Recovery Resources Wins National Award

Employment and Addiction Issues

Recovery Resources, a member of NEOCH and partner in the struggle to find stability for those with mental illness, alcoholism, drug and other addictions, will be awarded the Lilly Reintegration Award in the field of employment services from the National Council of Behavioral Health on April 16, 2012 at their Annual Conference. This national award celebrates the achievements of those in the community who dedicate themselves to improving the lives of individuals with serious mental illness. Recovery Resources was named the Honorable Mention winner and will be awarded $5,000.

For More information on this post go here.
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Award: Special Projects Volunteer

Special Events Volunteer of the Year for 2010: Dominica Dearing

The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless presented a Special Events Volunteer of the Year award to Dominica Dearing. She is a graduate of Ursuline College and is currently attending Tiffin University for her Master’s Degree. Dominica regularly comes to NEOCH to volunteer, and helped with the Hand Up Gala in 2010. Dominica raises her son and oversees a real estate company. Dominica was able to work with her son’s music teacher at Brush High School to bring them to the Cosgrove Center last year and sing for the guests at the Hand Up Gala. This was mentioned as one of the highlights of the afternoon by many guests. Dominica thanked the board for this recognition. Pictured above is Dominica receiving the award with her mother to the left.

Brian
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Homeless Social Services Person of the Year

NEOCH Selects Homeless Social Service's Person of 2010: Nicole Evans

The NEOCH Board of Trustees selected Nicole Evans for a special honor for her nearly two decades of work on hunger and homelessness in Cleveland. Evans is the current program director at the Bishop William Cosgrove Center that provides hundreds of meals to homeless and very low income individuals every day. She has worked for Catholic Charities since 1999, and before that worked for the Cleveland Foodbank. Nicole is currently enrolled at Cleveland State University pursuing a degree in urban studies. She has always been willing to go the extra mile to help people in need with programming and a healthy meal at the city’s largest day shelter. Every week day, she makes sure that over 200 people receive the proper nourishment, and is always willing to lend a hand up or even a shoulder to cry on to the fragile men and women wandering the streets of Cleveland. She has constructed a venue where outreach workers, veterans representatives, lawyers, and other providers meet with clients who are homeless to help move people toward stability.

In 2010, Nicole worked with NEOCH to successfully stage the Hand Up Gala, which provided a wonderful fine dining meal to 85 low income individuals. Nicole coordinated this special day and helped with the planning of this unique event of combining a fundraiser with a fine dining meal for low income Clevelanders. The Board recognized that everyday for the past 12 years, Evans has set up a safe place for those without a stable home. She has constructed a healthy environment during the worst snow storms and the terrible heat of the summer for anyone and everyone in need. Nicole has figured out how to provide a healthy meal to thousands of people every year by employing caring individuals. Nicole has also worked for years to prepare the food for the Homeless Stand Down for many years.

In accepting the award, Nicole spoke of all the tremendous partners that she works with everyday in the community and appreciated being recognized by the her peers. She talked about her long relationship with the Coalition, and thanked board and staff for all the help we have offered her over the years. Pictured above is Nicole speaking after accepting her award.

Brian

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David Westcott Volunteer of the Year

2010 NEOCH Volunteer of the Year: Larry Davis

Larry Davis is the 2010 David Westcott volunteer of the year for 2010, and was given the award at the March NEOCH Annual meeting. Davis came to NEOCH in 2006 as a volunteer by way of the Cleveland Tenants Organization. He is a veteran of the US military who has taken a leadership role within his church and the apartment buildings that he lives in. Larry, previously was an AmeriCorps VISTA for a year and a half, and now is a Mature Services member doing community organizing for CTO. He regularly volunteers 20 hours a week at NEOCH to help with the Street Voices project and assigning volunteers useful work for the organization. Larry is a key member of the Stand Down leadership committee and started a blanket and winter clothing drive at NEOCH in 2009 that continues today.

Pictured above is Roy Love, (left) NEOCH Board Vice President, presenting the award to Davis (right) at the March 19 NEOCH annual meeting. Larry talked about his reasons for coming to NEOCH and his commitment to working on social justice issues in Cleveland. Davis in accepting the award mentioned all the people who have helped him overcome obstacles, and his desire to give back to the community. He thanked the board for the award, and appreciated the time that he has spent at NEOCH. Larry welcomes other volunteers to assist the Coalition. If you would like to help out with clerical, research, civil rights, or other advocacy projects contact Larry at 216/432-0540 ext 103. NEOCH can utilize volunteers for a day or just a couple of hours a month.

Brian

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Advocate of the Year

2010 Advocate of the Year

Tim Walters

Walters retired from the May Dugan Center last year, but has continued working to protect the rights of low income and homeless people. Tim is an authority in Cleveland on public utilities and how low income residents navigate this complicated system. Tim has helped create the state advocacy group, ABLE, in order to help lower income families lobby for justice in the state budget. Walters regularly volunteers with the Metanoia Project and Project Save. He attends the Homeless Congress to listen to the views and opinions of homeless people. Walters has helped improve the outreach safety net in Cleveland and has successfully integrated advocacy with the human service needs of homeless people to support the NEOCH mission.

Tim talked about the graduation ceremony that took place the night before with the men and women who entered the Courage for Change program that they run at the Metanoia Project. Tim also talked about the upcoming work of ABLE including the Public Square rally today, and the big trip down to Columbus on April 5th. If you want to participate and ride down to Columbus with the 2010 Advocate of the Year call 216/771-5077 ext 137.

Brian
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NEOCH Annual Meeting

NEOCH Annual Meeting on Saturday

Thanks to everyone that attended the NEOCH Annual Meeting on Saturday. Pictured above were board members, Roy and Marcia who took the lead as Vice President and President respectively in organizing the event. Also, above are staff and guests who attended the meeting and enjoyed a good potluck lunch. Thanks to the board members and staff who brought food, desserts, and hospitality to the 30 folks who showed up. NEOCH gave out awards to four outstanding individuals in the community.

Tim Walters---Advocate of the Year
Larry Davis--David Westcott Volunteer of the Year
Nicole Evans--Homeless Social Services Person of the Year
Dominica Dearing--Special Events Volunteer of the Year.

We will post short biographies of the award winners for this year on the blog over the next week. In addition, we have posted the 2010 NEOCH Annual Report on our website, so you can have a quick reference about the work of the Coalition. Finally, the Board selected the officers for 2011-2012 as Marcia Bufford--President, Roy Love as Vice President, Brenda Gray as Secretary for the Corporation, and Jennifer Kocan as the Treasurer.

Brian Davis
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Bernadette Janes Passes

A Good Friend of the Coalition

Bernadette Janes, a diminutive grandmotherly type who spoke loudly with her pen, has passed away. Janes was a longtime friend of the Coalition, and wrote a number of stories in the Homeless Grapevine newspaper here and here and here. She was great at profiles of people like Sabrina and Arthur, and had a history of supporting social justice organizations in Cleveland. Every so often she published letters in the Plain Dealer. Janes supported the rights of women, opposed the attacks on poor people by government and marched against wars. She was a veteran and was a great volunteer for NEOCH. In fact, at the 2007 Annual Meeting, Bernadette was awarded Volunteer of the Year for 2006 for NEOCH. She would take the Community Response Transit bus every week or every other week depending on her health to NEOCH to volunteer. Bernadette had no problem with stuffing envelopes or entering data or doing a profile for the Grapevine. She realized that all of it contributed to improving the Coalition. Every mundane task freed up time for the director to issue an advocacy alert or the development director to send out a grant. She was happy just helping, and loved interacting with the staff.

Janes talked to us about homelessness and tried to understand how things had gotten so out of control in our society that families were the fastest growing population of homeless people. She wanted to learn from the people that she interviewed. Bernadette wanted to understand the health issues that led to Arthur becoming homeless, and then she was able to boil down those complicated ideas into a story for the Grapevine. She wrote advocacy journalism to educate the public about the holes in the US safety net. She tried to listen to Sabrina's story about family homelessness and capture that pain, anger and harm that this caused to put it all down on paper.

Another guardian of social justice lost in Cleveland. We miss Bernadette, and wish her family strength in this time of sorrow.

Updated 9/7/10: Text from the announcement at Busch Funeral Home. "Janes passed away on September 3, 2010. Memorials may be forwarded to Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH), [Address slightly incorrect, but corrected here] 3631 Perkins Ave., #3A-3, Cleveland, OH 44114. Memorial services will be at the funeral home at 12:00 noon on October 9th. For those attending, in honor of Bernadette's life, colorful attire is encouraged, and please bring a non perishable food item for donation to the Hunger Center. Friends may call from 11:00 - Noon at the BUSCH FUNERAL HOME, 21369 CENTER RIDGE RD, FAIRVIEW PARK. Cremation by Busch Crematory."

Brian
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The People Who Make Things Work 1

Photo of Gayle Channing Tenenbaum from the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority Website.

Gayle Channing Tanenbaum
Congratulations to Gayle Channing Tenenbaum who will be inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame at the end of the month. Tanenbaum is a huge advocate for children in Ohio, and is the one of the reasons that things work in our society. Her job is to make sure that any threat to the health and welfare of young people in Ohio is met with an appropriate response. That could be a legal remedy, lobbying, twisting of arms, publicity, and most importantly shining a light on the inner workings of government. She has exposed the hypocrisy of campaigning on a platform of life, but cutting all human services funds so that young Mom's can not survive or attempts to balance the state budget disproportionately with cuts to programs serving poor people. She has worked 40 years in serving the most fragile populations. Tanenbaum works on public policy, planning as well as media and public relations.

Tanenbaum is a Senior Policy Fellow with Voices for Ohio's Children, and CEO of Channing and Associates consulting firm. Simultaneously, she serves a number of children and human services organizations including her role as Legislative Director for the Public Children Services Association of Ohio. She worked in the Celeste administration, and cut her teeth in social services in Cuyahoga County.

She holds a master's degree in social work from the University of Cincinnati. She is an adjunct professor, teaching public policy, at the Ohio State University College of Social Work. There are many who feel that our government is dysfunctional or dishonest or corrupt, but without honorable women such as Tanenbaum, Ohio would be in big trouble. She strives everyday to improve the quality of life for families and proven successes in access to benefits, health care expansion to children, and housing. None of us have the time to watch every move made by state government; that is why is critical to have people like Gayle Channing Tanenbaum acting as our eyes and ears down in Columbus.

Brian
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Rough Year Annual Report

NEOCH Annual Report now Available on our website

What can only be described as the downsizing year, the NEOCH annual report is posted on our website. In the spirit of a downsized year our annual report is only 8 pages long this year. It gives a snapshot of 2009 including finances and programming. We present our two award winners for 2009:

Mike Piepsny of the Cleveland Tenants Organization as the 2009 Advocate of the Year
Michelle Russell as the David Westcott Volunteer of the Year.

The report also details our donors for 2009. Feel free to check it out and tell us what you think.

Brian
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Community Shares Social Justice Award

Promoting Social Justice in Cleveland

Greater Cleveland Community Shares needs your help! We want to ensure that individuals accomplishing extraordinary social justice feats are applauded for their work. Check out our website at www.communityshares.org and nominate individuals and organizations making a difference.

Awards will be presented at Shares’ Annual Power Lunch on June 18th. Anyone can nominate a candidate, so feel free to go to the Shares website for more info. The deadline for nominations, March 19, is quickly approaching! Get the word out and ensure that those spearheading the most vital social justice transformation in Cleveland get to go home honored for their work!

Brian Davis

PS: NEOCH is a member of Community Shares, and you can make a contribution from your workplace to NEOCH through Shares. This would allow you to make a small donation out of your paycheck to support social justice in the area of housing and homelessness on a regular basis throughout the year.

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Social Justice Celebrated

Shares Awards/Annual Meeting today

I used this somewhat outdated photo because it is a great image of City Hall. If I had this captured this photo, I would use it in all my materials. But anyway...Community Shares held their annual meeting today at the definitively non-Social Justice type venue of Windows in the Flats, but still it was a nice event. I have to say that I love Community Shares, and believe that it is one of the 100 coolest things about Cleveland that does not get enough attention. In an ever expanding number of awards in the area of social justice, Community Shares recognized the following individuals and groups:

1. The Eleanor Gerson leadership award went to Cleveland Councilman Anthony Brancatelli of Ward 12 for his efforts to save his neighborhood in the face of the hurricane of foreclosures.
2. Mike Brickner of the ACLU was volunteer of the year--one of NEOCH's volunteers as well.
3. Reverend George Hrbek of LMM was the named Distinguished Activist one of the activist who helped nurture NEOCH through our infancy in the 1980s.
4. Policy Matters of Ohio was selected as Member Organization of the Year. They do fantastic reports for elected officials to use in support of social justice.
5. Dan Harkins of Cleveland Scene Magazine was given an award for social justice reporting. A good reporter who does not get enough credit in Cleveland.
6. Finally, a new award for 2009 called the "Power of Participation: Making History" to the LGBT Community Center and the NAACP for their work to create the Domestic Partner Registry.

The most interesting part of the lunch was the speech by George Forbes, the long time chair of the NAACP Board. As everyone knows there were many African American preachers in Cleveland who were opposed to the Domestic Registry for same sex couples. It was interesting hearing Forbes talk about his movement on this social justice issue. He said that he had never had any opinion about the rights of lesbians and gay members of our society until Councilman Cimperman approached the NAACP about this issue. Forbes said that he was confused why Cleveland even needed this law, and the LGBT community said that they just had no standing within the law so they could not even sue to protect their right to marry in Ohio. Forbes said that this struck him as fundamentally unfair, and he recognized this as a civil rights issue. It was a good speech for a strange champion of the rights of gays and lesbians in George Forbes.

Brian
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NEOCH Awards

Advocate and Volunteer of the Year

Pictured here is the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless 2008 Advocate of the Year--Margaret Wilson. NEOCH had our annual meeting on March 11, 2009. At the meeting, we reviewed the last year and introduced our 2008 Strategic Plan. We will have more details on the plan in the next few weeks. We will also post our annual report and publish it in the next three weeks.

The best part of the Annual meeting is the giving out of the awards. We have Meg Wilson as the Advocate of the Year and Traci Ext as the 2008 volunteer of the year. Here is a brief description of the award winners.

NEOCH Advocate of the Year

Margaret Wilson is the current Outreach Coordinator at GESU Roman Catholic Church, and plans all parish wide activities including the December Service Day. She is a former president of the Homeless Coalition, and has been a board member since 2002. Wilson has always been an active board member, and is regularly involved in policy and advocacy strategies. She is a former teacher who has taught at the junior high, high school and college levels. She has Bachelors in political science from Catholic University of America as well as a Master degree in Education. She also has a Masters in English from Cleveland State. Wilson has worked to establish the Interfaith Hospitality Network at GESU Catholic Church. The GESU commission is active in the community and has worked with a number of organizations, including FAMICOS, New Life Community, and Sociedad de los Amigos de Ninos in Honduras.

NEOCH Volunteer of the Year

Traci Ext is an attorney currently working for the federal government, and she gives up most every Monday afternoon volunteering for the Homeless Coalition. Ext assists with our press relations and our advocacy agenda in Cleveland. She has volunteered with the Homeless Stand Down, and has worked on many of NEOCH’s research reports. She has previous experience at the Legal Aid Society, and is a law school graduate from Harvard. Ext did her undergraduate work at Rice University, and has a strong interest in social justice. She relaxes by playing basketball and was recently married.

We are sorry that you missed the annual meeting. Congratulations to both our award winners.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

CTO Wins Anisfield Wolf Award!!!

Tenants Organization Voted Outstanding Human Service Non-Profit

Pictured is Mike Piepsny accepting the $20,000 award from the Center for Community Solutions and the Cleveland Foundation. Here is the CTO press release.

The Cleveland Tenants Organization (CTO) was named the recipient of the 2009 Anisfield-Wolf Memorial Award at today's 67^th annual Human Services Institute presented by The Center for Community Solutions. The Center administers the annual award, funded by The Cleveland Foundation with a fiver person panel selecting the winner from the applications..

In presenting the award to Michael J. Piepsny, Executive Director of CTO, Cleveland Foundation Senior Vice President Robert Eckhardt noted that the organization was selected in honor of its innovative and proactive efforts to prevent renters living in properties facing foreclosure from being removed from their homes with little notice.

The program, which CTO initiated in 2008, developed as a result of a wonderful public/private collaborative effort. For the past two years, CTO has received hundreds of calls from renters living in property facing foreclosure. United Way's First Call for Help line contacted CTO due to an increase in similar calls, and, after researching the limited rights available to tenants living in the properties, it was agreed that all calls should be diverted to the Cleveland Tenants Organization. In response to the growing crisis, CTO, working with our partners at the County offices of Development and Homelessness, The Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland, Policy Matters Ohio, Cleveland Mediation Center, Neighborhood Housing Services, and United Way First Call for Help, developed the new program to directly notify renters living in properties that appear on the Court of Common Pleas foreclosure docket.

CTO has been able to provide notification of the foreclosure to over 3,000 renters, who, without the advanced warning, face immediate eviction from their homes. A foreclosure induced Sherriff’s sale terminates any existing lease at the property.

CTO's work has been instrumental in demonstrating the need for State action to protect these clients. State Representative Mike Foley, former CTO Executive Director and current Chairman of the Housing and Urban Revitalization Committee, has recently introduced House Bill 9 along with State Representative Celeste to offer some protection for these renters. The bill requires the landlord to notify renters of a foreclosure within one month of the filing, allowing the renting family time to find alternative safe, decent, affordable housing, as well as the time necessary to save for new rent, security deposit, and moving expenses. The bill also protects renters by turning an existing lease at the time of property transfer into a month-to-month lease. The simple change will allow families an additional month to relocate without the threat of eviction on their record.

We congratulate CTO on their great work. I especially enjoyed Eckhardt's introduction in which he pointedly remarked that CTO started this project without funding. Hint, hint, wink, wink all the rest of you non-profits out there in the audience--start doing stuff without constantly coming to us for money. It was also nice that the recipient was able to say a few words to the crowd. I don't remember the winner speaking to the crowd in the past.

Brian
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Awards and Agency Update

NEOCH Annual Meeting

Pictured here is Tera Horne (right) presenting Bryan Mauk the NEOCH advocate of the year award (middle) and the Volunteer of the Year Ronald Falconi (standing) their awards.

The NEOCH Annual Meeting was Thursday, and we released our annual report. It will be available on our website soon. We looked back on the rough year of 2007. We talked about the transfer of two of our programs. The NEOCH Board elected a new Executive Committee. We have two new EC members, Tiffany Burse and Cynthia Ford. Our new Board President is Jennifer Simpson.

I gave a look at the 2008 plans and the upcoming Strategic Plan that the organization is currently undertaking. We talked about some of the major community advocacy efforts of the the Coalition. And the best part of the Annual Meeting is the awarding of a token of our recognition for community members who went above and beyond to help homeless people.

Bryan Mauk--NEOCH 2007 Advocate of the Year
Bryan worked both in high school and at John Carroll University to create a program where faculty and students venture off campus to Downtown Cleveland to interact with those resistant to shelters, called the Labre Project. He is a true leader who, with his continued nurturing of the Labre Project, he sets an example for others. Bryan recently helped open an overnight drop in center at St. Augustine in the Tremont neighborhood, which provides a warm place for homeless people who sleep outside to go for a hot cup of coffee and a friendly environment. NEOCH salutes Bryan Mauk for his service to the homeless community.

Ronald Falconi and Robert Heintel--2007 Volunteers of the Year
Ronald and Robert are both members of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association. Together they oversee the legal clinic at West Side Catholic Shelter and Drop in. They are known for their thoughtful and respectful treatment of clients who seek their advice at the Catholic Center. Without their help, it would be difficult to maintain this intake site for the Homeless Legal Assistance Program. Both attorneys reflect the highest standards of the legal profession. They are dedicated to providing legal help who those cannot afford an attorney. NEOCH salutes Robert and Ronald for their service to the homeless community.

Wish you were there.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Upcoming Events in Community

Mark Your Calendars

Bill Faith of COHHIO on Monday
The Cuyahoga Affordable Housing Alliance meeting on Monday April 2, 2007 at 1:30 p.m will feature Bill Faith of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing Ohio. Bill is the state director and chief lobbyist for housing and homeless issues. He will talk about issues related to state and federal budget issues. He will also talk about the possibilities of funding a federal housing trust fund and increasing the revenue going to the state housing trust. The meeting takes place in the U.S. Bank building at East 14th and Euclid Ave. in the lower level. All are welcome to attend and there will be time for questions.

COHHIO Conference April 23 and 24
If you would like to know more about housing and homeless issues in Ohio, COHHIO sponsors an annual conference and lobby day. The conference is Monday April 23 and April 24 in Columbus. To register or for more details go to the COHHIO website at www.cohhio.org. On Wednesday April 25, housing advocates will descend on the state capital to push for the state to get back to serving poor people. The state has not had a housing agenda for years and has turned its back on poverty issues. The April 25 lobby day attempts to remind state legislators that three cities in Ohio are high on the list of the poorest cities in America.

ABLE Also Going Down to Columbus
The Advocates for Budget Legislation Equality has organized in Northeast Ohio to push for fairness in education, human services, health care and housing issues with the State budget. They are taking a bus down to Columbus to lobby for equity in the budget on April 26, 2007. If you would like to go down with the bus please call Tim at May Dugan at 631-5800.

NEOCH Annual Fund Raiser
Mark your calendars for May 4, 2007 and join us for the NEOCH Annual fund raiser. We will have special keynote speaker Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and the announcement of the award winner of the Ione Biggs Social Justice advocate of the year. The fund raiser is at Massimo da Milano at 6 p.m. Tickets can be purchased from the NEOCH website or through the NEOCH office. The invitations will be mailed next week and you can sign up online beginning on Monday. If you have questions about any of these activities feel free to call NEOCH at 216/432-0540.

Also next week we will post the important legislative issues that the Coalition is following in the federal, state and local legislative and executive branches of government.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

NEOCH Annual Awards

Annual Meeting Held on the Ides of March

The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless issued its Annual Report last night at Franklin Circle church. It will be available on our website in the near future. We elected our new Board for 2007-8, and gave details on our plans for 2007. The treasurer gave his report on the state of the NEOCH finances, and Teri' Horne did a summary of the activities undertaken over the last year. Finally, the Board elected a new executive committee for the Coalition. The most anticipated part of the Annual Meeting was the awards ceremony. There is no red carpet or band to play the winners off the stage, but it is nice to recognize people who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. In addition, NEOCH gave out one notice of condemnation to the City of Akron.

Joan Burda--Five Years of Service
We celebrated Joan's five years of service to NEOCH as the Director of Cleveland Homeless Legal Assistance Program. She has doubled the number of clinics operated by the CHLAP lawyers and is now working on establishing a pro se legal clinic on the near West Side. This facility would allow low income people to come in and print out their legal documents and file themselves court proceedings. She has served thousands of homeless people over the last five years, and the Board appreciates her dedication to the job.

Jim Schlecht--NEOCH Advocate of the Year
Jim is the outreach worker for Care Alliance, and has worked with homeless people for decades. He is also a noted peace activist and champion of those abused by capitalism. The Board proclamation cited his tireless service to protect fragile populations from the elements. They thanked him for his compassion and steadfast work for social justice in forwarding solutions. NEOCH recognizes Jim Schlecht's work to oversee the 2006 Housing Stand Down, and his work to develop a 24 hour drop-in center in presenting the Advocate of the Year award.

Bernadette Janes--NEOCH Volunteer of the Year
Bernadette volunteered with the Cosgrove Center and for the Coalition as a writer. She was recognized by the Board for her distinguished career assisting organizations throughout the community. The Board cited her countless hours working with the Homeless Grapevine in documenting the struggles that homeless people face everyday.

City of Akron--Roadblock to Progress 2006
The NEOCH Board condemned the City of Akron for their efforts to make it illegal to be poor within the city limits by passing the worst law against pan handling in the United States. For providing criminal backgrounds to the long list of barriers a person living in Akron must overcome if they fall on hard times, and for not forwarding solutions to homelessness were a few of the reasons cited by the Board in proclaiming the City of Akron as the Biggest Roadblock to Progress in 2006.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Updates from the Coalition

The Latest Dispatch from the Homeless Coalition

Annual Meeting of the Coalition
We normally have a stuffy formal annual meeting, but this year the Board of the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless has decided the annual fundraiser from the Annual Meeting. So the 2006 Annual Meeting will be March 15, 2007 at Franklin Circle Church at 6 p.m. NEOCH will give out awards to the Advocate of the Year and Volunteer of the Year. We look at 2006 and ahead to 2007. Finally, NEOCH will elect a new board and present the 2006 Annual Report. We would love to have you join us for the Annual Meeting. It is free and we hope homeless people will be able to join the meeting. We are going to award a Roadblock of the Year to the person or organization that prevented the solving of homelessness in Northeast Ohio.

Media Wave Causes Stir
The Plain Dealer story two weeks ago with the headline about $22 million coming to Cleveland for homelessness always creates waves. It makes our meetings with homeless people difficult, because homeless people read the paper. They see a whole bunch of money coming to Cleveland and wonder why they eat pasta every night or why they cannot get housing. So, we get blamed for wasting funds or being incompetent for not solving homelessness with "all that money." We also get calls asking how they can set up a shelter so that they can get in on this federal gravy train. After I tried to convince the woman that called this week that this was not money for shelters and that public officials are not going to fund shelters anymore, she said, "I am not going to be deterred by anything you say, because God has told me to do this and I saw the article about the $22 million." There is no way to argue with God or money. Columbus only got $6 million, and they claim nearly the same number of homeless people, and so their providers are ticked off.

By dividing $22 million among the 20,000 people who are homeless every year, the funds only cover $1,100 per person who is homeless in Cleveland. 90% of the $22 million are just to keep the doors of the transitional shelters and the permanent housing programs open. Many of these funds are for very specific populations while the economically homeless have to find their own ways.

Aviation High School Has a Deadline
The main shelter in Cleveland, 2100 Lakeside, operates on the principle that anyone who comes to the door must be offered a bed. This has forced the shelter to operate an overflow facility at Aviation High School. This was a temporary solution that is now three years old. The federal government is not really happy with this solution with ex-cons, sexually based offenders, and an unknown group of people basically sleeping on the grounds of an airport. They have laid down the law--the overflow must close by November and there will be no further argument. This would seem to be plenty of time, but the County and City cannot agree and no one is talking to homeless people. This is going to go down to the wire, and the results are not going to be pretty.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.