Year End Giving
Jeremy and Lauren's Story of Hope & a Message from our CEO, Donna Moulton
Dear Friends,
As we step into the new year together, all of us at Housing Hope and HopeWorks extend our warmest holiday wishes and heartfelt thanks for your invaluable support in 2023.
Your donation directly and positively changes lives.
In 2023, your generosity provided stable housing and other services to 2,155 community members, emergency shelter for 66 families, and early childhood development services to 171 children. Additionally, you provided 108 adults with the training they need to secure jobs that contribute to our economy.
At Housing Hope and HopeWorks, we embrace and nurture the unique experiences among those we serve, bolstering individuals to achieve self-sufficiency with your generous support. Jeremy and Lauren are two people who participated in transformative programs through our services.
Jeremy and Lauren have worked hard to get where they are today: in recovery, united with their children, housed, employed, and full of hope and promise for what lies ahead. Their story started in what most people would think is an unusual place: a drug court. Lauren knew the minute she saw Jeremy that there was a connection. They were both working on overcoming their past with addiction and the law. As they connected, they learned that they both shared the commitment to create a brighter and healthier future for themselves and their kids than what they had growing up.
Jeremy, now employed full-time at Housing Hope in the Facilities Division, expressed his regret in “burning all his bridges” earlier in his life.
“I was kidnapped at age fourteen and exposed to the gang lifestyle. I never thought I would get out of it. I was in and out of corrections facilities, I struggled with addiction for over eleven years, and in the process, I lost the trust of anyone who cared about me. I was terrified that my kids would become a statistic, so I changed my life around to help my kids.
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My grandparents supported us during this time, and I am very grateful. Several others helped me a lot: when I got out of prison in New Mexico and was extradited to Washington State, Nick Watts picked me up at the bus station and took me in. His kindness and grace in providing me with housing, clothes, and food helped me bridge into a different mindset for living clean and sober. At this time, I embraced the concept of manifesting positivity for my future.”
Lauren is six years sober and reminds herself daily what it takes to stay that way. “I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. When I was in treatment, I took all the advice that was given to me, and I did the work. It was not easy, but my friendships made a difference for me during this time. True friendship is so important to staying clean and healthy. Jeremy supports me and encourages me to stay engaged with the good people in my life. We are there for each other. I learned that I am not weird because I am in recovery. I never want to feel hopeless again; I never want to feel like wasted space.”
Jeremy has three girls from a previous marriage, and together, he and Lauren have a four-year-old boy. They plan to get married, and Lauren is working on adopting the girls. “Nothing is more important than our kids; they need our love and attention, and the girls need a lot of support processing the addictive behaviors they were exposed to. I am excited to be their mother. My mother is my best friend and has always been there for me.”
Housing Hope Family Support Coaches Joan, Siobhan, and Maribeth helped Jeremy and Lauren find counseling services for the kids and stable housing. Jeremy shared that “the long-term goal is that the kids never experience an unhealthy living environment again. The staff helped us get the kids tested and put them into (therapy) programs to help them heal. They never looked down on me. I want to encourage others to utilize the services here for you. I have to be okay with who I am and love and embrace myself, and I do.”
When you see Jeremy working at Housing Hope at one of our housing sites, you can’t help but notice how much the neighborhood kids engage with him. His respect and love for them and the effort he takes to learn their names is powerful. You may also notice how often the Dallas Cowboys football team comes up or see him wearing their swag. “My story wouldn’t be my story if I didn’t mention that besides being a proud father, I am a Dallas Cowboys fan! It’s probably a little corny, but I wouldn’t be me without it, lol!”
Jeremy and Lauren epitomize the hard work of self-reflection that leads to the healing and forgiveness needed to make personal change. Our community is a better place for everyone when we prioritize housing and supportive services for families in need. Thank you for making that happen with your support.
In 2023, we had a 40% increase in our insurance rates, additional property costs due to fentanyl damage, additional security costs to protect our properties, and declining rental income as families have struggled to recover from COVID-19.
Your support is needed to continue our essential work and the momentum we have sustained for the last 36 years. Click here to make a year-end donation.
Your meaningful gift empowers Snohomish County residents in need to break the cycle of homelessness. Thank you for your continued work addressing the housing shortage in our region.
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Best Regards,
Donna Moulton
CEO of Housing Hope & HopeWorks
Angela's Story of Hope & a Message from our CEO, Donna Moulton
Happy Holidays!
This is my first holiday season with Housing Hope and HopeWorks. I have been inspired and impressed with the many accomplishments of this unique 36-year-old organization. For more than three decades, Housing Hope has provided safe and affordable housing with the addition of support services including childcare, jobs, and life skills training to individuals and families in Snohomish County and Camano Island. We are thankful you’ve been with us through the years, and that you recognize our organization is more critical to the health of our county than ever.
You have given us the gifts of hope and strength to stay nimble and relevant in this sometimes difficult but always rewarding work. I am thankful for the opportunity to amplify our mission as we focus on one of the most pressing issues in our community: the shortage of accessible and affordable housing.
The path to becoming unhoused and the journey to exit poverty vary with each community member we serve. We are dedicated to supporting the unique needs of each family that connects with Housing Hope and HopeWorks with holistic supports. We do this through the development of rapport and trust with each family as barriers are identified, actions to achieve goals are created, and celebrations of wins are achieved as households increase their own stability and self-sufficiency.
Our featured success story is about Angela, who worked with our team to create her path with her son. Last year, at about this time, Angela wrote us a holiday card to let us know how she was doing and to thank us for the support and guidance she received. We thought you would want to know how she’s doing, too.
Introducing Angela
When Angela became homeless, she did not tell anybody. She lived out of her car between “visits” with friends and family. During a doctor’s visit, her physician asked how she was getting by, as she had an 8-month-old baby with a severe heart condition. During that appointment, she learned how to get on a waitlist for housing with Housing Hope. After several more weeks of juggling, things fell into place, and Angela was able to get housed in north Snohomish County. Housing Hope helped her with furnishings, clothes, and the health care her son needed.
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“Cathy, my Family Support Coach, helped me with all of it.”
“She taught me about the medical benefits that were available to me and how insurance would cover monthly trips to Children’s Hospital in Seattle that my son needed, including several major heart procedures and surgeries. I met weekly with Cathy and learned the fundamentals of budgeting and house cleaning. I took the free classes offered to me on budgeting, nutrition, parenting, and other topics. I was able to get myself organized, and I got back into school, where eventually I finished my BA degree in business through Central Washington University.
As things improved for me financially, I was able to graduate to a larger Housing Hope unit in Marysville. This opened my eyes to a variety of people struggling just like me. Some were motivated but others did not take the program seriously and looked for ways around rules… resisting making changes in their lives. I connected with several families who were motivated to make changes, and I still stay in touch with them today.
By the time I finished the programs, I was ready to move on. I ended up moving with my son to Nevada to live near my cousins. I was able to start a career with a property management company, where I have been working and advancing for almost 11 years. I am totally off public assistance and am working on purchasing our first home.
My son has been the biggest blessing in my life. He is now 16 and is the most generous, thoughtful, amazing child you have ever met. The State of Nevada has an excellent Heart Center where he was able to get life-changing surgery that allows him to self-monitor his activity rate. He now plays soccer – something he has always wanted to do.
The move also helped me make changes to improve my health, and I now have fitness and nutrition goals that I work on, including doing the training program for a half-marathon. I still use the nutrition and budgeting classes I took at Housing Hope. I know how to make $40 stretch over a month, and I use a monthly budgeting sheet to track our expenses and purchase food that is good for us.
I am very thankful to Housing Hope for the life I have today. Cathy really helped me, and it was important for me this year to reach back and thank her and the agency. My advice for families in the Housing Hope program is to do the work, take the classes, follow the rules, and change your life for the better.”
- Angela
Angela’s Story is one of the many success stories in our program. We are thankful to her for reminding us of what is possible when you offer people a chance for a different life. Your support is also part of Angela’s success.
At this time of year, when we reflect on 2023, Angela encourages us to remember that investing in each other has value and purpose, and indeed, makes for stronger, more inclusive communities.
Housing Hope and HopeWorks have faced some challenges in 2023. Our revenue streams have been impacted by the fentanyl epidemic resulting in costly damage to our units as well as a decline in rental revenues and increased insurance costs. Your year-end donation is even more significant to us as we work to counter these difficulties. The capital monies for our South Snohomish County housing communities, Madrona Highlands, and Scriber Place are complete and in place so we can proceed with these projects with confidence.
Thank you for considering a meaningful gift to continue the momentum of the past 36 years. We are inspired by stories like Angela’s, and we know our work is crucial to the future of the many community members we serve.
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Click here to make your secure end-of-year donation.
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With Gratitude Always,
Donna Moulton
CEO of Housing Hope & HopeWorks