KC’s homeless shelter eliminates daily lines for beds
Posted: Thu Nov 14, 2013 8:17 am
A new start for KC’s homeless as shelter eliminates daily lines for beds
http://www.kansascity.com/2013/11/13/46 ... eless.html“Home for Good” fits into a bigger initiative launched over the last three years by reStart and its social service partners aimed at getting people off the streets and into affordable, long-term housing. Customized mental health, life skills and job counseling services are provided as needed.
It’s a radical departure from the emergency overnight model that had been used across the country for a generation. The idea was to give people a free place to sleep and a meal but to kick them out during the day, hoping they would rebuild their lives. Instead, they might just go panhandling.
Now the concept is to get at the root of the problem that’s landed them on the street in the first place — mental illness, substance abuse, family conflicts or difficulties holding a job — and try to solve that problem one client at a time.
It sounds pricey, but Craig said it’s actually a better use of tax dollars and philanthropic donations than the old shelter model because it gives people a grounding that puts them on the path to self-sufficiency. Besides, many of the clients have income or disability or veterans benefits that they could have been applying to housing but weren’t.