At the heart of the homeless epidemic are human lives. Many of these unique individuals are suffering from addiction, mental illness, depression, or unemployment in addition to being homeless. An intervention must be staged to save their lives, save our city and provide a model of hope for people across the nation.
Over the past decade in San Francisco, the number of people experiencing homelessness has risen by more than 50% while spending has skyrocketed 130%. This is unacceptable. The homeless epidemic demands an effective solution. Now the Urban Vision Alliance, a coalition of 32 for- and non-profit organizations, the Salvation Army and Independent Institute are banding together to change the direction of homelessness in the Bay Area.
Our solution to the problem provides transformational housing along with ongoing individualized 360-degree care. The goal is to help individuals resolve the issues underlying their homelessness to achieve their full potential. Haven for Hope in San Antonio provides living proof that this approach moves those experiencing homelessness beyond homeless.
But to move from the status quo to a more enlightened and effective approach, we need all the help we can get. So please get involved.
How To Get Involved
- You can start by joining our movement. Simply adding your name to our army of supporters helps send a message.
- Beyond that, there are volunteer and donation opportunities, and the power of word of mouth.
- You can also host a screening party for our Finding Hope documentary.
We thank you for whatever you can do, and look forward to brighter days on the streets of San Francisco. And beyond.
Thought Leaders
“What’s it going to take to get the political will
to make this happen in San Francisco?”
“There’s a statistic that says, people who complete a program for 6 months only have a likelihood of – 10% chance of continuing to live a life of sobriety. When you wrap them with support like life skills training, like Workforce Development, “for 2 to 3 years” we’ve seen that same number jump up to 90%.
So we are trying to introduce this concept to the city, that will allow them to think a little differently, to really have a different approach, because we’ve understood over the past couple of years that different people need different solutions.”
“I believe it will take a combination of things. First, I think you’re starting to get a lot of support from case studies around the country of approaches that are working.
I think that it’s going to be us winning over people one by one to understanding the logic and seeing the solution. And it’s also going to take progress that we make with the Salvation Army in adding those beds and developing those effective programs that we see in other parts of the country and bringing them to San Francisco.”
“We need to keep top of mind that homelessness is a human problem, and our solutions need to meet the complex needs of the individual rather than trying to devise a 1-size-fits-all solution that fits the needs of our institutions.
Ultimately, this problem is an opportunity to affirm the infinite value of each individual and to establish new and healthy ways of working together—in community–to solve challenges.”
