Housing First

Every Woman’s Place’s Housing First initiative sustains 45 HUD-funded Permanent Supportive Housing units across Muskegon County for chronically homeless individuals with disabilities—many fleeing domestic violence. The program combines safe, affordable housing with intensive case management: monthly home visits, goal planning, and hands-on help with employment, benefits, transportation, IDs, and landlord relations so participants can obtain and keep housing. EWP measures success by stable placements, with a target of 100% of clients transitioning into safe, affordable housing.

Why it supports United Way’s mission:
The program directly advances United Way of the Lakeshore’s Economic Mobility/Housing priorities by increasing access to permanent, affordable homes for ALICE households and removing barriers that keep people in homelessness. United Way funding provides the critical local match that unlocks HUD dollars and underwrites the case management that prevents returns to homelessness—stabilizing families, improving financial independence, and helping our community move closer to the goal of more working families meeting their basic needs.