By Molly Balison
The most exciting yet daunting news someone experiencing homelessness can receive is that the time has come for them to move into housing. Allen Miller, an Interfaith guest of seven years, received this news in February after being on the waitlist for housing a full year.
When asked how it felt receiving this long awaited news he said, “it’s scary.”
Although in Ada County 93% of folks who get into supportive housing stay housed, a misconception about the homeless community is that people’s problems are solved once they’re housed, but the reality is that people still require support from the community and sometimes accountability when they move into their own place.
For individuals like Miller, having a plan isn’t necessarily a priority. “It can be stressful especially if you’ve never had the opportunity, in such a fight or flight state for the majority of your life,” Rosie Lopez the program director for Our Path Home Connect within CATCH said. “You’ve always just been in a high crisis figuring out what you’re going to eat, where you’re going to sleep and that can be a brand new thing and very scary.”
In February 2024 Miller walked into CATCH’s coordinated entry on 503 S Americana Blvd to get a background check and apply to be on a housing waitlist. CATCH functions as a low barrier service to create equitable access for people whether they’re sheltered, unsheltered, living in their vehicle or fleeing from domestic violence.
Miller is grateful that his first and last month’s rent and deposit are covered by CATCH’s Linda Fund, a contribution from the City of Boise to help people secure stable housing. With this new level of responsibility added to his life, he’s determined to keep his housing by making sure he conducts himself well and visitors obey the rules.
“Sanctuary touched my heart,” he said. “I remember when I first got here…I was scared, I was frightened.” Miller recalled the hope that Interfaith gave him when we entered the shelter system as an anxious, broken man. Project Well Being equipped him with the tools and community he needed to care for his mental health. Not having this support be a part of his everyday life is an unknown transition he must navigate.
Sometimes people reenter homelessness and land back onto the waitlist for housing if they are not ready for the commitment of being a renter or find themselves feeling lonely and isolated from lack of support and community. For someone who has been surviving with the resources provided through the continuum of services and shelter, it can feel as if they are left to their own devices.
To address this need, CATCH implemented a map of support to bridge the gap in services after someone has moved into housing to connect people with agencies or peer support in close proximity to them.
Permanent, supportive housing like New Path Community Housing supports people with resources and programming built into the complex such as a Terry Reilly office. Interfaith Sanctuary brings their programming to housing such as Good Samaritan to keep people who have transitioned into housing connected with a community.
Luckily, Miller started finding community within his housing complex by simply introducing himself to folks smoking cigarettes beside him outside. As a man in his 60s who has been through the wringer, he still seeks support in his mental health journey by committing to Project Well Being after having his own place for three weeks.
Rosie Lopez works with partners to engage in outreach, referring households to external and internal housing programs based on their needs and priorities. “We ask questions in our housing assessment to assess severity of needs and really assess priority for the most vulnerable,” she said.
An outreach team goes into the field three times a week to build rapport and connect people who are further removed from resources. This includes pop ups at the homeless shelters every other week in the evenings and Public Libraries during the day to give people a connection point.
Lopez plays an important role in consulting with guests about budgeting, background and ability to uphold renter responsibilities. She said she wants to ensure the individual or household is comfortable through the whole process by “walking alongside the person and letting them make the decisions while having all the options on the table.” This is how CATCH takes a proactive approach to setting people up for success.
“When folks are in a high crisis you don’t necessarily think of all the small details so we want to make sure that people have what they need and it’s a good setup for them overall,” Lopez said.