A Eugene nonprofit will receive more than half a million dollars from health organizations after their pilot program helped dozens of homeless people find housing.
Last year medical providers, Kaiser Permanente and PeaceHealth, gave ShelterCare$595,000 to start a program called Phoenix. Since then, 36 people have used their temporary housing facilities, and at least 18 of them have found permanent homes.
“I think what the Phoenix program does and how it was designed- what it recognizes is that there’s a whole host of things apart from just direct rent and utility assistance that really helps people with their housing success,” said program director Cara Ashworth.
Funding from non-governmental agencies gave the shelter more flexibility to support individuals, said Ashworth. Kaiser Permanente and PeaceHealth each gave $300,000 to ShelterCare because they say housing is a public health issue.