MILWAUKEE — Joined by city and community leaders, the United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County began Homelessness Awareness Week, an initiative dedicated to increasing public education on the current state of housing insecurity across our area.
“We treat homelessness like it's inevitable, like it's something that you have to live with, and it just is not. The cure for homelessness is housing,” said Amy Lindner, President & CEO, United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County.
To that effort, leaders say the work of the Milwaukee Continuum of Care, a network of more than 100 organizations, including social workers and healthcare providers, is making huge strides in getting nearly 12,000 area residents off the street for good.
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“There's a lot of conversations about what happens after someone's homelessness ends, permanent housing and shelter. But, if you really want to have a good system, we had to focus a little more on prevention,” said James Mathy, Housing Administrator at Milwaukee County.
United Way has set a goal of ending family homelessness in the region by the end of 2023. President and CEO Amy Lindner says the organization is well on its way to reach it.
“We know this is a solvable issue. We also know what it does for a family and their long-term stability and health when they can stay safely housed anywhere in our community,” said Lindner.
United Way says more than 1,000 kits full of basic need items are heading to families across the region all week long and they encourage anyone who can donate to do so.
If you would like more information on how you can help, head to their website.
