The Los Angeles Post

Barger, National Health Foundation and Upward Housing Launch Glendale Healing Housing Program

by ·

Click here to go to the full article. Please allow images from the 5th District to improve your reading experience.

Today, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, the National Health Foundation (NHF), Upward Housing, and L.A. County’s Department of Health Services celebrated the opening of a new recuperative care housing site for people experiencing homelessness.

The NHF Glendale Housing for Health Program features a fully renovated, modern 36-bed full-service facility. Individuals discharged from hospitals with no place to go will convalesce in this supportive environment while they are connected to long-term, stable housing.

“Today, we’re celebrating an important accomplishment in the fight against homelessness,” said Supervisor Kathryn Barger. “Staffed around the clock by nurses and dedicated social workers, this program offers a place to heal for those who otherwise would’ve become homeless. Solving the homelessness crisis takes investment in program models that provide both housing solutions and support services, like this one. This model works.”

The program showcases how various partner agencies can successfully collaborate to develop meaningful solutions in the fight against homelessness.

“My team and I are so proud to work with dedicated partners. The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and Upward Housing partnerships are a cornerstone of our values and how we serve our communities to address localized barriers to health” said Kelly Bruno, NHF’s Chief Executive Officer.

Upward Housing, a local organization that sources, identifies, and attains properties for purpose-driven use, purchased, rehabilitated, and prepared the physical grounds.

The event was attended by prominent partners who supported the program’s development, including Glendale Mayor Paula Devine and Glendale Councilmembers Ara Najarian and Vrej Agajanian.

The program has already begun to provide services. As Michelle, one of the individuals served by NHF’s program, put it, “The program has made a huge difference in my life, by giving me a clean secure, safe place to live. Staff here have helped in matching me with permanent housing so I may be independent on my own again.”