WASHINGTON, DC. Federal and national and local partners and representatives of the six national organizations that make up the National Board of the 25-year-old Emergency Food and Shelter Program this week joined to mark the quarter century of service and support of EFSP during a ceremony at the Dirksen Senate Office Building. EFSP is the oldest targeted federal resource for persons who are homeless.

FEMA's Berl D. Jones, Jr., who is Chair of EFSP's National Board and Deputy Director of the Individual Assistance Division, FEMA Disaster Assistance Directorate, welcomed partners and many past National Board Chairs and staff. Chair Jones offered a perspective on the 25 years of the program, referencing many cultural and technological shifts in the intervening years. Chair Jones is pictured here with Council Director Mangano.

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano, invited to keynote the event, commended the long public-private partnership demonstrated by EFSP's work in communities. "How can the EFSP record and resources further the visible, measurable, quantifiable change that we are seeing on our streets and in the lives of our neighbors?"

"As we see new housing crises emerging, the long standing commitment of EFSP funds to prevention becomes of vital importance, quantifying the number of households who have been prevented from falling out of their housing and how much such interventions cost per household are important data as we formulate appropriate responses."

Director Mangano applauded FEMA for the EFSP program's history of flexibility, local decisionmaking, and rapid response, and he identified EFSP as the model for the public-private partnership which is driving political will and results on the issue of homelessness now. He noted: "EFSP was the first response of federal government targeted to homeless people. The federal government was catching up to non-profits, faith communities, and local governments which had all been on the frontlines for years."

Each EFSP National Board member was joined at the podium by a local representative who brought to life the impact of EFSP resources for local communities and neighbors in need. Joe Haggerty, Chief Operating Officer, United Way of America (pictured here), summarized the history of accomplishment of EFSP, observing that over $3 billion in resources has been distributed through local partnership and coordination. Suzy DeFrancis, Chief, Public Affairs Officer, American Red Cross introduced Kathleen Marsh, Chief Executive Officer, American Red Cross of Lower Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Father Larry Snyder, President, Catholic Charities, USA, was joined by Beth Shepherd, Emergency Services Supervisor, Archdiocese of Denver, Colorado (pictured here), who noted that EFSP's successful partnership delivers resources directly to those with needs identified by Local Boards. Ms. Shepherd noted that the Local Board in Denver uses its EFSP for rent assistance. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, General Secretary, National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. was accompanied by Michelle Embree, Nutritional Director, Good Shepherd Community Kitchen, Allied Churches of Alamance County, Burlington, North Carolina, who noted the moving stories told by local representatives that showed the commonalities of the work being done across the country. Ms. Embrey described the faith-based alliance at Good Shepherd.

Major Ron Foreman, National Social Services Secretary, The Salvation Army, introduced Major Earl Fitzgerald, Corps Commanding Officer, Arlington, Virginia, who noted that his Local Board also decided to devote all EFSP resources to rent assistance in the community, helping stabilize families and providing time to catch up from financial stress. Diane (Dede) Shaff Feinberg, Vice Chair, United Jewish Communities was accompanied by Marc Adelman, Assistant Director of Resettlement Services, Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, Illinois, whose remarks focused on the expression of responsibility for one another in the community.

Director Mangano praised the EFSP partnership for its work and challenged the partners to ensure that they are part of the solution to homelessness in communities, by partnering to 10 Year Plans, and by setting a standard of expectation that EFSP resources and investments - including future investments from the President's record 2009 request of over $5 billion in resources targeted to the lives of homeless people - further the visible, measurable, quantifiable change being seen on our streets and in the lives of homeless neighbors.

HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA. With the Hollywood Entertainment District Business Improvement District, Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Greater Los Angeles, and local business invitees ranging from Paramount Pictures to McDonald's and from AT&T to Kaiser Permanente, private sector leaders gathered last week for a roundtable convened by Hollywood's Business Improvement District to focus on solutions to homelessness.

BID Executive Director Kerry Morrison convened a meeting with partners including Chamber Chair Jeff Briggs, and United Way CEO and President Elise Buik at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel to strengthen business and community partnership, highlight successful strategies, and create momentum toward solutions.

United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Philip Mangano, who Ms. Morrison had heard speak at International Downtown Association events in Calgary, Alberta, and New York City, and who herself had participated in the Council's recent Third Annual National Summit for Jurisdictional Leaders, invited Director Mangano to lead the Roundtable, meet individually with stakeholders, and see firsthand efforts on the streets of Hollywood.

Director Mangano affirmed the convening targeted to thinking about a 10 Year Plan for Hollywood, noting the importance of business leaders stepping forward in partnership with government, providers, and consumers: "For years it was the practice to volunteer out of the realm of your expertise and experience. Now all sectors of the business community are welcomed in their expertise and self interest to solve homelessness."

"The Roundtable achieved exactly what we hoped," said Ms. Morrison, "because it demonstrated to leaders in the Hollywood business community that there are solutions to homelessness that extend to simply providing housing. What we learned underscored the sheer inefficiency of not tackling this issue for the taxpayer."

Taking part in the Roundtable were Los Angeles City Councilmember and President Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Helmi Hisserich, Los Angeles County Homeless Coordinator Garrison Smith, and Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Executive Director Rebecca Isaacs, as well as public and private sector partners. Council Regional Coordinator Ed Cabrera also took part.

Noting that the Council has partnered with the International Downtown Association for several years, Director Mangano observed the increased visibility given the issue of homelessness and its economics, and the involvement of local BID's by IDA and its Executive Director Dave Feehan, who hosted Director Mangano at the IDA's Calgary, Alberta world conference and more recently at the IDA "Big Idea" session in New York City in 2007.

Prior to the Roundtable, Director Mangano met with a group of Hollywood community stakeholders, including Edris Newton of the Los Angeles City Library; Sgt. Darryl Davis, and Senior Lead Officers Mike Shea, Armen Sevdalian and Paula Davidson from the Los Angeles Police Department, Deputy Sheriff Pat Jordan from Los Angeles County, Dr. Loretta Samaniego of Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center; and Dr. Alan Nager of Children's Hospital of Los Angeles Emergency Room. During the course of the discussion, the significant role that each of the public and private partners play in responding to homelessness was discussed, as well as the economic and morale impact of homelessness. The community partners identified themselves as stakeholders in the issue of homelessness and discussed the day-to-day impact on their community systems.

In a separate meeting, Director Mangano also met with United Way CEO Buik to discuss progress in the community in building new partnerships and political will and potential identification of a Community Champion for the Hollywood plan. Accompanying Ms. Buik was former mayoral advisor Tori Osborne, who is consulting with United Way on this and other issues.

The morning of the Roundtable, Director Mangano visited Gettlove, meeting with the initiator of this street-based response, Aileen Getty, and her colleague John Ladner. Director Mangano spent his time speaking directly with homeless people gathered on the streets. The following day, Director Mangano met with Ms. Getty, Mr. Ladner, and Ms. Morrison for a conversation focused on collaboration which included a visit to Social Services at Blessed Sacrament.

The Hollywood Entertainment District is a Business Improvement District that stretches along the world- famous Walk of Fame down 18 blocks of historic Hollywood, from the LaBrea Gateway to the corner of Hollywood & Vine, and beyond. Many of Hollywood's most-famous landmarks are located in the HED - the epicenter of the entertainment capital of the world and birthplace of the movie industry. This District is one of the oldest property-based BIDs in the state of California. The BID is funded by approximately 183 property owners with an annual budget of $2.5 million.

Pictured here are (left to right): Mirta Ocana, Los Angeles Mayor's Homeless Policy Coordinator; Kerry Morrison, Executive Director of the Hollywood BID; Carmen Reyes, United Way of Los Angeles; Director Mangano; Elise Buik, President of United Way; and Chamber Chair Jeff Briggs.

WASHINGTON, DC. More than $1 billion in mainstream housing resources for 35 programs in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development is now available to communities through the HUD SuperNOFA process. As reported here previously, HUD will also shortly announce the availability of $1.5 billion in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants program, using a new electronic application process.

To make funding opportunities available as soon as possible, HUD is posting its SuperNOFA electronically through www.grants.gov in advance of the Federal Register publication on May 12, 2008. Applicants are strongly encouraged to read funding notices thoroughly and to follow the registration information available in the General Section of the SuperNOFA published in the Federal Register on March 19, 2008.

As projected, the CoC Registration module of e-snaps is now live. The Lead Person in each Continuum of Care (CoC) may now register their CoC, select the geographic areas served by the CoC, and provide contact information for the CoC Lead Organization and persons who will be accessing e-snaps for Exhibit 1 during the 2008 competition. The link to access e- snaps is www.hud.gov/esnaps.

There are several steps involved in the CoC Registration process. HUD strongly encourages the CoC Lead to complete the CoC Registration online training prior to completing and submitting the CoC Registration. The training module clearly outlines the information you will need to know before you start registration as well as each step in the process. The online training and links to the Federal Register Notices are available at www.hudhre.info/esnaps.

HUD reminds potential applicants that all questions regarding e-snaps must be directed to the e-snaps Helpline at 1-877-6esnaps (1-877-637-6877) or via email to esnaps@hudhre.info. Registration is for CoC Lead Agencies ONLY. Project applicants (those that fill out Exhibit 2s) are not required to register through e- snaps at this time, and doing so will cause confusion in the system.

For the past four years, HUD has required nearly all grant applications to be submitted electronically through www.grants.gov. This year, applicants for funding through HUD's Continuum of Care homeless assistance programs will submit their applications electronically through the HUD e-snaps system (electronic-special needs assistance programs system). A Notice explaining the e-snaps registration process for Continuums of Care was published in the Federal Register on April 30, 2008. HUD's Continuum of Care Notice of Funding Availability is expected to be published no earlier than July 1, 2008.

WASHINGTON, DC. The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development this week published a Federal Register notice on the implementation of the 10,000 Section 8 vouchers recently released in the HUD-VASH supportive housing program for homeless veterans. HUD also conducted a webcast briefing on the vouchers for partners across the country. Visit the HUD webcast site to view the archived briefing.

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee, under the leadership of Chairman Tim Johnson and Chairwoman Patty Murray, and Ranking Members Kay Bailey Hutchison and Christopher Bond, convened a joint hearing with the Subcommittees on Transportation and Housing and Urban Development and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs to examine the needs of homeless veterans. Testifying before the committee were Pete Dougherty, Director of the VA Office of Homeless Veterans Programs and HUD Deputy Assistance Secretary Mark Johnston, as well as Cheryl Beversdorf of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, Steve Berg of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, Paul Lambros of the Plymouth Housing Group in Washington, and Rick Weidman of Vietnam Veterans of America.

To implement the HUD-VASH program, the Department of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with HUD, identified 132 VA Medical Centers that will participate with the program. In doing so, the VA took into account the population of homeless veterans needing services in the area, the number of homeless veterans served by the homeless programs at each VAMC during Fiscal Years 2006 and FY 2007, geographic distribution, and VA case management resources. There is at least one site in each of the 50 states and in the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. HUD, in consultation with the VA, and in consideration of a PHA's administrative performance, identified eligible PHAs located in the jurisdiction of the VAMCs and invited them to apply for HUD-VASH vouchers. The number of HUD-VASH vouchers awarded to each PHA was determined by HUD and the VA. Approximately 35 rental vouchers were awarded for each professional, full-time HUD-VASH case manager at the local VAMC. HUD- VASH vouchers may be reallocated in the future based on need and usage. A PHA that participates in the HUD- VASH program must partner with their VASH VAMC.

AKRON, OHIO. The first Project Homeless Connect event in the state of Ohio convened last week in Akron and Summit County, with 500 homeless neighbors being welcomed by over 150 community volunteers for the event which also makes Akron/Summit County and the city of Barberton the 170th Project Homeless Connect community in the nation.

Each jurisdiction also invested to make the event a success, with Akron donating $5,000; Summit County, $2,000; and Barberton, $500, to help to cover expenses. Akron kept two trolleys in motion picking up guests and bringing them to the event site. ''It's very important for us to collaborate and be a leader in providing services on this important day,'' Akron Deputy Mayor Dave Lieberth said.

''We've tried to make this day a day of hospitality,'' said Sue Pierson, vice president of programs for InfoLine, Summit County's clearinghouse for social services. The event used volunteer escorts to ensure that guests circulated to all resources they were interested in.

Meals were provided by the Summit County United Way for guests and Akron General Medical Center, Summa Health Systems, and Akron Children's Hospital provided medical services, including mammogram screenings, HIV/AIDS testing, and prostate cancer testing. Guests were also screened for depression and could have cholesterol checked. Vouchers for eyeglasses were available. Also on site was legal assistance, job placement services, housing placement, counseling, clothing, meals, and haircuts.

Participating agencies included the Summit County Board of Elections, Akron and Summit County health departments, the Social Security Administration, Summit County Job and Family Services, the Job Center, Veterans' Services, Community Health Services, Oriana House, Tri-County Independent Living and Community Services for the Deaf.

The Akron event is the most recent of the Project Homeless Connect events, which, with encouragement and technical assistance from the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, has now been adopted by more than 170 cities across the nation.

San Francisco pioneered Project Homeless Connect in 2004 as an innovative one-day, one-stop engagement strategy under Mayor Gavin Newsom. Under the leadership of then Mayor's Deputy Chief of Staff Alex Tourk, Project Homeless Connect was developed into a partnership that mobilizes civic will to end homelessness. San Francisco's Project Homeless Connect now operates as a component of a new non-profit organization called San Francisco Connect, which engages volunteers through Project Green Connect, Project Youth and Families Connect, and Project Tech Connect.

Project Homeless Connect has another goal besides immediate access to quality of life resources and on- site housing and employment opportunities to end homelessness: Project Homeless Connect is intended to change how business is done in local communities when it comes to expediting outcomes, lowering barriers, removing obstacles, and increasing results.

Consistent with the Council's commitment to the rapid dissemination of what's working, Project Homeless Connect events have brought to light new solutions to old challenges shared across the country. Project Homeless Connect's "under one roof" offerings for consumers and the "mobile hospitality" of volunteers who act as escorts, shepherds, and conductors for their homeless neighbors help lower their barriers and achieve results. Public and private sector resource providers work side-by- side in a new configuration, with a focus on problem - solving and results.

WITH THIS ISSUE, the e-news continues its coverage of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Third Annual National Summit for Jurisdictional Leaders convened in Washington earlier this month. With this issue, we focus on "Home for Every American" Community Champion Award winner Robert Schwarz of Springfield, Massachusetts. Mr. Schwarz is pictured here (second from right) being congratulated by family and colleagues after receiving the award.

A Community Champion appointed by a committed Mayor to bring visible and effective leadership from the business community to results-oriented jurisdictional 10-Year Plan initiatives to end chronic homelessness can make all the difference. As Community Champion in Springfield, Massachusetts - a city of 154,000 - Robert J. Schwarz has brought his more than 20 years' of business experience as Executive Vice President of Peter Pan Bus Lines to his role as Implementation Chair for "Homes within Reach," Springfield's 10-Year Plan. Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno announced a 39% reduction in street homelessness in the city in February 2008.

Mr. Schwarz proves the Community Champion innovation can bring vital business expertise and problem-solving to the needs of the community's poorest neighbors. In his corporate position, Mr. Schwarz has been responsible for initiatives ranging from development of AT&T's largest "800-number" inbound call system in Western Massachusetts, to oversight of a Marketing Department with a budget in excess of $1 million, to management of a Customer Service Department serving over 4 million customers per year, to coordination of the company employee "Community Program" focused on empowering employees to resolve issues pertinent to the betterment of the company. Mr. Schwarz served for eight years as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce and held Chamber positions related to financial and legislative issues. He also holds community leadership positions with United Way of Pioneer Valley and the Regional Employment Board.

Springfield's 10-Year Plan implementation has included creation of new Housing First permanent supportive housing for chronically homeless people and adoption of the innovation of Project Homeless Connect, a one-day, one-stop engagement to welcome people who are homeless to a broad array of resources. Springfield's PHC event has been strongly partnered with the local business community. The City has created a Homeless Resource Center and initiated a pilot program to provide intensive supportive housing for mentally ill persons being released from jail. In collaboration with the elected and civic leadership in neighboring communities of Holyoke and Northampton in the Pioneer Valley, Springfield has recently created a new regional plan to end homelessness.

First federal funding (1982-1983) to the program which was established at the Emergency Food and Shelter Program: $50 million.

Since its inception in 1983, the Emergency Food and Shelter Program has distributed $3,104,834,135 to the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Territories.

2,500 Local Boards are funded by EFSP.

Local Boards fund 12,100 Local Recipient Organizations (local government and nonprofit)

Since the program's inception in 1983, volunteers and staff of Local Recipient Organizations (LROs) have provided meals, nights of shelter, rent/mortgage assistance and utility assistance through the Emergency Food and Shelter Program, including:

In 25 years:
Over 10.2 billion homelessness prevention actions in the form of rent, mortgage, and utility payments.

This week marked the Council's launch of 20 in 20 . . . 20 Innovations in 20 Days . . .20 Ideas to Prevent and End Homelessness - 20 Special Issues of the e-news, one per day, every day in May, each focusing on a single innovation achieving results in preventing or ending homelessness.

If you missed any issues this week, you missed learning about Virginia EITC outreach and engagement strategy and results, Sacramento's 10 Year Plan Scorecard for the community , strategies and results to secure ID cards from Norfolk and San Francisco Project Homeless Connect events, the results reporting pipeline in Washington State and its Counties with 10 Year Plans, and the Prince Home permanent supported housing for homeless veterans in Illinois.

We'll be back on Monday, May 12 with the next issue of 20 in 20. You won't want to miss what's coming: Innovations delivered directly to your "in-box," with details of what's working, who's innovating, who benefits, what are the results, and how to learn more.

Look for new ideas on state support for EITC outreach, innovations in Project Homeless Connect, State Interagency Council partnership in achieving results, innovation in 10-Year Plans, and initiatives for homeless veterans.

Learn about targeted revenue strategies, philanthropic partnership, special courts, prevention, and job and housing search results.

Read about what's working on city streets, innovations in business partnership, and results as agencies commit to ending homelessness.

email: usich@usich.gov

web: http://www.usich.gov