ITEM FILE PHOTO
Brendan Crighton.
BY THOR JOURGENSEN
LYNN — A homelessness reduction program launched by the Lynn Housing Authority and Neighborhood Development (LHAND) and other North Shore housing organizations have helped 50 families and 24 homeless youth this year.
Using $275,000 in public money, LHAND and more than 40 other regional organizations are helping families and youth find housing and providing them with money to overcome difficulties, like unemployment, that contribute to homelessness.
Fifteen families received financial help so far this year and 35 others are approved for assistance, said David Houlden, North Shore Housing Action Group co-chairman. He said assistance filed by 38 other families is being reviewed.
Houlden and group representatives gathered with LHAND workers on Thursday to discuss new approaches to ending homelessness. Past approaches strictly aimed at building housing are being broadened to ensure a variety of challenges that lead to homelessness, including mental health problems and joblessness, are addressed, said North Shore Community Action Programs Executive Director Laura MacNeil.
Many families reviewed for assistance need money to pay overdue utility bills, rent and mortgage payments or money to cover first and last month rent payments.
This “continuum of care” approach to homelessness and the involvement by North Shore housing organizations helped secure money to reduce homelessness in Lynn and nearby communities.
“It’s very competitive to get this money,” said MacNeil.
The regional approach is also taking more direct aim at homelessness among people under 25, MacNeil said.
Twenty-three young adults have been approved for housing assistance, including a Lynn resident who was homeless and “couch surfing” at friends’ and relatives’ homes. Housing assistance helped him obtain a place to live beginning in July and state Rep. Brendan Crighton (D-Lynn) said the youth is working at Stop & Shop and studying to obtain a technology-related job.
“It’s always good to reflect on successes we have on the personal level,” Crighton told housing representatives on Thursday.
In addition to helping homeless youth financially, the North Shore Housing Action Group representing housing assistance organizations is finding ways teenagers and young adults can find an affordable place to live. Options for helping them include rooming houses and roommate pairings.
LHAND worker Sara Johnson said housing organizations can also provide financial literacy training for families and youth and work with landlords to make arrangements to pay overdue rents.
MacNeil said youth assistance initiatives spearheaded by LHAND and other agencies could provide models for ending homelessness in other parts of the state.
Thor Jourgensen can be reached at [email protected].
