God makes homes for the homeless...
(Psalms 68:6)
(Psalms 68:6)
You Are Home is a one-stop resource for mothers in the San Francisco Bay Area who are struggling to maintain adequate & affordable housing for their families. If you are being evicted, or your family is bunked up with another family, or you're living in hotels, or you're searching for a shelter, you are dealing with what is called, "hidden homelessness." You aren't on the street, but you don't have stable housing either. If this is your situation (or you're afraid it will become your situation), I have put together a list of tips & resources for you.
I was homeless with my kids in the Bay Area from October 2016 until August 2017, & then again from August 2019 until July 2021 (yes, that includes the entire pandemic). During that time, we were evicted, we lived in hotels, we bunked up with friends & we lived in shelters. One thing I learned is that help is available, but there is no one single place to find assistance. Researching all your options can feel like a full-time job. The purpose of this project is to put everything in one place, so that the process of figuring things out doesn't feel so overwhelming. Consider this a welcome packet for a place you never wanted to be. Please find comfort in knowing that you aren't alone. There are thousands of other families dealing with the same struggle.
The name You Are Home comes from a realization I had while homeless, which was that in my kids' eyes, anywhere was home as long as I was there. To them, I am home. And the same goes for you.
You are home.
I was homeless with my kids in the Bay Area from October 2016 until August 2017, & then again from August 2019 until July 2021 (yes, that includes the entire pandemic). During that time, we were evicted, we lived in hotels, we bunked up with friends & we lived in shelters. One thing I learned is that help is available, but there is no one single place to find assistance. Researching all your options can feel like a full-time job. The purpose of this project is to put everything in one place, so that the process of figuring things out doesn't feel so overwhelming. Consider this a welcome packet for a place you never wanted to be. Please find comfort in knowing that you aren't alone. There are thousands of other families dealing with the same struggle.
The name You Are Home comes from a realization I had while homeless, which was that in my kids' eyes, anywhere was home as long as I was there. To them, I am home. And the same goes for you.
You are home.
How this website works:
Click around below for tips & resources in the 4 areas of hidden homelessness:
Great blessings & luck to you; I hope you find what you need!
Click around below for tips & resources in the 4 areas of hidden homelessness:
- eviction,
- bunked up/ couch surfing with others,
- living in shelters &
- living in hotels.
Great blessings & luck to you; I hope you find what you need!
Dealing With Eviction
includes advice, resources to help with back rent, links for legal aid, tips on handling the landlord, etc.
Couch Surfing / Doubling Up
advice & resources + a detailed explanation of your legal rights (even if you aren't a legal tenant)
Living in Shelters
links, hot-lines, help-lines & step-by-step processes & tips finding a shelter & social services
in San Francisco and/or Alameda County
in San Francisco and/or Alameda County
Finding & Living in Hotels
advice, tips, recommendations & legal rights
General Resources
links, hot-lines, phone numbers & tips for free food, clothes, entertainment & anything else you might need
Domestic Discord
resources & tips for dealing with trouble at home
How You Can Help:
The tips, resources & legal rights explained on this website is vital info for mothers in the midst of surviving abuse, poverty & housing instability. But simply listing these details online isn't enough; the information needs to be disseminated widely - in libraries, community centers & other public spaces- so that this urgent assistance can find its way into the hands of those who need it the most.
It costs $7 to create a single booklet that is the print version of the 'You Are Home' webpages.
Each booklet will be left in a public space, where a woman who needs it can claim it.
Our initial goal is to place three booklets apiece in each of the 16 Oakland Libraries,
& in each of the 27 San Francisco Libraries.
That's 129 booklets to get started.
How many booklets would you like to sponsor?
It costs $7 to create a single booklet that is the print version of the 'You Are Home' webpages.
Each booklet will be left in a public space, where a woman who needs it can claim it.
Our initial goal is to place three booklets apiece in each of the 16 Oakland Libraries,
& in each of the 27 San Francisco Libraries.
That's 129 booklets to get started.
How many booklets would you like to sponsor?