You can’t get your kids back  until you have housing, and you can’t get housing until you get your kids back. The room was silent for a few moments as conference attendees process what they had just heard. Three “veteran” mothers who had successfully turned their lives around and reunited with their children shared the challenges faced when two systems workagainst them. As a mother, my heart was broken as I thought about what the children must have been going through as they lived in “limbo” for years as their mother fought for them.

A lack of affordable housing stock puts low-income families in precarious living situations. A 2008 survey of parents in Washington state’s child welfare system conducted by Partners for Our Children found that in the 12 months prior 45% of the parents had been evicted, had to move in with family or friends, or had been homeless (Partners for Our Children,2010). It is also estimated that 30% of children in foster care are placed primarily due to a lack of safe housing (Harburger and White 2004). What is even more shocking to me is that research shows that in many cases simply addressing a family’s housing need can keep the family together. (Torrico, 2009, Research ona Different Response). Continue reading

This week, I am honored to join hundreds of people in Yakima to continue our work towards a day when NO ONE is homeless in Washington state. In its 22nd year, the annual conference on ending homelessness attracts national and local experts who offer participants an opportunity to grow in their technical expertise, while strengthening the growing network of statewide homeless advocates.For 3 days this week, the Yakima Convention Center is filled with the “movers and shakers” of the state homeless service system, including community and faith-based service providers, private and public funders and, most importantly, people who are, or have experienced homelessness.

The theme for this year’s event: The Changing Face of Homelessness offers us a chance to explore the many, many faces of homelessness. Today’s lunch keynote speaker, State superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn, provided a sobering snapshot of the tens of thousands of homeless students in our state. The numbers of homeless kids in our schools are growing at an alarming rate – from 14,000 in 2005 to more than 26,000 in 2010. Superintendent Dorn shared a story about a student, John, who came to the attention of school administrators due to poor personal hygiene.  John’s parents were not able to care for him, and the young man was sleeping either in his car or in the back of the school. Armed with this startling knowledge, teachers, church members and other community members sprang into action. Clothing was collected and resources gathered to help John find a safe place to stay and, eventually get his diploma. Recently, Dorn ran into John at a community event. Now a machinist at Boeing, John asked Dorn to tell his story – with the message that people CAN make a difference by doing the right thing. Without the help of caring people, John’s life would have taken a very different turn.

Dorn’s closing message… We can’t leave one kid out… if they live in our state they are OUR kids… kept running through my mind as the afternoon progressed. How can we ensure that all children in our state not only receive an  education, BUT also have access to a safe place to live with their basic needs covered?  Is that too much to reach for? I don’t think so.

Looking for a fun project this weekend? Help build the Spiral Structure at Lake Union Park! The Spiral Project — a Spiral of Hope, an evocative sculpture event, began construction in Seattle’s Lake Union Park last weekend. Artists and community members are working together to build a 300-foot-long sculpture using recovered tree branches, representing the thousands of Washington families who are homeless in our state on any given night. Continue reading

Project originated via Seattle University Journalism Fellowships on Family Homelessness.

A young woman, fearful for her life and that of her baby, flees from the baby’s abusive father — but, like many young mothers escaping domestic violence, she has nowhere to go. Brandy’s story is captured by Real Change assistant editor Rosette Royale in a new multimedia project he calls “The Gravity of Abuse.” Nearly two years in the making, this dramatic chronicle is the result of Rosette’s 2010 Seattle University Journalism Fellowship on Family Homelessness, and it appears in Real Change starting next week.

Rosette is known for his captivating long-form narratives, such as “The Man who Stood on the Bridge,” which won the national Sigma Delta Chi award from the Society of Professional Journalists in 2008. The four-part “Gravity of Abuse” series begins in the May 9 issue of Real Change and is supplemented with audio and video. But you don’t have to wait till then; read a brief excerpt of the series here. Continue reading

 More than 60 pastors, religious leaders, lay members, community partners, STM faculty and staff gathered at Seattle University on Monday April 23 to launch the Faith & Family Homelessness Project.  Rabbi Jessica Kessler Marshall from Temple Beth Or in Everett, Reverend George Davenport of Peoples Institutional Baptist in Seattle and Imam Abdulah Polovina from the Islamic Center in Shoreline shared opening reflections around the topic, “Why God calls us to this work.” Dean Mark Markuly, one of the visionary leaders who conceptualized the project, described how the mission of STM is lived out through the Faith & Family Homelessness project.

Over dinner, lively conversation centered around the scriptural and theological underpinnings for the project from Christian, Muslim and Jewish perspectives. Each guest shared the values that inform their call to justice from their faith tradition perspective. Representatives also learned more about the grant requirements and the state of family homelessness in the region. 

Perhaps the most important outcome of the evening is the promise of new relationships and joint efforts among faith community leaders, resulting in a more concentrated and coordinated effort to end family homelessness. The deep commitment of the selected sites was reflected in the committment  to work together to end family homelessness. Thank you to all who participated!

Part of Seattle University School of Theology and Ministry’s lecture series Faith and Values in the Public Square, this exciting panel presentation will examine the role of the faithful person in the world today. The panel begins at 7:00 p.m. and will be preceded by a reception at 6:30 p.m. in Pigott Atrium featuring displays of local faith-based advocacy and action organizations. 

Panel members include: Rabbi Jill Jacobs (Rabbis for Human Rights- North America), Professor Cynthia Moe-Lobeda (Seattle University Department of Theology and Religious Studies) and Tarek Dawoud (Council on American-Islamic Relations) engage in an interreligious conversation on Faith and Active Citizenship at Seattle University. The panel offers each speaker an opportunity to answer the following questions from his/her experience faith. A question period will follow the panel presentation.

1.What is the role of faith in today’s sense of the public square?
2.What are the three main challenges of being a person of faith in this country?
3.How should faith inspire and frame action in this country?
4.What are two suggestions that you have for your faith community in engaging with the public square?

For more information : http://www.seattleu.edu/stm/faithandvalues

Thank you to the more than 40 faith communities who submitted applications to the Faith and Family Homelessness Project at Seattle University’s School of Theology and Ministry. Each application was special in its own way, and illustrates the deep commitment held by the faithful to end the crisis of family homelessness. Based on criteria that considered the strength of the entire community of applicants, 14 sites were chosen to participate.

The Ecumenical and Interreligious Dialogue Team at Seattle University School of Theology and Ministry is committed to explore a multitude of ways to support the community as we collectively address the crisis of family poverty and homelessness. To stay connected and learn of upcoming opportunities, please join this project blog at and visit the School’s web page at www.seattleu.edu/stm. Together, we can end family homelessness in our region.

Faith and Family Homelessness Project Sites:

• Ahmadiyya Community Lynnwood
• Alki United Church of Christ West Seattle
• All Saints Catholic Church Puyallup
• United Church Arlington
• Church of the Nazarene Puyallup
• First Presbyterian Everett
• Islamic Center Shoreline
• Masjid Al-Karim  Seattle
• New Life Church  Renton
• Peoples Institutional Baptist Church Seattle
• St. Mark’s by the Narrows Tacoma
• Temple Beth El Tacoma
• Temple Beth Or  Everett
• Temple De Hirsch-Sinai Seattle/Bellevue

The Ecumenical and Interreligious Dialogue team at Seattle University’s School of Theology and Ministry is hosting two exciting events this April!

THIS Wednesday April 4th — PART 1 of the series hosts Karen Armstrong on the topic of “Business and Compassion — Exploring an Ethical Center.”  The presentation will take place in Campion Ballroom on the Seattle University Campus. Armstrong’s poignant and captivating talks have sparked worldwide discussion. Her bestselling books, including Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life and A History of God, examine the differences and the profound similarities between Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, and their impact on world events. In 2008, she was awarded the TED Prize in recognition and support of her call for a council of religious and spiritual leaders to draw up a “Charter for Compassion” that applies shared moral priorities to foster greater global understanding based on the principles of justice and respect. Free tickets can be found  here:  http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/236465   

April 30th — PART 2 of the series covers the issues of ‘Faith and Active Citizenship’ today.  Rabbi Jill Jacobs (Rabbis for Human Rights- North America), Professor Cynthia Moe-Lobeda (Seattle University Department of Theology and Religious Studies) and Mr. Tarek Dawoud (Council on American-Islamic Relations) will engage in an interreligious conversation. The event is hosted by Seattle University School of Theology and Ministry and sponsored by the Henry Luce Foundation. The panel begins at 7:00 p.m. and will be preceded by a reception at 6:30 p.m. in Pigott Atrium featuring displays of local faith-based advocacy and action organizations.  Free tickets can be found here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/236633

 Looking Into Light Photo Exhibit – Seattle City Hall – March 5-April 27

As a middle class American, it’s difficult for me to imagine what it’s like to experience homelessness – and even more challenging to think about what it would be like to be homeless with my daughter. Like many of us, I read and hear the stories that tell the heartbreaking stories of families living in their cars or sleeping in homeless shelters. Those words and images flash across a screen and, all too often, become a distant memory. 

For me, photographs can sometimes tell the story in a different way; offering an opportunity to look at the problem in a new light. Sponsored  by Seattle University’s Project on Family Homelessness, Looking Into Light is an exhibit of 50 extraordinary images of homeless children and their parents.  The exhibit includes images from the National Center on Family Homelessness archive of more than 20,000 images along with striking photos of local families captured by local photographer Dan Lamont. 

An artist reception will be 4 to 6 p.m., Wednesday, April 4, in the City Hall lobby.

Over the next couple of weeks we’ll be reading the large number of applications we received from faith communities in King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties. Updates on the selection process will be posted on this page. We are inspired by the passion and committment to social justice held by so many of you!

Homeless children and their families are often invisible to the public eye.  Homeless parents are fearful that they will lose their children, forced to shelter their children in motels or “doubled up” with others. Unaccompanied homeless youth often find shelter outside of the system, putting themselves in dangerous situations. The result is that thousands of children in Washington State are living in unsafe situations –  leading to physical abuse, health problems, mental health problems, hunger, and educational deficits.

HR 32 is bi-partisan legislation that would make it easier for homeless children, youth, and families to receive homeless assistance, no matter where they happen to be living. Continue reading

Seattle University’s School of Theology and Ministry (STM) is working with local partners to identify 12 faith communities in King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties who want to use their social and political will as a force for changing cultural and societal attitudes, behaviors and policies around family homelessness.

Selected applicants will receive financial resources and tailored support to increase their response to family homelessness while learning to effectively advocate for the public policy changes needed to reduce family homelessness in the region. Continue reading

There is significant national public discourse today around the role of religion in fostering “the common good.”  President Obama’s White House Task Force for Interreligious dialogue and Cooperation, comprised of ecumenical and interreligious leadership from throughout the United States, agreed that “the common good” was the essential or least common denominator for shared religious values.  In short, at their social best, religions seek to achieve goals for “the common good.”  Continue reading

Inside King County’s homeless count: the uncertainties and the lessons | Crosscut.com.  This article does a great job at illustrating the challenges of accurately counting people who are experiencing homelessness in our communities.

Obama discusses faith, policies | Seattle Times Newspaper The President discusses the importance of his faith in setting fair policies.