Housing
“Even if we don’t have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there.”
— S. Chobsky
Housing Retention keeps families from experiencing homelessness. Only motivated households are eligible for this intensive program. In exchange for hard work alongside our team, participants stay in their homes through temporary financial hardship and escape eviction.
How does housing retention serve participants?
Learn from Synia Nash-Young's story of the transformative impact the Housing Retention Program makes.
Those who are accepted into the housing retention program will get assistance with:
- Rent or mortgage for an extended period of time,
- Supportive case management
- Goal planning
- Money management
- Employment
- A circle of support from licensed case managers
- A team of alternate support from volunteers, a board, and mentors.
Program participants benefit from three strong arms of support:
- A financial bridge to keep them and their household intact for up to 12 months, while they move through their financial crisis (maximum $4500)
- Tangible traditional services
- The trauma influenced consistent corrective experiences delivered through professional staff and an arm of trained support figures for the duration of their enrollment, delivering clients on the other side of crisis, household intact, with a stronger mental, emotional, and spiritual capacity to succeed.
Both arms of the program (financial and consistent corrective experience from alternate support figures) are essential. The city, in its 2022-2026 Consolidated Plan & 2022 Annual Action Plan, noted “instability in housing causes instability and stress in other areas of daily living and significantly impacts a person's ability to be successful and overcome obstacles.” (Pg 18)
How does housing retention serve Fond Du Lac County?
Our work relieves government and taxpayer burden.
Each time our housing retention program keeps a household intact through a temporary financial crisis, it is one more household that is not "living in the street" and relying on agency, organization, and taxpayer support. Once people become homeless, getting them into housing continues to be an issue because of the national housing crisis that the country also lives with. Keeping people in their homes is crucial to stopping the number of people becoming homeless.
Each time we successfully intervene, 48,473 taxpayer households in Fond du Lac County are saved from shouldering costs associated with homelessness.
What costs to our community are associated with homelessness?
Research shows that for every 12 households that are supported and saved, there is a $1.6 million economic impact to taxpayers. Without stable housing, people cycle in and out of emergency departments, inpatient hospital stays, psychiatric centers, detoxification programs, and jails, resulting in high public costs and poor health outcomes for individuals, including premature death.
*The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates a person experiencing chronic homelessness costs the taxpayer an average of $35,000 a year (2016). 12 households of 4 served through housing retention means a $1.6 million savings.
What makes us so sure housing retention is the turning point in Fond Du Lac County's endgame for homelessness?
We have evidence to substantiate its impact: The Salvation Army in the Fox Cities Housing Retention Program has seen an amazing 92% of those entering the program complete the program. 96% of those who have entered the program have found housing stability. These same families were still in stable housing after a year of exiting the Housing Retention Program.
What makes this program different from anything else offered in Fond DU Lac County at this time?
Ours is a full-circle strategy that most thoroughly addresses the layers of need associated with the circumstances surrounding homelessness.
While some community organizations and agencies offer one-time emergency assistance with rent or utilities, none provide sustained support that combines trauma-informed case management, strengths-based coaching, financial counseling, pastoral care, and access to addiction treatment programs. In addition, our services extend to immediate, tangible resources that help stabilize households - such as food, clothing, household and personal care items, school supplies, city bus passes, work boots, laundry access, and seasonal programs like Coats for Kids, the Christmas Angel Tree, and the summer Brown Bag Lunch Program.
With trained substance abuse counselors and licensed social workers on staff, we are able to walk through the process and celebrate the outcomes.
The first to fund a portion of this powerful work:
- FDL Area Foundation Impact Grant
- National Exchange Bank Barbara & Peter Stone Foundation
- The Osborn Family and community families
Support FDL County's Endgame Strategy for Homelessness
Learn more about:
- Addiction Recovery
- Pathway of Hope
- Emotional & Spiritual Guidance