Homeless Services Network of Central Florida

The following announcement comes from the Heart of Florida United Way:

As of April 15, 2011, the budget recently passed by Congress and signed into law by the President contains $120 million for the Emergency Food and Shelter National Board Program (EFSP).  The EFSP National Board will develop the allocation formula in the coming weeks which determines those jurisdictions that qualify for funding.  Once FEMA has notified Congress of the National Board’s allocations, the National Board will notify all of the qualifying jurisdictions.

If and when EFSP funding becomes available, award notices will be sent to qualifying Local Boards following a review by a National Board that is chaired by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and consists of representatives from the Salvation Army; American Red Cross; United Jewish Communities, Catholic Charities, USA; National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.; and, United Way of America.

The Local Boards are charged to distribute funds appropriated by Congress to help expand the capacity of food and shelter programs in high-need areas around the country.

The Local Boards will determine how the funds awarded to Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties, if any, are to be distributed among the emergency food and shelter programs run by local service agencies in the area.  The Local Boards are responsible for recommending agencies to receive these funds and any additional funds available under this phase of the program.

Under the terms of the grant from the National Board, local agencies chosen to receive funds must: 1) be private voluntary non-profits or units of government, 2) have an accounting system, 3) practice nondiscrimination, 4) have demonstrated the capability to deliver emergency food and/or shelter programs, and 5) if they are a private voluntary organization, they must have a voluntary board.  Qualifying agencies are urged to apply.  Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties have distributed Emergency Food and Shelter funds previously with over 33 local agencies.  These agencies were responsible for providing over 97,000 meals and 34,000 nights of lodging.

Public or private voluntary agencies interested in applying for Emergency Food and Shelter Program funds must contact Sarai Cabrera at Heart of Florida United Way, located at 1940 Traylor Boulevard, Orlando, FL  32804 or call (407) 835-0900, ext. 175 or email: scabrera {at} hfuw(.)org.  Completed applications are due back to Heart of Florida United Way no later than 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 18, 2011.

Update (4/25): We have good news and bad news. Bad news: We are unable to fill this position in time to hire someone who could start in June. Good news: We have actually been awarded a second position, so we will be hiring for two open VISTA positions by July with and August start date.

Update (4/29): Our two new positions are now posted.

• HSN AmeriCorps VISTA/ Veteran Service Outreach
• HSN AmeriCorps VISTA/ Faith-Based Organization Outreach

Homeless Services Network of Central Florida is currently seeking to fill an AmeriCorps VISTA position targeted towards outreach with veteran service organizations and faith-based organizations in the region. Job duties include, but are not limited to:

• Marketing to the 120 veteran service organizations to educate and engage them in the issue of homelessness
• Developing an outreach campaign to regional congregation leadership that seeks to educate the faith community on the issues of homelessness
• Building HSN’s capacity to engage with the faith community through the development of a “Faith-Based Homeless Services Roundtable”.

Applicants must be able to commit to a year of service, beginning on June 13, 2011, and will have the opportunity to serve for up to three years. Applicants able to commit to three years will be preferred. VISTA positions are full-time, paid a living-stipend, receive an educational award or cash stipend after a year of service, and are eligible for healthcare benefits. For more information about AmeriCorps VISTA, please visit http://www.americorps.gov/about/programs/vista.asp.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience or desire to become involved in the social services field
• Effective written, oral, and listening skills
• Veteran of the U.S. military
• Demonstrated understanding of and sensitivity to faith-based populations

Please submit a cover letter and resume via email (jobs {at} hsncfl(.)org) or fax: 407-893-5299.

Please consider this a personal invitation from the HSN staff to attend a memorial service for our colleague Esi Melendez-Torres, who passed away suddenly on Friday, March 11, 2011. She will be buried in Puerto Rico by her family, so this is the only opportunity for colleagues at Lakeside, HSN, partner agencies and former clients to honor her memory.

When: Thursday, March 24, 2011, 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. (Service), 4:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. (Reception)

Where: First Presbyterian Church of Orlando Chapel, 106 East Church Street, Orlando, FL 32801 (Corner of Magnolia Ave. & Church St.)

For more information, call HSN at (407) 893-0133 x107.

Directions & Parking
To FPCO from I-4 east (from Winter Park, Seminole County, Daytona Beach)

1. Follow I-4 heading WEST.
2. Take the Colonial/50 Exit, turning left off of the exit.
3. Turn Right on North Orange Avenue.
4. Turn Left on Jackson St.
5. First Presbyterian Church is at located between Jackson and Church St. off of Rosalind.

To FPCO from I-4 west (from Dr. Phillips, Sea World, Disney, Tampa)

1. Follow I-4 heading EAST.
2. Take the W. South St exit.
3. Turn Left at Garland St., then Right on Church St.
4. Take another Right on Orange Ave.  Turn Left on Jackson St.
5. First Presbyterian Church is at located between Jackson and Church St. off Rosalind.

Parking Garage: Follow Jackson across Rosalind Ave, where you will see the parking garage at the corner of Jackson and Rosalind. FPCO has reserved parking on the 5th and 6th floor. Please remember to have your parking card stamped at the ceremony. From the elevator, make a right to exit the parking garage. Walk down Jackson Street and take a right on Magnolia St. You will see the Reformation Chapel halfway down on your right.

HSN is deeply saddened to report that Esi Melendez, our Seminole County Shelter + Care case manager, passed away on Friday, March 11, after a surgical procedure. We are still numb from the shock of her sudden death. Her family in Puerto Rico is taking care of funeral arrangements which will be held there. HSN staff and her colleagues at Lakeside Behavioral Healthcare are making plans for a memorial service within the next ten days so that friends, colleagues, and former clients may take time to remember her. We will post information about the memorial service shortly.

Last Thursday and Friday, 39 case managers attended an outstanding SOAR Training. Cindy Schwartz, Florida’s expert on Continuum-wide implementation of SOAR techniques, was an outstanding trainer who inspired participants, especially when she reported 80-90% success rates for first-time applications for chronically homeless individuals with disabilities! HSN will be following up with all participants in two weeks to seek feedback and a reminder that each case manager will be attending a one-day follow-up workshop with Cindy Schwartz on May 19, 2011, to bring at least one active SOAR application for review and discussion. HSN thanks Phil Toal at CFDFL for handling the logistics (and lunch!)  for this invaluable training which was underwritten by HSN’s 2010 DCF Challenge Grant.

HSN is working with the Seminole County Jail to collect data on homelessness, mental illness and substance abuse among inmates of the jail. Volunteers will interview inmates at the jail using a 35-question survey. Interviews will take place in a secure environment that is supervised and controlled by jail staff. Inmates with serious mental health issues will not be part of the survey. Surveys will be completed over a three-day period. Volunteers may sign up for any one day, two days or for all three days, based on their preference.

Event Location: Seminole County Jail, 211 Bush Blvd. Sanford, FL 32773
Event Dates: Wednesday, April 6, 2011 – Friday, April 8, 2011

For more information, including information on time slots and training, please see our Volunteer Registration Form.

Yesterday, HSN filed an application for $999,000 in funding from the Department of Veterans Affairs in collaboration with six agencies who would provide direct services: Center for Drug Free Living, Transition House, Seminole Behavioral Healthcare, Health Care Center for the Homeless, Grand Avenue Economic Development Corporation and the Heart of Florida United Way. HSN received endorsement letters from Orange, Osceola and Seminole Counties, the City of Orlando and the local Director of the VA Medical Center. The grant would fund 12 staff providing case management, VA benefits navigation, employment assistance and targeted street outreach. It includes $270,000 in temporary financial assistance for precariously housed veterans and veterans moving from transitional housing into the community. A decision is expected in June 2011, with grant implementation to begin in July 2011.

You may download an Executive Summary of the SSHV grant application.

The following announcement comes from Esther L. Washington, Executive Director of Tree of Life Ministries in Orlando:

The Tree of Life Ministries of Orlando, Inc.  would like to inform you of two opportunities for Homeless Veterans and/or their families.  The first opportunity, made possible through the City of Orlando’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) is for a low income veteran family to rent a 3 bed-2 bath home.

The second opportunity, made possible by the State of Florida’s Department of Children & Families Access To Recovery program, is for single veterans who have substance abuse and/or co-occurring disorders to receive housing and other supportive services.  Eleven beds available.

For more information, please contact Esther L. Washington, Executive Director, The Tree of Life Ministries, 407-704-6923

The following message comes from Ann Oliva, the Director of the Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs at HUD:

Continuum of Care Leadership, Grantees, and Stakeholders –

In September of last year, HUD held two national conferences to begin the process of familiarizing communities with the policy and performance requirements that will govern the new HEARTH Act programs. In the plenary session, we briefly discussed the connection between the roll-out of the new programs authorized under HEARTH and the appropriation levels HUD may receive in this and the coming years. As you are probably seeing in the news, the budget situation has changed since September – which has an impact on the high-priority items we are working on in SNAPS, including the HEARTH regulations and the 2011 competition.

Fiscal Year 2011 has thus far proven to be a challenging year, and we at HUD know and understand that the uncertainty about the 2011 budget has been a matter of great concern to our grantees and stakeholders. We also know that you were expecting to see, in the near term, the new regulations for the Emergency Solutions Grants, Continuum of Care, and Rural Housing Stability programs. I want to take a moment to update all of you on the budget and how it has affected our plans to implement HEARTH. Let me summarize for you where we stand on these critical items:

FY2011 Budget:

* As is the case in all federal agencies, we are awaiting a final FY2011 appropriation from Congress and have been operating under Continuing Resolutions, the most recent of which expires March 18. Because we do not know the final funding level for FY2011, ESG formula funds (which are usually released along with other formula programs early in the year) have not been released.
* There are several possible scenarios regarding the budget amount for 2011, and HUD is working to ensure that we have viable options for each scenario that minimizes the adverse impact – if there is one – on CoCs and grantees. Developing planning options for whatever scenario becomes reality is our priority at present. This includes how and when we will conduct the 2011 Continuum of Care competition and what elements of HEARTH can be included in the competition.
* Last week’s House-passed appropriation (H.R.1 — a full-year Continuing Resolution) held HUD’s targeted homeless programs steady at the 2010 funding level. At that level, HUD projects that ESG and competitive renewals can be funded. However, the HEARTH Act could not be fully funded. We commit to providing you with as much information as possible once it becomes clear what the funding level will be.

HEARTH Regulations:

* We continue to move the regulations through the clearance process, which includes review and approval by several different offices within HUD and with Office of Management and Budget. Until the new regulations are released and effective, grantees must continue to use the current regulations. This includes the definition of homelessness.
* HUD is in the final stages of clearance for the new definition of homelessness, which will include changes made in response to the public comments that we received last summer. HUD plans to provide training on the new definition and will clearly state when the new definition will be effective.
* As stated above, the 2011 appropriation level will determine, to a large extent, what provisions of HEARTH can be implemented in 2011 and what the process will be for implementation of the regulations. For example, although HEARTH allows for increased administrative dollars for projects and planning funds for CoCs, those provisions can only be implemented if there are sufficient funds to cover those costs. Consequently, only when the 2011 budget is finalized will HUD be able to communicate its plans for this year’s funding.

Although the current situation is challenging for all of us, HUD is focused on providing communities with the resources needed to successfully implement HEARTH within the limits of the final appropriation for FY2011. In the coming months, we will be launching a comprehensive self-assessment tool for CoCs to use to help identify where strategic planning efforts should focus at the community level. We will also be launching other technical assistance tools and resources over the rest of the year.

HUD will continue to keep you informed of our progress and of the impact of the FY2011 budget process. I encourage all CoCs to continue conducting strategic planning conversations, because these conversations will be critical for the successful local implementation of both HEARTH and the Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.

Thank you all, as always, for your hard work on behalf of the homeless men, women, and children we serve.

Ann Marie Oliva

Director, Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

HSN recently learned about YouthBuild, a local, 501c(3) non-profit organization that assists at-risk youth in obtaining their high school diploma while teaching them residential construction. They are currently seeking community projects to allow their students to utilize the skills they have learned. The scope of work the students are capable of doing includes landscaping, flooring, drywall, framing, painting, and minor non-structural repairs. YouthBuild currently has 2 groups of 8 students who are accompanied by a licensed Construction Manager on each project.

Your agency provides the construction materials and YouthBuild provides the labor and the oversight at no cost. If interested, please contact the executive director, Jennifer Taylor, at 407-585-3321.

The following comes from their informational flyer:

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