All Together Now
As many in the state continue to grapple with economic uncertainty, one local nonprofit organization remains as committed as ever to helping homeless and low-income families navigate their way to financial independence.
Established in 2006, Family Promise of Hawai‘i found its footing when a group of faith leaders in Kailua sought to establish a better support system for those in the area experiencing homelessness. So they forged ties with national affiliate, New Jersey-based Family Promise and, before long, the organization had branched out on its own and expanded into the Honolulu area.
Today, while the organization is not religiously affiliated, it continues to partner with the Hawai‘i faith community to offer emergency shelter services at more
than 65 locations, where ‘ohana may find refuge for the evening in a vacant congregation. (Due to the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis, Family Promise of Hawai‘i has been utilizing hotels and Camp Mokulē‘ia on the North Shore as tempo- rary housing sites instead.)
But that’s hardly all Family Promise of Hawai‘i offers.
“We try to provide a spectrum of support,” says executive director Samantha Church.
For Family Promise of Hawai‘i that means not only providing immediate solutions but also long-term resources.
“We believe it’s not just enough to shelter,” says Church. “We want to do more. We want to find the pathway for people to be able to regain independence—not just a temporary fix, but a lifelong support system by helping them navigate to new housing options.”
To achieve this, Family Promise of Hawai‘i focuses heavily on prevention. By offering a breadth of resources, Church explains, the hope is that families may continue to afford their rent.
“That’s the hardest payment to make, and then we can help find resources for the other stuff—food, diapers, hygiene products ... so that they can cover that basic need and they don’t end up getting evicted,” says Church.
She adds that, in response to COVID- 19, the organization has stepped in to assist with contacting the unemployment office, helping navigate the sea of paperwork and seeking other existing avenues of support. And with a modest staff of only nine, Church is quick to point out that none of it would be possible without the roughly 1,000 volunteers who pitch in.
“It’s not just a staff-led project, but it’s an entire community-led project,” she says.
Those willing to give of their time are always welcome. They can help with everything from running a collection drive for necessities to cooking up meals—all so that families can use what they have at hand for rent. Of course, making a donation, no matter how large or small, is always a major help.
“Even if one person can give $50, and they think, ‘Oh, that’s not enough to keep a family in housing,’ we have a hui of donors come together and that money all comes together in order for us to pay somebody’s rent for a couple of months and keep them in housing so they don’t have to experience homelessness,” says Church.
In dealing with the ongoing economic impact COVID-19 has on Hawai‘i, especially, any form of support will go a long way.
“It’s not just that guy who’s pushing a shopping cart down the side of the road,” she says. “The face of homelessness is not just that, it’s also the face of, unfortunately, children and local families in our community, too.”
For her part, Church has led Family Promise of Hawai‘i as its executive director for the past three years, having been drawn to the organization by its collaborative philosophy.
“I believe very strongly in community approaches to things,” she says. “The idea of something like homelessness, it’s such a complex issue it takes the entire community coming together to solve it.”
The rewards, she adds, come from watching families get back on their feet.
“I think there’s so much stigma built around homelessness, like people must be lazy or people must be using substances, and it’s just absolutely not the case for a lot of folks. It’s really, truly just an economic issue.
“It only takes one life event for many families in our community to experience something like homelessness,” Church continues. “To see someone experiencing the most challenging time of their life, but be able to get the support needed to transition back to independence ... it’s the best feeling.”
For more information on Family Promise of Hawai‘i and to learn how to get involved, visit familypromisehawaii.org or call 548-7478.