives and without you we honestly don't know where we would be. We think of you not only as a valuable Network and resource, but really as an extended family.” - The Bride
All photos by Christine Dong
Thank you to the following businesses for donating!