Walton County Sucess Stories - Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum of Care


	Stories of Hope From Crestview
	In October, 2009, Opportunity Inc. received the first installment what eventually came to be $731,559 for Homeless Prevention and Rapid Rehousing in Okaloosa and Walton Counties. By federal law, $143,385 has been set aside for Walton County, leaving $588,174 for Okaloosa County. $543,174 of that total has been spent, of which $47,000 went toward a required computer management information system, and $13,000 went for administrative costs including an audit, insurance costs, and reporting expenses. Of the $483,174 spent for assistance in Okaloosa County, $252,262 (52%) has gone to Crestview and the surrounding areas in north Okaloosa County. So where has the money for Crestview and surrounding areas gone? 83 families have received assistance for homeless prevention, meaning that they were in imminent danger of homelessness (3-day notice of eviction is the norm), and needed help catching up with back rent and utility payments, and a little help going forward. $118,672 has gone in payments to landlords and utility companies on behalf of these 83 clients, and an additional $42,912 has gone into "housing stabilization" costs, which can be anything from legal services, credit repair, case management, budget classes, and assistance with training and employment programs. 46 families have received rapid rehousing assistance, which means they were homeless when they came to us. These families needed help with upfront costs - rent and utility deposits, first month rent, etc. To meet federal guidelines they must have some form of income showing they can maintain housing, so generally we provide a great deal of assistance helping families find jobs. $62,070 has gone to landlords and utility companies, with an additional $28,606 going to housing relocation and stabilization services. Clients have come to us from Jobs Plus, the Okaloosa County School District, word-of-mouth, churches, and other non-profits such as Sharing and Caring. Even those persons referred who do not qualify for financial assistance, and this is a federal program so there are eligibility requirements, walk away with help with a budget, or active assistance in finding other sources of help - we don't just give a list and say good luck. Della Goodson is out there advocating for each client, and doesn't quit until every emergency has been met, every crisis resolved so that families have the time to regroup and plan ahead. I'd like to introduce a few of these clients to you: We assisted one young woman who had been living with her three children in one bedroom at a rental her mother leased. The mother decided to move out of state leaving her daughter and grandchildren with an eviction notice and two weeks to find housing. In that time the young woman found an additional part-time job to supplement her income, came through Opportunity Inc. to apply for HPRP and cleaned the rental unit she had been living in with her mother. Before her application could be processed her children had to be farmed out to different friends' homes while she stayed in her truck until she was approved for Rapid Rehousing. The family moved into a nice apartment. This young mother has focused her life now, working two jobs to support her family. She received a raise on one of her jobs and reports having money in savings for the first time in her adult life. We assisted a single man who was referred to us by a former client. He was living on the street after moving out of a place to get away from overt drug activity. One of the local churches allowed him to stay three nights in their gym. He worked for a local restaurant as a cook and also cleaned offices at night. We assisted him in getting a small house within his budget. He was thrilled to be able to have his mother and brother over to his house for Thanksgiving. An older couple had owned a home in Walton County for many years. When it was placed in foreclosure, they came to the Crestview office where they hoped they would have a better chance at getting employment and a fresh start. They were referred to numerous resources, including one who became an employer, and then qualified for the rapid rehousing program. One of our greatest Christmas presents was a very nice letter back telling us that Opportunity Inc. had truly saved the day for their family. One of our favorite prevention stories revolves around a grandmother who had worked as a realtor until the housing market went south. She had moved to Crestview to live with her son and help take care of her grandson. When she came to us she was unemployed, her son was in jail for a traffic violation and had lost his job. She was behind with both rent and utilities. Within a week, this grandmother had found a job in an assisted living facility, attended several JobsPlus workshops including one on money management and completed her HPRP application. Since then she has become the foster parent for four of her grandchildren, three teenagers and one younger child and is the sole support of her family. She is taking CNA classes and also plans to become an LPN as soon as possible. Though plagued with arthritis in her feet and knees she doesn't let her health issues prevent her from taking care of her family. We have assisted so many people who were drowning because there was no work in construction, housekeepers who lost income due to the oil spill and servers who were hit hard by both the recession and the oil spill. Della spoke with one of my clients recently who is working as a server in a local restaurant. She shared how much hope our program had given her during one of the most stressful, despairing times of her life. She was transformed as she had enough work now to pay her bills and ecstatic when she shared that she had reached one of the financial goals we had set for her family. She said, "I get it now. Before I never understood how addictive saving money can be and how good it feels to know that I have some money in savings to fall back on in case of emergency."
	Stories of Hope From Walton County
	In October, 2009, Opportunity Inc. received the first installment of a $142,000 total in Homeless Prevention/ Rapid Rehousing Program (HPRP) earmarked for Walton County. These funds are intended to extend through June 30, 2011. So far, we have spent $122,816, leaving $19,184 to be spent over the next five+ months. Had we divided the money into equal monthly installments and stuck with that budget, we would have spent $7890 per month, for a total of $102,555 to date. Because of the economic recession and oil spill, it felt heartless to withhold money from people who desperately needed it right then - so we only have $3839 for each of the remaining months, which covers supportive services as well as direct assistance. So what has Walton County gotten for this money? 40 families have received assistance for homeless prevention, meaning that they were in imminent danger of homelessness (3-day notice of eviction is the norm), and needed help catching up with back rent and utility payments, and a little help going forward. $37,546.42 has gone in payments to landlords and utility companies on behalf of these 40 clients, and an additional $18,751 has gone into "housing stabilization" costs, which can be anything from legal services, credit repair, case management, budget classes, and assistance with training and employment programs. 47 families have received rapid rehousing assistance, which means they were homeless when they came to us. These families needed help with upfront costs - rent and utility deposits, first month rent, etc. To meet federal guidelines they must have some form of income showing they can maintain housing, so generally we provide a great deal of assistance helping families find jobs. $49,682.21 has gone to landlords and utility companies, with an additional $17,105.19 going to housing relocation and stabilization services. Clients have come to us from Jobs Plus, the Walton County School District, the Rural Relief program in Bruce, word-of-mouth, other non-profits, and even COPE. Even those who do not qualify for financial assistance, and this is a federal program so there are eligibility requirements, walk away with help with a budget, or active assistance in finding other sources of help - we don't just give a list and say good luck. Dianne is out there advocating for each client, and doesn't quit until every emergency has been met, every crisis resolved so that families have the time to regroup and plan ahead. I'd like to introduce a few of these clients to you: A mother and children were referred to us by a school bus driver, who noted they were living in an abandoned shed. The kids had missed the first day of school because they could not take a shower. Mom had lost her job during the oil spill. We assisted her in gaining employment, getting a home, and filing for a claim with BP. They are stably housed, and the kids are doing very well in school. A single mother of two was fleeing domestic violence. She had a job with a restaurant in Sandestin, but no savings, no cash and no transportation to get to work. We helped her and her kids into their own place close to her job. We provided toys for the kids at Christmas, plus some starter household goods. She has recently been promoted and is doing well. A single dad with six small boys, one with serious medical conditions, came to us homeless, with no transportation and no job. His situation was probably the most challenging of all those we have seen. Dianne was a bulldog on this one, and did not give up. He is now housed with the help of multiple agencies, his son is getting the medical care he needs, and the dad has just started a new job. A single mom became homeless while completing her coursework to become a dental assistant. She had been working part-time to support her family, when the job died due to the oil spill. She came to us three days before eviction. We enrolled her in the homeless prevention program, paid her back rent and utilities so that she could maintain her house. She is now working as a hygienist for a dentist in South Walton and self-sufficient. A family in Santa Rosa Beach had been supporting themselves through jobs as a painter (him) and a restaurant (her). Between the recession which shut down construction work and the oil spill which knocked out restaurant jobs, they went from full time jobs to sporadic work schedules. The painter began having some serious medical issues. They had rented their home from the same landlord for over five years, and never been late until this run of bad luck. As much as the landlord liked them, he was now moving to evict. Through the assistance of voc rehab, Jobs Plus, and Dianne's work, both husband and wife got back to full-time work. We paid rent and utility bills through homeless prevention, and they both have full-time jobs and are back on their feet. Whereas homeless prevention/rapid rehousing has been the greatest source of assistance we have provided in Walton County, it has not been all. We were able to help Christ the King with their Monday soup kitchen, providing $3,000 in funds obtained through the state Challenge Grant. We have used private donations to provide $1950 to the Muscogee Creek Nation and the Rural Relief Fund, and took a truck and a trailer full of food and gifts. We have since organized donations, which members of the Creek Nation have come to Opportunity Place to collect. Six families from Walton County have stayed at Opportunity Place. All of them became self-sufficient after leaving, and all have maintained self-sufficiency. One couple got married while there, shortly before the wife gave birth to their fifth child. Mother and youngest child come back to visit from time to time. Mom is finishing her education, the children have received dental care that was greatly needed. We keep in touch, and each report is better than the one before. Total cash spending in 2010 was $127,766 in Walton County, not counting the value of donations made to families in the homeless prevention/ rapid rehousing program (particularly generous in December), provision of 90 days of room and board per family at Opportunity Place, and donations to Bruce. Although each of our programs carries a large administrative component, requiring reports, conferences, interaction with state and federal agencies, there are little to none administrative dollars attached to our grants. In fact, all but one state grant carry no administrative funds, and the one that does is capped out at 2.5%. No administrative costs are assigned to Walton County. We manage by keeping administrative costs to a skeleton level, paying only two people (one of which is our bookkeeper), and covering those costs through private donations. Our staff members have been very active in working with Walton County providers, organizing, attending and sometimes leading community meetings, and in bringing resources to bear within the area. We are again conducting the point-in-time count in Walton County and are rolling out the HMIS system to service providers there. We are very proud of what Dianne and the rest of our staff has done to assist those in need in Walton County, and look forward to continuing this mission to the best of our ability in the future.


Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum Care / Opportunity, Inc.
Opportunity, Inc. (Admin Office) 203 Cloverdale Boulevard, Suite B Fort Walton Beach, FL 32547 Phone: (850) 409-3070 Fax: (850) 409-3071 info@okaloosawaltonhomeless.org	Opportunity Place 305 Lovejoy Road Fort Walton Beach, FL 32548 Phone: (850) 659-3190 Fax: (850) 659-3191