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Spokesman-Review

Partners in Gonzaga Family Haven aim to support families, help them soar

Gonzaga Family Haven partners

For Jerrica Ford, her husband and their children, Gonzaga Family Haven in northeast Spokane is the answer to seven years of upheaval.

“My husband worked very hard, and he was working well over 40 hours a week, but because of how expensive it is, we just couldn’t find anything,” Ford said.

“We just couldn’t get ahead enough to pay for first, last deposit anywhere. I could maybe find a place for me and the kids, but not a place for me, my husband and the kids. Especially with roommates and staying with family and things like that.”

Finally, they all – together – have a place to call home.

Families, and most importantly, children need a roof over their heads at night before they can think about anything else. Gonzaga Family Haven will provide long-term housing for families stabilizing their lives and give them options for a promising future.

The housing effort we’ve undertaken at Hamilton Street and North Foothills Drive aims to transform families like Ford’s by providing a secure home and services to help them break the cycle of poverty. As partners in the 73-unit project – Catholic Charities, Gonzaga University, Gonzaga Preparatory School and St. Aloysius Parish – we are committed to walking alongside residents to help them reach their dreams, including a brighter future for their children.

Residents will have access to case management, medical resources, substance misuse counseling, health and wellness classes, adult education, employment readiness, food preparation and nutrition courses.

Children may take advantage of Head Start, the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program, an after-school tutor lab, and summer youth programs. Student volunteers from Gonzaga University and Gonzaga Prep will be key in these efforts.

Gonzaga Prep students, faculty and families have been eager to provide service at the Haven, welcoming their newest neighbors by building relationships andcreating community. Prep’s family looks forward to this long-term relationship, and especially the opportunity to share our educational mission in service to the youth and families there.

Gonzaga University believes in the purpose and power of community and is excited to be a part of the Gonzaga Family Haven community. Zags are looking forward to offering many of our successful community engagement programs there. These service-learning opportunities, integral to the Jesuit educational model, are strategic and long-term commitments.

GU’s Center for Community Engagement will offer adult programs developed with Haven residents through an advisory board – part of our partnership pledge to listen and “walk alongside.” GU’s Campus Kitchens plans to offer a monthly community dinner.

St. Aloysius Parish, meanwhile, has provided support with donations – from shower curtains to dining room tables – and volunteers since the inception of the project, frequently responding to this question: What makes a house a home?

Gonzaga Family Haven is a permanent supportive housing community that will be an important help to its families as they work for stability and togetherness. Through this partnership and with the residents, the words of Jesus’ call in the Gospels are put into action, and we are able to be loving neighbors to one another.

Beyond responding to the immediate, critical needs, we believe the Family Haven partnership holds the potential for Spokane to establish a national model of community-driven change.

Our community is facing a housing crisis. We knew this long before the New York Times’ recent story published in this newspaper: “The Next Affordable City is Already Too Expensive.”

We as a community must continue to tackle the housing instability problem in Eastern Washington. Gonzaga Family Haven is an example of that.

With Project-based Section 8 vouchers from the Spokane Housing Authority, residents of Gonzaga Family Haven who are coming from homelessness pay as little as $7 per month in rent for a three-bedroom apartment. It’s estimated that at least 10,000 more affordable housing family units are needed here.

This is Catholic Charities’ 17th tax credit property in Eastern Washington. Tax credits encourage private and corporate investment in affordable housing developments by lowering future tax liability and providing other benefits. This means no donated dollars are spent building the property; rather, donations and grants go toward the on-site services.

Catholic Charities is in the process of building additional affordable housing complexes, including another in Spokane and one each in Colville and Pasco.

We invite community support for this and similar efforts that play a vital role in assisting families who want to improve their lives. Just like Bloomsday, Hoopfest and so many community endeavors Spokane is known for, we can do this right – and do it together.

May the blessings of Easter strengthen our resolve to be in service to others.Contributors to this column include Rob McCann, CEO of Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington; Thayne McCulloh, president of Gonzaga University; Michael Dougherty, president of Gonzaga Preparatory School; and the Rev. Tom Lamanna, S.J., pastor of St. Aloysius Parish.

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