Homelessness among families is a complex, multi-faceted problem, and our partner organization, Coordinated Access to Housing and Shelter (CAHS), is going above and beyond to face this challenge. CAHS is a Ramsey County program staffed through Catholic Charities that is headquartered in our building. CAHS assesses homeless families to get them on a list for supportive and subsidized housing. This list, called the “coordinated entry priority list,” provides a fair system where all families have equal opportunity to access housing.
While there is also coordinated programming for singles and for youth, CAHS works specifically with families. Right now 250 families are on the list, and 65 families on active housing referrals. (“Active referral” means a family has been connected to housing, and are waiting on approval before getting moved in.) This list is a way to house families who would otherwise be unable to get a place—families like a young mom and her child getting their first apartment, or a couple with a newborn who had been sleeping on the light rail at night.
KaTina Cummings, the program manager, says, “You might think the person on the corner asking for help is the face of homelessness, but the people we help aren’t in that situation. Our families include parents with college educations and full time jobs. Other families are fleeing domestic violence. A family we’re working with right now lost their house in a fire. You can be one paycheck away from losing your home, and when you fall on hard times, sometimes all you need is just a little bit of help for a few months.”
The CAHS team (pictured above) has four other staff members including the priority list manager and three housing navigators. Housing navigators assess families and help with the housing search while families wait on openings. Navigators also provide education and resources to help prevent families from experiencing homelessness again. This includes education about things like handling landlord engagement, navigating legal documentation and finding jobs. When CAHS does not have a certain resource, they connect their families with others who do.
KaTina says, “This work has taught me not to judge a book by its cover. It’s taught me to have deeper conversations with people, to listen and get beyond the surface to the ‘why’ of a situation. For example, you might have someone decline a housing program, and you’re thinking, ‘Why is this person so ungrateful?’ Then you dig deeper and you find they’re scared to be home alone with their kid. Maybe they’re a young parent who lost their mom and they feel safer in a shelter community environment. Having these honest conversations gets them connected to the resources that they specifically need.”
Thank you CAHS team for your hard work, and for walking alongside families in need. You can find more information about CAHS and contact them here.
