"We urgently need to bring to our communities the limitless capacity to love, serve, and create for and with each other." - Grace Lee Boggs

Official Detroit CoC

Newsletter

November 7, 2023

If you live in Detroit, Hamtramck, or Highland Park and are experiencing homelessness, please call CAM at (313) 305-0311. Intake is call-in only.

CAM Operating hours: Monday through Friday, 8AM - 6PM

For regular CAM updates, subscribe to the CAM newsletter.

Visit the CAM's website.

CAM

Thank you to our CAM Community Forum attendees, presenters, our partners providing resources, our partnering business donors, and our volunteers!

A special shoutout goes to the event organizers, Kaitie Giza, HAND's Engagement Coordinator and the People with Lived Experience Committee

Upcoming CAM Closure

In observance of Veteran's Day, CAM will be closed Friday, November 10. There will be no live phone service that day.

Shelter Capacity Update

Due to limited availability, some shelters are not accepting walk-ins overnight. Please call CAM Monday - Friday between 8 am - 6 pm to speak to someone who can advise on shelter availability and/or other options. Please note that available shelter beds are limited and change daily. Please call CAM during open hours to get the latest information.

For more information, visit camdetroit.org

Detroit CoC General Membership Meeting

General Membership Meeting

November 21 | 1:30 PM - 3 PM

This meeting, the Detroit CoC Membership will vote for new board members. Register here.

An Interim Findings Report prepared by the BPA Consulting Team has just been released and is available for anyone to review. This Report provides on overview of key data regarding Detroit’s homelessness response system, summarizes all of the planning efforts to date, and highlights the Consulting Team’s key interim findings, identified through:

Focus groups with people from lived experience of homelessness
Listening sessions facilitated with people working within the homelessness response system and people with lived experience of the system
Reviews of recent and current initiatives and of governance structures, performance, and funding.

Related article: Detroit releases first-of-its-kind report on homelessness: 5 takeaways to know - Detroit Free Press

Detroit Strategic Plan

Community Planning Sessions

The City of Detroit's Housing and Revitalization Department, the Homeless Action Network of Detroit (HAND), and the Detroit Continuum of Care are developing a strategic system improvement plan to reduce homelessness in Detroit. They have engaged Barbara Poppe & Associates to help facilitate this process. After six months of getting community feedback, critical community priorities have emerged. It's now time for the community to develop solutions to address these priorities.

You are invited to participate in 2-hour virtual Community Planning Sessions to develop and prioritize ideas that can be included in the strategic system improvement plan. Each session will cover a different community priority area related to Improving Rehousing and Housing Supply and Reimagining Shelter. During each session you will receive information about resident experience, key trends, and data points. You will then actively participate in a dialogue during the session to identify solutions that can be implemented and make meaningful changes in Detroit's system, programs, and housing resources.

Sessions are open to all community members, including residents, nonprofit providers, city and state departments, etc. Please RSVP below for as many sessions as you would like to attend. You will receive a Zoom invitation via email. We thank you for your participation.

Session Schedule

November 8, 12:30 PM - 2:30 PM: Improving Permanent Supportive Housing

November 8, 3 PM - 5 PM: Improving Rapid Rehousing

November 9, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM: Improving access to housing vouchers, utility assistance & other financial assistance

November 9, 3 PM - 5 PM: Affordable housing supply, including assisted & public housing

November 13, 3 PM - 5 PM: Improving Housing Navigation and Landlord Engagement

November 14, 3 PM - 5 PM: Integrating access to all types of housing and rehousing supports within Homelessness Response System

November 14, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM: Reimagining Shelter: Focus on Clients’ Basic Needs, Experiences, and Rights

November 15, 3 PM - 5 PM: Reimagining Shelter: Focus on Services and Staffing

November 16, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM: Reimagining Shelter: Focus on Facilities and Environments

November 17, 10 AM - 12 PM: Reimagining Shelter: Focus on Integrating Programs within the Homelessness Response System

Events

Detroit Phoenix Center: One Night without a Bed

The 2023 ONWAB campaign will kick-off with a hybrid event at 7pm EST on November 28th via Facebook and YouTube livestream. For the first time ever, ONWAB will also be onsite at The Eastern located at 3434 Russell St in Detroit!

Highlights will include:

Live panel & podcast taping from DPC youth members and alumni
Service projects and donation drop-offs
Creative performances by DPC youth members & local artists
Dance party, Talk & Paint, & great food
Guest speakers including high profile public figures, activists, subject matter experts, and influencers

MiSide Behavioral Health Career Fair

miside.org

Trainings

Detroit CoC Supplemental Training

Trauma-Informed Care Webinar

December 5 | 1:30 PM - 4:30 PM EST

Homelessness itself is a traumatic experience. Join the Corporation for Supportive Housing as our panelists explore the benefits of integrating Trauma-Informed Care approaches into the service delivery model of your organization. Participants will learn ways to acknowledge the experiences, effects, and impacts of trauma on individuals and households.

Case Notes 101

November 20 | 1:00 PM EST

This webinar will explore ethical, efficient, and effective case notes for homeless services. Participants will walk away knowing how to write an efficient case note.

Advocate

Urge Congress to Increase – Not Cut – Investments in Affordable Housing in Fiscal Year 2024

State and local governments and the communities they serve rely on federal resources to meet the housing, homelessness, and community development needs of their communities. However, Congress has underfunded these resources for decades, and now House Republicans are threatening to impose austere spending cuts to non-defense programs.

Urge your members of Congress to fund housing and homelessness programs at the highest level possible in FY24.

Learn more and sign on here

Related from the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) - House Elects New Speaker; Both Chambers Prepare to Vote on HUD Spending Bill and Potentially Harmful Amendments – Take Action!

Resources

SchoolHouse Connection’s Youth Leadership and Scholarship Program - For more information and to apply, please visit this link.
Connect 4 Kids Childcare Locator - Go to United Way's website for more information.
Detroit at Work Jumpstart Program - Learn more at Detroit at Work's website.
Free COVID-19 Tests - Order tests.
Find a vaccination site - At vaccines.gov

Questions? Want to submit an item for our newsletter?

Email Kimberly Benton at kimberly@handetroit.org

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