From homeless to housed: November Snapshot

TJ Johnston November 30, 2021

Every month, we track the number of people who exited homelessness in San Francisco so we can determine if we are on pace to meet our housing goals for the year. Staying on top of this information helps us ask the important questions – of ourselves and others – to make sure we are doing everything possible to get people off the streets and into homes.

In San Francisco, 148 people exited homelessness in the month of September for a total of 1,056 people moved into homes so far this year. Housing more than 1,000 people this year is an exciting milestone, but we should have reached it many months earlier.

We must maintain a consistent pace of moving hundreds of people into permanent homes to reduce the suffering on our streets and solve homelessness in our community.

This month, we are lucky to hear from TJ Johnston, assistant editor at the Street Sheet and Community Advisory Board member with Tipping Point Community (pictured left), which powers the All In campaign.

“Nothing ends homelessness like a home,” we’ve heard someone say (hint, hint: you’ll find out who later in this blog entry). Anyone who has been rehoused after experiencing life without stable housing can appreciate the truth in that statement.

It’s also a credo that community-based organizations serving unhoused people live by and one that Tipping Point believes in. In that spirit and with the guidance of Tipping Point’s Community Advisory Board (CAB), seven nonprofits in San Francisco will receive $200,000 in grants to continue their work in housing people, providing health care services, uplifting them through performance, and empowering members through community organizing.

These organizations are: Homeless Youth Alliance, Faithful Fools, Western Regional Advocacy Project, Skywatchers, Lyon-Martin Health Services, At the Crossroads and the San Francisco Community Land Trust.

Members of the CAB, all of whom have lived experience of homelessness, selected the nonprofits. The CAB nominated potential recipients and gave its preferences to smaller organizations that are based in San Francisco, serve unhoused people, and provide services to underserved communities.

In selecting grantees, CAB member Couper Orona said that the experience provides insight on how unhoused people can be served and have their needs attended, as well as on what actually works best for them.

“Having lived experiences helps to put people on the same level and gives that understanding of certain situations,” she said. “If you have been there yourself, you can help in many more ways than someone who hasn’t had the same situations in life. Being able to look from outside the box with the knowledge of having that experience can open up lines of communications that may not have been there beforehand.”- Couper Orona

The grants, which range from $10,000 to $50,000, will help meet the needs of the respective organizations.

Lyon-Martin Health Services will receive $25,000 to provide health care services to women, transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals.
Homeless Youth Alliance has been awarded $50,000 to support their services to youth and young adults experiencing homelessness.
San Francisco Community Land Trust was awarded $44,580 to purchase a residential building on 285 Turk St., which houses tenants who are mostly Black and indigenous people of color.
Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP), Faithful Fools and At the Crossroads will take in $25,000 apiece, while Skywatchers will get $10,000.

For Couper Orona, the selection process was educational and empowering.

“I learned A LOT! I had no idea what actually went into giving a grant,” she said. “And didn’t realize how hard the decisions would be. I am very proud to have had this opportunity, and I hope I will have another chance to be a part of something life changing like this again! Thank you, Tipping Point, for making my voice matter.”- Couper Orona

WRAP’s executive director Paul Boden told Democracy Now in 2019 that people should have clean, safe and adequate housing, because “we all know nothing ends homelessness like a home.”

We need you! All In is a campaign built on the people of San Francisco, and here’s how you can show up for our unhoused neighbors:

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