September 15, 2021
It’s official. The Marion-Polk region will receive $3,691,542 to end and prevent youth homelessness. Today, the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development announced the FY 2021 awards recipients for the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program. Nationally, $142 million was awarded.
Keizer Mayor Cathy Clark, Alliance Board Chair, said “The Alliance is thrilled to receive this grant to end and prevent youth homelessness across Marion and Polk counties. 70% of our region’s homeless adults reported being homeless as a youth. Yet we have very limited resources for youth. There are no youth shelters in Polk and rural Marion counties, or Host Homes where families can shelter youth in their homes. This grant will be a game changer for us in turning around the lives of vulnerable youth experiencing abuse, addiction, poverty, sex trafficking, mental illness, and many other barriers to success.”
The Alliance has prioritized youth in its strategic plan and recently appointed a Youth Action Board, comprised of youth with lived experience, to add youth perspective to the Alliance’s work.
The Mid-Willamette Valley Homeless Alliance is the Continuum of Care for the Marion-Polk region. The Alliance mission is to: To develop an evidence-based system of services, including stable housing, designed to meet the unique and complex needs of adults, youth, children, and families in Marion and Polk counties who are at risk of or are experiencing homelessness.
For information about the Alliance’s work with youth, contact Carla Munns, (503) 539-3377, Carla@CSuiteNW.com. For information about HUD’s Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program, go to: FY 2018 Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) Fact Sheet (hud.gov).