On Monday, November 14, 2022, the Baltimore Banner published an opinion piece by Janice Miller and Anthony Williams - chairs of Baltimore's Continnum of Care (CoC).

The CoC is a group of elected volunteers - including people with lived experience of homelessness, service providers, system leaders, and citizens of Baltimore - who set the strategy for engaging and serving those experiencing homelessness, leveraging $25 million in Federal CoC funding to make the greatest impact, as mandated by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Mayor's Office of Homeless Services (MOHS) is proud to partner with the CoC as it's collaborative application and unified funding agency to apply for, receive, and distribute Federal funding for CoC projects.

The opinion piece penned by the CoC chairs emphasizes the need for a collective effort to end homelessness and the City's action plan that focuses on five evidence-based strategies for systemic change:

1. Increase safe, healthy and affordable housing located throughout the city. Pair housing with services to help people stay housed.
2. Divert people from becoming homeless through a properly-resourced system that identifies and addresses a personal housing crisis quickly.
3. Provide safe and trauma-informed interim housing when homelessness occurs.
4. Increase access to employment and income able to support citizens in their housing and basic living needs.
5. Address the inequity created through redlining and disinvestment in communities of primarily Black and brown citizens.

The full article is available on the Baltimore Banner's website.

To learn more about the CoC, become a member, or volunteer, please visit their website - The Journey Home.