Collaboration Efforts Raise Awareness

The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH) co-sponsored its Fourth Annual Training Conference, Homelessness in the New World Order at the University Club, 3813 Euclid Ave in Cleveland from 8:30 to 5:00 PM Friday, March 21, 1997. Together with the Cuyahoga County Office of Homeless Services and VA Domiciliary, NEOCH hosted workshops that focused on welfare reform, housing issues and advocacy efforts.

In addition to housing and homelessness and welfare advocacy efforts, experts from a broad spectrum of organizations conducted workshops on legal assistance, media, rights of homeless children, current homeless services, NIMBYism (Not in My Back Yard), homeless accounts of life on the streets, and other related topics.

The American Red Cross, the City of Cleveland, Legal Aid, Merrick House, County Department of Human Services, Cleveland Tenants Organization, the Free Times, the Metropolitan Strategy Group, Cleveland Health Care for the Homeless, and other service providers facilitated discussions that worked toward finding solutions to the many issues that face Cleveland’s homeless population.

Keynote speaker, Councilman Frank Jackson of the City of Cleveland Ward 5, spoke honestly and frankly about the growing housing crisis and opportunities for advocacy around housing. All of the panelists and workshop presenters were well informed, open to new suggestions from participating service providers, and realistic about the situations facing Cleveland’s homeless community.

NEOCH program director, Brian Davis said, “this conference was one of our best so far. We at NEOCH look forward to building stronger partnerships with the presenters and participants in the future.”

Other participants commented that thoroughly enjoyed and learned a great deal from the conference. One participant said, “Everything was helpful.”

Copyright NEOCH and the Homeless Grapevine published March 1997-April 1997 Issue 20