Insight Housing - Bob Woodruff Foundation

Insight Housing

Roads Home – Supporting Veteran Families Experiencing Homelessness and Food Insecurity

Service Area: Alameda, Amador, Contra Costa, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Joaquin, and Solano Counties

Goal: Provide outreach and basic needs assistance to 300 veterans experiencing and/or transitioning out of homelessness to address their barriers to attaining stable housing and employment

On a single night in January 2022, there were 2,119 veterans experiencing homelessness in Insight Housing seven-county service area. This BWF investment will strengthen Insight’s ability to serve veterans at three points in their continuum of care: street outreach, emergency and transitional housing, and permanent housing placement. First, this investment will integrate veteran peers with lived experience of homelessness into Insight’s outreach team and provide essential items such as blankets, flashlights, water bottles, and toiletries to unsheltered veterans. The transition out of homelessness is difficult, particularly for those who have been unhoused for a long period, and building rapport is crucial to engaging veterans experiencing homelessness in the supportive services they need to achieve long-term stability. Second, this funding will supplement Insight’s publicly funded housing and employment programs by providing transportation assistance, employment readiness supplies, daily meals, and community engagement opportunities for veterans living in transitional and emergency housing to reduce barriers to employment and help build the social support needed for a successful transition to permanent housing. Finally, this funding will provide moving assistance and household supplies to veterans placed in permanent housing to help them establish a functional and comfortable home. Overall, this BWF investment will provide outreach and basic needs assistance to 300 veterans experiencing and/or transitioning out of homelessness to engage them in services to address their barriers to attaining stable housing and employment.