“Thank you for not giving up on me…”
How outreach and collaboration brings residents home – by Dylan Novacek, Content Specialist
Pulling up to the building for the first time, the resident felt skeptical. After having experiences in shelter and housing that didn’t work out for her, she honestly felt that living outdoors in her encampment was the best option. With time running out and her encampment set to be taken down, she asked herself: Is this the right choice for me?
“It’s the systems that our society creates that keeps people living outdoors,” asserted Brandon Sanford of Avivo. “But now as we’re having more opportunities in the housing continuum, people who are experiencing long term homelessness are much more willing to come inside.”
As the Program Manager at Beacon’s American House and Kimball Court, Brandon and his team work to provide residents with the wraparound services needed for them to maintain their stability. Operating under the Housing First model, American House and Kimball Court serve a chronically homeless population who have experienced long term instability, addiction, and other severe disabling conditions. Serving those with the greatest unmet needs, the work Avivo does in collaboration with community partners is a vital part of our shared efforts to ensure all our neighbors are housed.
How Avivo and community partners engage in outreach work
“As an organization, we have a spectrum of services to engage individuals who are experiencing homelessness,” shared Charlotte Moris, Program Director at Avivo. “One of the most beautiful things about our work is how we connect with community partners to bring people into housing that suits their present needs.”
Engaging in outreach work as part of their spectrum of services, Brandon is an expert at connecting individuals experiencing homelessness to resources that can bring them indoors. When called in by the City of Saint Paul’s Homeless Assistance Response Team (HART Team), Brandon helped in connecting this resident to home at American House.
“Partners in the community spent about six months building rapport with this individual. Her camp had moved from place to place, often going from one side of the road to the other,” Brandon explained. “Calling me in was a last-ditch effort at offering her resources. Whenever I meet a prospective resident, I always tell them that the cup of coffee and the building tour is always free.”
Pictured: Brandon doing outreach with the potential resident.
“Brandon’s communication with her felt like the final piece to bringing her indoors,” shared the HART Team in one of their weekly reports.
It takes collaboration and a community of resources to achieve our shared Beacon vision that all people have a home. In this case, collaboration between Avivo and the City of Saint Paul’s HART Team worked in tandem to bring this individual experiencing homelessness into Beacon housing. When our shared resources come together, we get closer to bringing individuals into housing. It is often a complex webs of networks that need to work together in order to bring chronically homeless individuals indoors, and too often our current housing systems show that this particular story is not the norm.
For Brandon, he approached the situation with care, kindness, patience, and authenticity.
Connecting residents to home
“I approached her camp and asked if I could sit down with her. She and I talked about her reservations on coming indoors,” Brandon reflected. “In the past, she experienced promises that weren’t fulfilled, there was a fear of losing the few possessions she owned, and she didn’t want to go somewhere that forced rules on her. I acknowledged that what she described was valid, and that a lot of people in her position share these reservations.”
“What appears to be a choice to live outdoors is the outcome of years of not being treated well,” Charlotte added. “These individuals have developed a mistrust of the systems that have failed them over and over again.”
According to research from the HART Team, there has been a significant rise in unsheltered residents and homeless encampments over the last several years. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020-21, encampment numbers reached historic levels.
With such a large number of individuals living outdoors, individualized supports are vital to ensuring each person is brought into housing that meets their specific needs. In the case of this particular resident, the resources found at American House could help stabilize her.
Many residents come to American House and Kimball Court to build stability. According to Beacon’s reported outcomes, the average length-of-stay at these homes is currently 1.5 years. These homes are serving 43 people who have lived there for at least 2 years, a significant milestone for people coming from a context of unsheltered homelessness.
“As we talked, I reassured her that this was a new opportunity and a new housing model,” Brandon continued. “I told her she could even get her keys that same day if she liked the place. So, we took her on a tour of the building.
Coming to American House
Packing up her belongings, Brandon brought the prospective resident inside to show her the amenities and explained what life at American House was like.
“I let her know that this is a bridge to living indoors, and that it doesn’t have to be her final destination. She could come and go as she pleased, and whatever she does in her apartment is her business so long as she got along with her neighbors. Most importantly, I let her know that this was her choice,” Brandon said.
“We’re guided by the dignity of the person we want to serve. That’s key in all of this,” Charlotte asserted. “We show up with integrity and offer a place that provides dignity to whoever is in front of us. And they have a choice in all of this.”
As the prospective resident took a tour of the space, community partners worked in the background to line up the necessary paperwork should she make the decision to move in. The most unique thing about the homes at American House, as well as Kimball Court, is how the Housing First model enables residents to move in quickly with very few barriers.
For the first time in a long time, the resident felt in control. Seeing the 24-hour security, service staff onsite, a room of her own that locks, clean bathroom facilities and a community kitchen, she felt ready to make her decision.
“My experience with her is a testament to what we can do when people are ready to be housed, and when we have all the resources lined up. A lot goes into this work, and sometimes residents take a few visits to fill out the paperwork or decide if this home is right for them. But when it all comes together it can feel magical and life changing,” Brandon stated, noting the fact that too many people are unable to have this same experience due to our society’s current housing systems.
“I gave her the space to think. In this role you need to be comfortable with the silences that come with making a big decision,” Brandon continued. “Eventually she came to the conclusion that American House was right for her. We got her paperwork done and handed her a set of keys within two hours.”
The right services at the right time
For Avivo staff like Brandon and Charlotte, it’s validating to see how a resident’s posture changes when they come through the front door. Homes like American House bring individuals exiting homelessness into a stable, safe home with onsite services they can utilize. Here, residents have the space to make their own choices and grow what stability looks like for them.
“It’s a matter of having the right opportunity at the right time with the right supports,” Charlotte concluded. “The solution to ending homelessness is housing. Housing can work for everyone; they just need to find housing that works for them.”
“This resident is just one of about 60 people we’ve brought into housing this calendar year,” Brandon cheered.
During Beacon’s fiscal year from July 2022 to June of 2023, there has been 86 move ins to American House and Kimball Court. Of those who moved in last year, 75 (87%) are still successfully maintaining stable housing at American House and Kimball Court, speaking to how these sites are helping people transition into housing.
“It’s been great seeing this particular resident use our services,” he continued. “She’s been coming down to our offices a few times a week to get help connecting to benefits she didn’t have before. The most wonderful thing though was seeing her come down to our community room grand opening event, where I got to watch her get to know her neighbors.”
After signing her lease papers, Brandon looked at the resident and asked what she wanted to do next. She let out a sigh of relief and said she was going to take a nap in her own bed. Confident in the decision she made, she is happy to have found home at American House.
Smiling at Brandon and her outreach worker from HART she said, “Thank you for not giving up on me.”
It takes a community of support to bring individuals into supportive housing. You can help maintain the support these residents receive. Click here to make a gift today.
To learn more about the Housing First model, click here.
