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.

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.

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.