How Transition Projects is Helping Portland

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Transition Projects, a non-profit organization founded in 1969 by Reverend Gilbert N. Lulay, has spent the last 50 years dedicated to providing supportive services for the homeless and low-income individuals in and around the Portland Metro Area. This organization has grown considerably over this period of time and has ballooned from just one man to 400+ employees and countless volunteers who choose to help make Transition Projects vision a reality. So what do Transition Projects do to help Portlands homeless and struggling populations? And how might you get involved?

To begin Transition Projects provides Resource Centers for individuals that are comprehensive in their capacity to assist those attempting to get back on their feet. These centers offer hygiene services, directions to shelters, season-appropriate clothing, nutrition resources, mail service for personal documentation, lockers for personal belongings, and much more. That is only a portion of what they offer. 

On top of the raw resources they offer, they have a considerably impressive outreach system headed by peer support specialists who have personally experienced some level of financial instability themselves. These individuals work with a network of agencies across portland to assess the needs of those living in these difficult situations and refer them to resources useful to regaining stability.  This system saw 500 of Portlands homeless reached in 2018 and more than 90 individuals attain permanent housing as a result. If you ask me that's rather impressive and speaks to the effectiveness of the Transition Projects system.

Transition projects have grown to a size and have so much support that they have been able to acquire three zones that are entirely dedicated to moving individuals off the streets and into housing, these zones provide short and long-term support for those who are working towards security. This is paired with follow-up services that help in ensuring the individuals who have found these places to live can continue staying housed and don't end up back where this journey began. This scaffolding approach to recovery saw more than 1,000 people helped into secure housing in the last year alone.  

With this success noted, and the ambitious coverage of their support network is so comprehensive, they can really use all the help they can get. This can be through them or any other non-profit organization that attempts to uplift Oregon's low-income populations. To help out at Transition Projects, one can directly donate funds, donate items that are in high demand, or work with them as a volunteer, intern, or specialist. Transition Projects is truly a model organization and much can be learned from their example.  

Published by: Nicholas Rainville

Check out Transition Projects below:
https://www.tprojects.org/



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