Help Joshlyn With Her Housing Transition

Houseless Organizing Coalition is raising funds so that Joshlyn can move into her new first-floor apartment after waiting years to have her disability accommodated!

Joshlyn is a tireless organizer with the houseless in Houston, TX and an invaluable asset to Housesless Organizing Coalition as our housing coordinator. She is also disabled and needs back surgery. However, Joshlyn currently lives in a 2nd-floor apartment, making a recovery from surgery nearly impossible. After fighting for over a year to secure ground-level housing, Joshlyn is finally moving into her new first-floor apartment. Please help us prep Joshlyn for this life-changing move by donating.

You may have read about Joshlyn recently in an article published by The New Republic titled "Houston Is Hailed as a National Success for Fighting Homelessness. But the Reality Isn’t Quite as Rosy." https://newrepublic.com/article/165368/houston-homeless-population-reality-isnt-rosy

Here are some excerpts from the article that explain what Joshlyn is currently facing:

"Joshlyn has spent many mornings [at The Beacon] advocating for unhoused people lost in the housing application process, not as an official caseworker—in fact, she was homeless herself until 2016, when the Beacon connected her with housing. But when service providers go AWOL, she’s often the one wrangling the documents necessary to land an apartment.

...

The problems people face also don’t necessarily end when they technically have a place to sleep. Due to Joshlyn’s physical disability, her cardiologist advised her to avoid strenuous activity and move to a ground-level apartment. She’s asked to be moved three times over the course of three years, referring her case manager to her doctor’s note. She’s been placed in a second-story apartment each time. Last year, she signed a lease expecting the first-story apartment, but when she arrived on site the home was already taken.

HUD’s reasonable accommodations allow for tenants to transfer to a ground-floor unit but not for landlords to make a ground-floor unit available. Still, in Joshlyn’s case, her property manager gave away her reserved first-floor apartment before she could move in. 'A lot of people are grateful,' Joshlyn said, 'but a lot settle because we don’t have choices.'"

-----

Donations will cover:

In solidarity,

Houseless Organizing Coalition (HOC)