2024 Housing Stabilization Summit
MCHC Housing Stabilization Summit features a Day in the Life
The two-day event scheduled for November 13 & 14 in The Dalles
Mid Columbia River Gorge (October 23, 2024) - Have you ever wondered what it is like to be houseless? What does it mean to not know where you will be staying every night? How does it affect your mental and physical health? How do you do everyday things like receive mail, store your groceries, get your kids to school, protect your belongings, and, most importantly, protect yourself and your family? How do you access the support needed to find and maintain stable housing?
Community members and leaders will have an opportunity to experience what it may be like to be houseless as part of this year’s Housing Stabilization Summit put on by Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative (MCHC). The two-day event, held November 13 and 14 at the Civic Auditorium in The Dalles, will include training for local partners who support the houseless community and a chance for local and regional leaders to immerse themselves in the Day in the Life experience.
The Summit is a free event open to service providers, community leaders, and community members who care about improving the region’s ability to prevent and end houselessness. It will begin on November 13 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. with the Day in the Life event, with a quarterly Collaborative meeting from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. that is open to all who want to help advance the goals of its strategic plan focused on shelter, services, housing, and advocacy.
“We want to promote poverty awareness,” said Jennifer Pauletto, executive director of Washington Gorge Action Programs (WAGAP), whose team is organizing the Day in the Life experience. “Participants will have the chance to better understand the unique challenges and supports that Gorge community members need to find and sustain housing stability.”
Leaders and community members from all around the Columbia River Gorge region are invited to join in the event. Pauletto says the two-day event will offer opportunities to increase understanding, inspire local change, and transform perspectives. Online registration is open at https://www.mccac.com/summit2024.
Day two of the Housing Summit will focus on workshops, breakout sessions, and panel discussions put together by the Mid-Columbia Community Action Council (MCCAC). There will be a full agenda from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. to learn and network. Frontline staff and others interested in learning more about how local service providers can support community members and each other are encouraged to join.
Roundtable conversations will cover mental and behavioral health, transportation, culturally specific and responsive services, and services and support for older adults.
A panel discussion on civic engagement and legislative advocacy to advance housing stabilization efforts will include guests such as Samantha Wood, a senior field organizer for the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and Heidi Khokar from Rural Development Initiatives (RDI).
Participants will have a choice of breakout sessions depending on their interests. A behavioral health workforce development consortium breakout will be led by Gaby Swisher of Pacific Source, which administers Medicaid in Hood River and Wasco counties. Kai Nichols of Greater Oregon Behavioral Health, Inc. (GOBHI) will talk about CBT Behavioral Activation. There will be a session on trauma-informed services for the LGBTQAI2S+ community, and another session will be on motivational interviewing, an evidence-based approach to behavior change.
The team will round out the event with some fun bonus sessions at the end of the day. These will help participants unwind from the intense topics, get to know one another better, and broaden their network to connect with people who support improving conditions throughout the Gorge for houseless residents.
“Everyone can play a part in the solution to housing instability, and the 2024 Housing Summit will provide tangible ways to engage in positive change,” Pauletto said.
Learn more about the Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative mission and goals and view its updated five-year strategic plan at http://www.midcolumbiahouselesscollaborative.org/. For questions and additional information about the Summit, email Sarah Kellems at skellems@mccac.com.