100 keys to a better future

Homeless citizens finding direction home with community plan

For Immediate Release Sept. 14, 2009

Media Contacts:
Otis Thornton
Fort Worth Homelessness Coordinator
817-392-7552

Susan Cockrell
Administrator, Special Programs
Fort Worth Housing Authority
817-333-3551

Cindy J. Crain
Executive Director
Tarrant County Homeless Coalition
817-991-9127

The city of Fort Worth’s plan to make homelessness rare, short-term and non-recurring marked another milestone last week when the 100th person moved out of homelessness and into an apartment.

City and federal funds are being utilized under the plan to provide permanent supportive housing for 200 vulnerable and chronic homeless people in Fort Worth. The half-way point was reached after just three months of operation.    

“The rapid success of these initiatives is a real credit to our community’s compassion, tenacity and resolve,” said City of Fort Worth Homelessness Coordinator Otis Thornton. “The public-private partnerships that have been strengthened and built as a result of Directions Home are adding value to our community’s overall effort to end chronic homelessness and producing positive, measurable results.”

Susan Cockrell, special programs administrator for the Fort Worth Housing Authority, said she wishes everyone could see what she and the various partners have accomplished.

“I am not sure which has been more significant: the tremendous effort from agencies and people to help clients set up their new homes or the amazing turnaround in clients’ lives?” she said. “Seeing people with joy on their faces and restored hope has been such a gift.”

The UTA Community Services Center is evaluating the implementation of the Directions Home program to ensure that it produces expected results. Periodic evaluations of self-sufficiency, tenant satisfaction and longitudinal outcomes are all in the works.

Mayor Mike Moncrief has made ending chronic homelessness one of his top priorities. Both he and his fellow City Council members are thrilled by the progress so far.

“We could not be more pleased with the lives that are being changed thanks to our incredible staff, our countless partners,” Moncrief said. “This is truly a team effort, and our hats are off to the case managers and agency staff who are getting the job done, as well as to the women and men who are working hard to start their lives anew. Well done!”

Members of the coalition have surveyed hundreds of homeless people to identify who was the most medically vulnerable. To illustrate the importance of this prioritization, consider that 39 of the first 69 to obtain housing had visited an emergency room more than 120 times in the preceding eight months, combined, and 27 accounted for more than 60 hospital admissions in the preceding year.

Representatives from the Tarrant County Homeless Coalition will present symbolic house keys to the City Manager and City Council on Tuesday to commemorate the milestone. The Directions Home program was adopted by the Fort Worth City Council in June of 2008. A report recapping the success of the program’s first year is available at www.directionshome.org.

Posted by Timothy Tune at 09/14/2009 05:19:06 PM