Unfilled Niches in Portland’s Homeless Nonprofits

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There's no small sum of homelessness-oriented nonprofits operating in and around Portland. They cover issues ranging from everyday necessities like food, seasonally appropriate clothing, and temporary shelter to more permanent solutions such as creating and advocating for affordable housing as well as providing services that help the homeless regain financial stability (e.g., through job training, connections with viable opportunities).

These are all wonderful, providing essential services that all help to alleviate various aspects of the homelessness issue, but there is always more to be done. Nicole Hayden, writing for Oregon Live, shares an interview with Robert Magee-Coffin and his neighbors that elucidates some unmet needs of the Portland homeless population.

They identify a need for more behavioral health services, alternate shelters (established indoor shelters prove insufficient and often undesirable), housing advocacy, trash removal, and access to additional basic necessities such as showers, laundry services, and electricity to charge phones.

Behavioral health services in particular appears to be strongly desired; Magee-Coffin quips that the one mental health facility available to him feels more like baby-sitting than something truly empowering. Properly addressing mental health issues is extremely important, as they are a significant contributor to chronic homelessness (continuous or repeated instances of homelessness over at least a year).

Thankfully, Multnomah County, among others, are planning on allocating additional funds into addressing the homeless crisis through the 2021-2022 fiscal year. Multnomah County will be prioritizing housing and rental assistance first and then supportive services that will help individuals reestablish themselves and remain stable (e.g., job training, mental health services).

The county plans to have the budget approved sometime in June or July 2021, and I would wager that this new pool of capital may help new homeless nonprofits targeting the previously listed deficiencies to establish themselves throughout this fiscal year. Alternatively, if you or someone you know is looking into starting a homeless nonprofit, this new budget may prove useful.

Watch for these potential new nonprofits, who will surely need additional donations and volunteer support, on websites such as: https://greatnonprofits.org/city/portland/OR/category:homeless-and-housing/sort:review_count/direction:desc

Make sure to also browse and find any existing nonprofits that you find compelling and learn how you can help; their websites (e.g., https://www.tprojects.org/how-to-help) will often list a number of ways that you can help, such as through donations, volunteer services, and advocacy.

 

 

 

For more on Magee-Coffin’s thoughts, Oregon’s budgetary plans for addressing homelessness, and more, please refer to Nicole Hayden’s excellent article on the Oregon Live website: https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2021/02/portland-area-counties-enjoy-wide-latitude-as-they-ponder-how-to-spend-homelessness-services-tax.html

 

Published by: Christian Kim

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