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Suncoast Partnership is proud to announce that the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development recently awarded $214,000 for a new permanent supporting housing project to our Continuum of Care through the 2013 CoC Competition. CASL/Renaissance Manor will provide permanent supportive housing to chronically homeless individuals and families in Manatee County upon execution of this award. In addition, our organization will receive $11,000 in planning grant monies to support operations and further develop continuum plans. Overall, this successful federal grant application on behalf of the Continuum of Care by Suncoast Partnership has resulted in securing $800,833 in funding to enhance our regional homeless service provision. We continue to look for opportunities to support our partners, and appreciate the work our providers do every day to help our homeless citizens.
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Continuum of Care Meeting
Meeting Details
What: CoC Meeting
When: Wednesday, August 6th / Time 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
Where: New College of Florida, Sudakoff Center
Who: You!
A detailed New College campus map showing location of the Sudakoff Conference Center may be viewed by clicking here: Pei Campus Map.
To view a complete annual meeting schedule, please click here:
CoC Schedule 2014.
CoC Membership Encouraged!
If you have not already done so, please consider becoming a voting Member of our Continuum of Care! We are stronger together as we continue our work assisting those most vulnerable in our population. Links to the application and benefits are below.
2013/14 CoC Membership Application
Membership Benefits
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In the Spotlight
Family Promise Continues Expansion in South Sarasota County
There has been growing interest in South Sarasota County to bring the nationally recognized transitional housing model to help homeless families by Family Promise to the region. Family Promise partners with inter-faith congregations in the community who provide their facilities, volunteers and financial support to assist these families.
After several planning sessions, Venice Presbyterian Church has led the way by being the first to sign the Host Congregation Agreement. Then came Grace United Methodist Church, South Venice Baptist Church, Englewood United Methodist Church and Emmanuel Lutheran Church. They only need eight more hosts to officially launch! At this time, they have their Florida Incorporation Certificate, have filed for 501(c)3 status and now busy developing a Website and FaceBook Page. Local support continues to pour in. Recent thanks go to The Venice Interfaith Community Association, Venice Church Women United and their Board of Trustees for recent monetary contributions. Necessary start up equipment has been purchased, including: *A 15 passenger van given by Emmanuel Lutheran Church. *14 cots and air mattresses * 2 desks and a work table * 2 file cabinets * A sofa * A refrigerator * A washer and dryer * A computer and printer * Children's chairs * A floor puzzle To learn more about their best practices and/or find ways to get involved, please visit: www.familypromisesarasota.org. Planned events include field trips to Sarasota affiliate churches, and offering of volunteer and volunteer coordinator workshops. The search continues for an ideal Day Center which would be centrally located among the Host Congregations....and ideally accomplished through a donation.
National News
The 2013 Report: "Vulnerable to Hate: A Survey of Hate Crimes & Violence Committed Against the Homeless " has just been released by The National Coalition for the Homeless. They have been tracking this information since 1999. Over the last 15 years, NCH has determined the following: 1,437 reported acts of violence have been committed against homeless individuals, 375 of the victims have lost their lives as a result of the attacks, reported violence has occurred in 47 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington, DC; and perpetrators of these attacks were generally male and under the age 30; most commonly they were teenage boys.
The report includes descriptions of the cases, current and pending legislation that would help protect homeless people, and recommendations for advocates to help prevent violence against homeless individuals. To read the full report, click here. ***
The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) is seeking your advice for an amendment to Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness. Please visit www.usich.uservoice.com by August 8 to share your feedback and ideas. Your input is essential to the ongoing success of Opening Doors. Four forums have been created to help facilitate the online discussion, including:
- Retooling the Homeless Crises Response System
- The Goal to Prevent and End Chronic Homelessness
- The Role of Health Care in the Effort to Prevent and End Homelessness
- Using Data, Setting Goals, and Defining What It Means to End Homelessness.
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Ways to Engage
There are a number of groups that regularly meet that share in our agency's mission to end and prevent homelessness. These meetings are open to the public and no R.S.V.P. is required. Come and participate as your schedule allows!
Sarasota Community of Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD) has a Homeless Strike Team, Chaired by Cathy Hart. Meetings are held the first Monday of each month at the Health Department, 2200 Ringling Blvd, Sarasota, in Room 2063, starting at 3 p.m., and can also be joined via Skype. Next meeting will be on July 7th.
S.T.A.R. Consortium meeting: The Sarasota Transition and Re-Entry Consortium appears to be on hiatus. Meeting schedule to be determined.
The Focus Group on Homelessness facilitated by Liz Nolan, functions like a CHAT (Community Health Action Team), and is a constructive, solutions-based group. In an atmosphere of dignity and respect, members work together to discuss, develop, and employ commonsense strategies that help people emerge from homelessness. Meetings at Sarasota City Hall at 1565 First Street in Room 112, on the 3rd Tuesday of each month, from 1:30-3:30 p.m. Attendance is open, with regular participation by homeless individuals and representation by current city manager. Next meeting will be on July 15th.
P.A.T.H. meetings (People Assisting the Homeless) are held for the Manatee County homeless coalition by Turning Points. Meetings are the third Thursday of each month at The United Way building, 1701 Tamiami Trail in Bradenton from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Next meeting will be July 17th.
Community Alliance of Sarasota County has formed a new Homeless Committee, being chaired by Paul Sutton, who is also a Suncoast Partnership Board Member. Leslie Loveless also serves on this committee and on the Community Alliance Steering Committee. The purpose of this group to help facilitate and coordinate workable solutions around preventing and ending homelessness. Everyone is encouraged to attend their next meeting scheduled Thursday, July 10th at 10 a.m. at The Salvation Army Sarasota on 1701 South Tuttle Avenue.
Rapid Re-housing for Homeless VeteransRose Marie Stauffer, Group Chair, from the Veterans Affairs Office aims to meet monthly to assist veterans with housing, particularly the chronically homeless. Email her at [email protected] for more details. |
Events this Month
Celebrate our Nation's Independence / July 4th
There's everything from parades to food to festivals and, of course, fireworks, usually spread out over a few day period at various locations. Click Here for ScheduleMark Your Calendars!2014 FADAA | FCCMH Annual Conference
Florida Conference for Substance Use Disorders and Mental Health to unveil their 2014 Guide to Behavioral Health August 6-8th in Orlando, FL (Pre-Conference on August 5th) This high-energy conference attracts over 1,000 attendees and nearly 100 exhibitors each year. Plus, their powerful line-up of workshops and keynote presentations offers you a chance to earn up to 22.5 CEUs! Workshop topics cover everything from Emerging Trends and Innovation to Integration of Care and Evidence-Based Practices.
Click here to view workshops and keynote speakers Click here to register and learn more, a t the end of the registration process you will be able to select pre-conference, full conference, or both. Hotel rates are available at a discounted rate until July 7th.
Registration Now Open! The 2014 Florida Institute on Homelessness & Supportive Housing is an incredible opportunity of regional interest and impact convened by the Florida Coalition for the Homeless and the Florida Supportive Housing Coalition. This year's conference theme is Achieving Results, Making a Difference Through Best Practices and will be held from October 1-3rd at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando. Take advantage of early registration and hotel discounts by clicking here. |
Mobile Health Services Offered at Several County sites in July
Sarasota County Health Department's Health in Motion, Mobile Medical Unit staff to provide free and low-cost health services at several sites around the county during July.
Services to include:
- Diabetes Education and Screening
- Blood Pressure Tests
- Pregnancy Testing
- HIV Testing
- Body Mass Index Measurement
- *Adult Immunizations and Health Education (*Not available at all sites)
No appointment is needed. Some services are free, including HIV-rapid testing with results in 20 minutes. Other services are provided on a sliding-fee scale based on income. A registered nurse is available at all sites. While these services are most often proved in a 40-foot-long bus, there are times when services are provided inside the facilities visited.
Click to view a schedule of dates and locations for the mobile unit.
View here for Mobile Health Service information in Spanish.
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Help Spread the News!
The Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness provides these updates to keep you informed about opportunities to better serve those in our community that are homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness. Please share this with others who may be interested, and encourage them to join our mailing list. A subscription button is found near the top left of this e-newsletter.
If you would like to include a future agency event around the issue of preventing and/or ending homelessness in an upcoming Suncoast Partnership e-newsletter, please contact Jackie McNeil at [email protected].
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Thank you for all you do!
Sincerely,
Leslie Loveless
Executive Director
Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness |
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