Just before Christmas last year, Jennifer Thomas and her partner split up. With no money and neither family nor friends to turn to, she suddenly was homeless.
Just like that.
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But Thomas didn’t wind up on the street. She was taken in by a Kirkland couple and their three daughters as part of the Host Home program run by Catholic Community Services in Bellevue.
The 8-year-old program is a unique effort to deal with the region’s growing number of homeless. It asks people to open their doors and accept complete strangers into their homes and lives.
The total number of homeless on the East Side isn’t known, said Jan Dickerman, housing director for the Multi Service Centers of North and East King County. But as an example, she said that in 1996 her organization received about 1,200 requests for emergency shelter and was able to accommodate only 470 of them.
“Most of America is a paycheck or two away from being in the situation these people are in,” said Kellie Adams, who with husband, Terry, and their daughters have been part of the Host Home program for five years. Jennifer Thomas is the most recent addition to their family.
“We always think we can control (things like food and shelter), but we can’t,” Adams said. “One mishap in life . . . We could be in the street someday.”
The program provides short-term shelter to people–usually single women or mothers with children–for anywhere from two weeks to three months, depending on how long it takes them to get their lives on track again.
And while the program is run by Catholic Community Services, that is its only religious connection. Funding for its $62,000 annual budget comes from the cities of Bellevue, Kirkland and Redmond, and the Washington State Emergency Shelter Assistance Program.
Since the program started, 45 homeowners, primarily East Siders, have helped to keep 205 people off the street. Now only nine homeowners are taking part.
That number fluctuates, said program director Marlo Rosenberg, because as new hosts are added, others drop out because their own situation has changed, they discover that the program just isn’t right for them or they simply need a break.
“It adds some strain,” said Steve Junker of Redmond, who is taking a break from the program now. “It’s one thing to share your house with somebody you have a relationship with. It’s another thing when you’re providing a home to a total stranger.”
After Thomas’ relationship ended, she was put in touch with Rosenberg, who screened her, then called the Adams family.
As they have done each time Rosenberg has called, the family sat down and discussed the situation–Thomas’ and their own.
“The family makes a decision as a group,” said Adams. “There are times in our lives when we don’t think we can handle having a person in our house, so we have a very frank discussion with the girls.”
Part of that discussion involves which of the girls, a 10-year-old and 7-year-old twins, will give up her room for the guest. It’s often the case that more than one of them wants to double up with a sister.
It was the Adams’ oldest daughter, Dianna, who got them involved in the program.
“It was around the holidays, and Dianna was watching a TV show about a homeless situation, and she turned around and said `What are we doing to help the homeless?’ ” Kellie Adams said.