Giving Hope, Inc.: The Mission is in the Name

How does someone reach another who cannot be reached? They become a bridge and provide support. One, then, can embark on a new journey toward wholeness, and attain that which we all need. Shelter from the elements, from instability, and from hopelessness are not acquired by sheer will, alone. Grit and determination only get us so far, on our walk, especially when despair is right around the corner. There are times when, for some, the support a bridge provides is the only way out of the darkness. There are times when that support helps us move away from the grips of despair. There are times when that support leads us further, beyond where even we thought our own feet could carry us. There is great power, in hope. When we give it a chance, more becomes possible.

The Organization

Giving Hope, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that serves people who are either experiencing, or are at risk of, homelessness in Denton County. Since 1986, thousands of people have been aided so they can “stabilize and become self-sufficient.” They offer a variety of programs, as well as provide support and assistance to persons with disabilities, and veterans.

They receive state, local, and federal funding, donations, and other grants, so that their staff can perform “street outreach, case management, and advocacy through collaboration with community partners for support services.” They also are “a Front Door to the Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care (TX Bos CoC),” which covers areas of the state that don’t “have the resources to establish their own Continuum of Care.” The TX BoS CoC covers 215 counties and is comprised of “all service providers, advocates, local government officials, and citizens who work to eliminate homelessness.”

Programs

Street Outreach

Getting someone or a family off the street, and into housing, is no easy task. The Giving Hope staff members that are part of their Street Outreach team must go to “locally known encampments, abandoned buildings, and wooded areas to attempt to make contact and build rapport with individuals who are currently not seeking or are unaware of services available in Denton County.” A crucial part of this work comes from annual Point-In-Time-Count, which is mandated by Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to count the number of people who are “homeless on a given night and produce a snapshot of who experiences homeless(ness) throughout the year.” Communities that apply for Continuum of Care (CoC) funding from HUD must do this on a night in the last 10 days of January. The count provides client-level data that is used to not only understand who is homeless, and where they are, but also to “understand the changing trends, extent, and nature of homelessness in Denton County.” It also helps keep track of “the degree of success in ending homelessness.” That is why the Street Outreach Team conducts a needs assessment that uses data from Point-In-Time Count to find out what the needs are of those who live “in places not meant for human habitation.” Those data make it possible to “engage and offer assistance” to Denton County’s homeless population.

Homeless Prevention

Giving Hope’s Homeless Prevention program utilizes intensive case management to help at-risk persons “explore untapped community resources or mediation services.” This is done to keep circumstances such as “job loss, medical emergency, or family conflict” from becoming a crisis, or series of crises, that can affect someone’s housing stability.

Rapid Rehousing

Rapid Rehousing is a program that utilizes Coordinated Entry (CE), which, per the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness, is “a triage process intended to quickly connect individuals experiencing homelessness to necessary resources. CE is a federally mandated program that takes into consideration that communities rarely have enough resources for all in need. Its aim is threefold: to prioritize the most vulnerable for the limited services that exist; streamline the experience for both those requesting assistance and service providers; provide data, allowing for informed decisions regarding the structure of current services as well as the need for new services. This program “can increase the capacity of emergency shelters to make beds” for people when homelessness could not be prevented. It also utilizes the Housing First model to reduce the negative impacts of prolonged homelessness. “Efforts to prevent loss of employment, substance abuse, non-adherence to healthcare provider instructions, and school absenteeism require community partners to increase our clients’ positive outcomes.”

Permanent and Supportive Housing

Case managers conduct a needs assessment for people with disabilities and people “who need long-term supportive services to ensure housing stability that prevents a return to homelessness.”

Veterans Program

A program that helps veterans transition into civilian life “regardless of when they separated from the military.”

When the daily stress of homelessness is removed, or when those stressors that lead to instability, housing and otherwise, are reduced or removed, then stability and self-sufficiency are not only easier to acquire, but they are easier to maintain. It is okay to take the bridge. Will, grit, and determination can only get us so far. It is okay to take the bridge and utilize the support it provides. Say, however, someone is lost in the darkness, even trapped within concrete walls, or within the grips of despair. Hope can and will find them, free them, and lead them to a place where a brighter future is visible. All one must do is keep moving forward. There is great power in hope. More becomes possible when one takes a chance on it, because to do so is to take a chance on oneself. It is okay to take the bridge, and it is okay to take a chance on yourself. Hope is not lost. It will find you because hope is persistent.

If you or someone you know needs assistance, click here to find out how or call 940-382-0609