Sarah’s Story: Finally a Place to Call Home

From the Spring 2009 Newsletter

On any given night in Alameda County there are about 1,000 homeless individuals that are diagnosed with a mental illness. Surveys show that of those thousand, 30% are dually diagnosed with a substance use disorder. (Alameda Countywide Shelter and Services Survey, May 2004 Report)

The Bonita House Inc Homeless Outreach and Stabilization Team (HOST) is a full service partnership (FSP) that opened its doors in March 2007 to address the needs of some of the county’s un-served chronically homeless individuals who also have mental illness. HOST provides a resource rich program with 24/7 staffing and flexible funding to meet various client needs. This allows the team to do “whatever it takes” to assist clients on their road to housing and recovery.

Sarah felt she was on the verge of a “nervous breakdown” when Robert, a Personal Service Coordinator from HOST, met her at a local liquor store. Sarah was about to lose her housing yet again, this time a room at an Oakland hotel. Despite multiple efforts at employment Sarah had spent most of the last 15 years on the streets due to her “inability to manage her emotions” and “her anxiety around building relationships with others.” Robert told Sarah about the services that HOST could provide. Sarah did not believe that this program could be real. She had been told too many times in the past that she could receive help and had been let down. Sarah didn’t have any hope that HOST would be different but she was willing to take Robert’s card. A week later she called HOST and set up an assessment meeting. Shortly after this meeting Sarah was enrolled in the HOST program. She was given temporary housing in an Oakland hotel and began receiving three meals a day, something she had not had in years. Six weeks later Sarah signed a lease and moved into her own apartment, a goal that she had set for herself at the age of 17. Sarah cried throughout the move, expressing disbelief and gratitude that HOST had helped her make her dream come true. Sarah has now been housed for over a year. She reports that her life has been changed. She finally has the stability she had been longing for and has been able to begin to focus on some of her other life goals.

The HOST program has included EveryOne Home’s strategy of providing permanent housing and wrap-around services to those who are chronically homeless and have a persistent mental illness. For Sarah that means she has renewed hope in her future and finally a place to call home.