Weekly e-Newsletter | May 31st, 2023

Reflections from Amy Schwabenlender, CEO

Sporadic reflections from the front lines serving single adults experiencing homelessness, the onset of Phoenix summer, and many inquiries about what is happening in "the Zone."  

This morning the HSC Outreach Team counted 760 unsheltered individuals in our neighborhood. And yes, I say "neighborhood." It is our neighborhood. It's the neighborhood of businesses and residents with homes. "The Zone" is not meant to sound positive, dignified, or uplifting. It's meant to sound derogatory, violent, and negative.

In four spaces on the Human Services Campus more than 900 people were sheltered last night. The total is 1,760 + people who are experiencing homelessness on Campus and in the neighborhood. This is after the May 10 effort led by the City of Phoenix to engage and identify indoor spaces for 60 people on a small section of 9th Avenue (between Washington and Jefferson Streets).

The media covered the May 10th effort intensely. Many concerned people reached out to HSC before, during, and after the effort to understand what is happening, what the impacts are, and what they can do to help. Here is what we know...

The City of Phoenix is the lead on this engagement activity. HSC is one of several partners assisting through the Outreach Team who is engaging as many of the 760 people as possible on a daily basis. Some 400+ people are actively working with HSC staff and partners on steps to shelter and housing. HSC offers unsheltered people Safe Storage, to provide a secure area on Campus for possessions to be held. We help with transportation to indoor locations, communicating the changes, calming anxiety, and being consistent to build and maintain trust.

The City never intended to do a full "sweep" of 760-800 people on one day. Personally I avoid calling these efforts "sweeps," because in other cities that means large encampments are dismantled in one full brush and services are not offered and planned for all of the people being affected. The City of Phoenix is only selecting areas and choosing the dates when they have the appropriate number of indoor spaces available to offer to people. [Read More...]

Project Connect in Phoenix Positively Impactful

Last week on May 25th nearly 30 service providers and 100 volunteers collaborated to serve 197 people experiencing homelessness. The gracious host, Calvary Phoenix, conducted an incredible clothing and water drive while opening their doors with the most hospitable welcome. The area around the Church is experiencing a lot of change which gave us all an opportunity to educate volunteers while meeting the diverse needs of the people we serve.  

HSC is tremendously grateful for the support of Valley of the Sun United Way and our partners for helping to make Project Connect events possible and successful!

Volunteers Needed for Project Connect on June 15th

ThirstAid Water Donation Drop-off is

this Saturday, June 3rd from 9 am to noon

While water is needed year around, even more is needed over the summer. HSC and Campus partners will distribute at least 100,000 bottles of water per month from May through September to help clients stay hydrated and healthy.

The next bottled water donation drop-off of the season is this Saturday, June 3rd from 9 am to noon. We make it easy: You pull up at 15th Avenue & Harrison Street, and our staff will remove the donations from your vehicle. We also welcome travel-sized toiletries, summer clothing, shoes, new men's/women's underwear, hats, sunglasses, sunscreen and lip balm. For more information or to schedule a drop-off on a different day, please email volunteer@hsc-az.org or call us at 602-282-0849. 

Special thanks to Campus partner St. Joseph the Worker, the originator of ThirstAid, and to all Campus partners for their collaborative efforts in obtaining water during this critical time.

Season 2, Episode 8 of "It Happens at STN"

For the May installment of the McQuaid Mission, CEOs Amy Schwabenlender from the Human Services Campus and Jackson Fonder from UMOM were joined on stage by UMOM Chief Strategy Officer Monique Lopez and UMOM Homegrown Training Coordinator Chef Steven Wimbley. The group talked about the impact sustained streams of revenue can have on outreach programs and ways leaders can search for funding that they may not have considered. Watch it here.

Click Here to View All Episodes.