Chandler Is Changing Up The Way We Help The Homeless

Phoenix AZ

26 October, 2021

10:13 PM

Description

The City of Chandler has started a new campaign to address the issue of homelessness and it starts with a name. ChangeUp is a new city campaign designed to deliver city services and promote community outreach workers called "Navigators" to help the city's often forgotten and largely invisible homeless. Arizona has recently seen a homeless population of 10,979 people, according to Continuums of Care to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Maricopa Association of Governments Municipal Responses to Homelessness reported the homeless population in Chandler had increased by 316.7% from a 2020 direct consensus done by volunteers, law enforcement, and outreach workers. Still, the count is not feasibly able to account for those who may be in inconsistent housing situations such as; couch surfing or sleeping in cars. In a survey done by Chandler in 2018, Homelessness was ranked 3rd by its residents as an area of need to secure a successful and thriving community. Since then, Chandler has been implementing responsive practices, supplying resources and services in conjunction with ChangeUp, a unique text-to-donate, and awareness campaign. The campaign provides a bridge for the homeless population. Aiming to create a pipeline for donating citizens to those in financial crisis experiencing homeless. Chandler's Community Resources Coordinator, Rori Minor spoke with me on the campaign's objective. "It was created to provide an option for people to help individuals they saw panhandling on the side of the road--Finding a way to allow the community to help out but in the most efficient and productive way possible." Minor spoke from the navigators' experiences that often their clients--those experiencing homelessness--would disappear, or simply wouldn't turn up for extended periods, after receiving money from people who contributed to their panhandling. Then as an effect, their client's housing options would expire or be passed off to the next recipient. ChangeUp offers an alternative to donating so that contributions are allocated for each client's tailored needs. Minor explained the money given directly to the campaign is to "help cultivate the connection between the navigators and those they are providing for, so that resources that aren't readily available, can be supplied." Such resources include a bus pass so clients can be reconnected to family members and seek asylum, a one-night stay at a hotel until a shelter space opens, or covering a fee for a dog kennel so that a person can enter an apartment that has no pets policy. Minor described the development of the campaign as a slow roll-out. It was first introduced to a non-profit and community coalition called 'For Our City', made up of churches, businesses, and members of the community that gives back to the community. The coalition receives a large portion of the proceeds and distributes them with help of the navigators. The campaign also partners with other charities and nonprofits such as 'AZCEND' and the Salvation Army. The funds provided through ChangeUp also aid in bridging the gaps financially where federal funds might fall short for those same charities and nonprofits. The outreach component is solely dependent on their staff members known as Navigators. They bear the responsibility of community advocacy, with their daily searches for those currently experiencing homelessness. Minor says some concerned citizens will call into the city, but ultimately it's the city navigators who are actively seeking out these people. Navigators like Adams (who chose to redact their first name to protect the confidentially of at-risk clients) is something like the first-line response to situations where homeless individuals need assistance. "It's fulfilling for me because I was on the other side of this once. I was without a stable home for years so I know what it's like, and I want to be the person that brings someone to where I am now." Some Navigators have been through homelessness themselves and each of them must be certified with a National Certified Peer Specialist (NCPS) certification before becoming a navigator. In being a Navigator, not only do they become a testimony to those they are helping but they also understand how to help and connect through first-hand experience. Adams said campaigns like 'ChangeUp' provide the tools directly to the appropriate source, "We make sure the funds go where it's most needed for each individual, we truly cater to who we're helping." Chandler has laid a foundation to combat homelessness on a smaller scale, in a big way. The campaign can be found on the city's website and through their social media, where they do 'Success Story Saturdays' highlighting how donations have helped certain individuals.