Solving for the biggest crisis
As reported by the US Interagency Council on Homelessness, California has a homelessness problem that far outstrips those of other states. In fact, with an estimated 161,548 residents experiencing homelessness on any given day, California nearly doubles the homeless population of New York (91,271) and dwarfs the homeless populations of Florida (27,487), Texas (27,229), and Washington (22,923). No other states have numbers that even approach those of these five.
Of California’s 161,548 homeless individuals, 51,785 are categorized as chronically homeless. Population demographics at particular risk include veterans (11,401) and unaccompanied young adults from 18 to 24 (12,172). 8,030 Californians experiencing homelessness are members of cohabitating family units.
Eager to combat at-risk homelessness and help anyone who is facing housing insecurities, Upward Housing has been dedicated to tackling homelessness since 2017. Over the years, it has developed productive partnerships with direct service providers such as the foster care organization Place for Youth and the interim housing nonprofit Holiday Helping Hands.
Through partnerships like these, Upward Housing supports a range of assistance programs and aids in the provision of safe, clean, and comfortable housing. It also partners with private foundations and government programs to ensure that its service provider partners have the resources and capital that they need to operate and make a positive difference.
Although it works with a broad spectrum of organizations, Upward Housing is guided by a unifying framework that is singularly focused on providing critical support to the at-risk community.
This support comes from four, primary, load-bearing pillars:
1. Hardware – Encompassing both physical resources and interconnecting infrastructure, hardware involves forming alliances to solve problems. In addition to sourcing and acquiring housing properties that are ideal for adaptive reuse, Upward Housing serves as an interconnecting hub among a range of private foundations, service providers, and government agencies.
2. Service Providers – By supplying key resources to its service provider partners, Upward Housing extends the outreach of organizations that are already doing tremendous work. By allowing each service provider to do what it does best, it promotes comprehensive social services and holistic care.
3. Foundations – Private foundations play a key role in bridging critical funding gaps. The financial support that they provide may take the form of cash gifts, programming dollars, or donations of essential equipment and supplies.
4. Government – At the federal, state, county, and municipal levels, government agencies operate a range of programs to assist homeless populations as well as those facing housing insecurity. They also provide financial aid to a range of independent nonprofit and for-profit service providers.
Through the strength of these four pillars, Upward Housing is able to uplift the at-risk community, drive upward mobility, and get to the root of the homelessness problem that is so pronounced in the beautiful state of California. In addition to combating homelessness where it occurs, Upward Housing is dedicated to stopping it before it can even happen!