THE REPORTER ARCHIVE

I've got to say you've been doing really good work. There's so much happening that offers hope; the economy, the job market, the new facilities available, the number of people and organizations trying to make a difference, the visions that spur us on

It seems like the community network is really beginning to weave together a broad response to homelessness. Look through this newsletter to see the organizations that are actively working on one segment of the issue or another. There are many others not mentioned who provide support and services; you are probably part of that net.

Many measures show progress: number of emergency beds and transitional beds available, number of permanent supportive housing units, frequency and quality of planning meetings, knowledge of the Sonoma County homeless populations, the visions and goals for processes and things which can help break the cycle of homelessness.

Despite our growth over the past 25 years, the network of people working together has grown in ways that you often see in smaller, closer communities. Often just being aware of a process or goal in one part of our lives can inform and assist decisions in another. We see more collaboration among organizations that didn't know much about the others' functioning in the past. There seems to be progress for all geographic areas of the county, for all the various sub-populations of homeless folks, with almost every type of service addressed somewhere.

- youth services, education, and other prevention activities;

- substance abuse and mental health treatment;

- permanent supportive housing;

- affordable housingand we're seeing more of most of these.

There's no denying that there are still questions of equity and efficiency, prevention and humane response, short-term and long-term solutions. I hope you'll be part of the discussions to explore those questions in the near future. I'd like you to think and talk about this: When we feel we have enough shelter, how do we treat people who do not use the facilities and services that are available to them? What does it mean when people chose not to live under a roof? Are they crazy? What should we do if they pee and poop and litter and camp nearby? What does it mean when they prefer to live in a car, a run down camper, or a campground instead of moving to some inexpensive place to live? You can tell me your thoughts by e-mailing galephil@pacbell.net or calling me at 823-8943.