Fighting the Seattle Homelessness Crisis
We know how to fight homelessness: With jobs and homes. It’s (almost) that easy. When people have just one, either a job or a home, it doesn’t work. Income is needed to support a home. A home is needed to provide safe shelter so one can go and be productive at work. United Way has two proven programs that are making a real impact in moving people off the streets permanently.
An introduction to Jobs Connect and some of the people who have gone through the program. Jobs Connect deals with one of the root causes of homelessness.
The last point-in-time count showed 12,112 people living on the streets, in cars or on encampments.
Rising costs of living, a loss of middle-income jobs, racial disparities… the reasons for homelessness are endless. But let’s stop looking at who to blame. Instead let’s focus on what’s working.
Who is experiencing homelessness?
- 2,624 individuals were in families with children
- 1,518 were unaccompanied youth and young adults
- 921 individuals identified as veterans
- 3,552 individuals were experiencing chronic homelessness
- 3,372 individuals were living in vehicles
Solutions that speak for themselves
United Way has two proven programs that move people off the streets, into a home and connect them to jobs.
Jobs Connect
We know that housing is the solution to homelessness. We also know that you can’t move into housing—or maintain it—without an income. That’s why we invest in connecting people who are homeless and able to work with employers who can put them to work.
Impact to Date
2,224
people connected to employment
10+
outreach and job training providers
Streets to Home
The sooner people move off the streets, the less likely they are to fall back into homelessness. Outreach staff provide flexible dollars so they can individualize support and provide the right solution. One person might need a security deposit, while another might need a bus pass to get reconnected with family who can help. The individualized support is what makes this work.
Impact to Date
1,530
people moved from street into homes
20
partner nonprofits
<$1,000
per person spent to move them out of homelessness
Home Base
With 40% of Americans not able to cover a $400 emergency expense, the threat of eviction can be just one paycheck away. We know that stopping the pipeline into homelessness is critical to fighting our community’s current crisis.
You can get involved
These programs have been proven to be effective in fighting homelessness. We need your support to bring these programs to scale. By 2020 our goal is to reduce the number of unsheltered people by 50%, and ensure that 95% of people who have experiences homelessness do not return within two years. Will you help fight homelessness by giving a gift today?