Understanding how being unhoused affects every part of a person’s wellbeing explains why our comprehensive approach works at Nest. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs offers a strong framework for understanding what we do at Nest and why it matters.

The Foundation: Physical Survival

Maslow’s Hierarchy begins at the bottom with our most basic needs: food, water, rest, and shelter.

“This is what our shelter does. This is the basic things that we do, we open our doors, and we invite people in, we get them into a situation where they’re comfortable and relaxed and out of the elements and safe.” Executive Director Harrison Holtkamp said on Nest’s WIMS show this morning.

In 2025, Nest did this by providing:

• Nearly 15,000 bed nights across both locations in Michigan City and La Porte.
• Served more than 30,000 meals.
• Safe, warm shelter 365 days a year in Michigan City and seasonally in La Porte.

These aren’t just big numbers; they’re nights when someone didn’t freeze, meals that provided energy to look for work, and rest that allowed bodies and minds to begin healing. This is Nest meeting the needs of our neighbors in need within our community.

Building Safety and Stability

Once physical needs are met, people need safety, not just physical protection, but stability and predictability.

“Nest (in Michigan City) is always going to be there. So, our doors will open for them, and we are here to help them. And it is very stable, and it is very safe.” Harrison Holtkamp shared on-air this morning, explaining the needs of our unhoused community.

For someone sleeping in their car or bouncing between couches, knowing where you’ll sleep tonight and tomorrow night provides the foundation needed to start rebuilding. It is almost impossible to focus on finding a job when one doesn’t know where they’ll be safe tonight.

This year at Nest, we saw families with children who had nowhere else to turn, providing 125 bed nights for children alone. The need for stable, predictable safety has never been greater.

Connection: Love and Belonging

The middle level of Maslow’s Hierarchy addresses our human need for relationships, community, and connection.

“This involves relationships and community and connections. And this is where our staff and our volunteers come into play because we’re showing these individuals who are suffering that we are there for them, that people do care about them, and that they are a part of our community, and we want to see them do the best for themselves as possible.” Holtkamp spoke about the importance of belonging on the air this morning.

This is where our volunteers make a profound difference. Our 5,500 volunteer hours in 2025 were about human connection. Every conversation, every meal served together, every moment of genuine care sends the message: You matter. You belong. Your community hasn’t forgotten you; you are a member of our community.

Restoring Dignity and Self-Worth

The fourth level addresses esteem, dignity, confidence, and a sense of self-worth.

“So as our volunteers and staff in the shelter are guiding these guests, they start to gain more confidence in themselves. They start to realize they do have dignity… because of what we offer and what they’re shown… And they do get a sense of self-worth.” Holtkamp said about the impact of volunteers at Nest.

Consider what it takes to get a job when you’re unhoused. You need clean clothes. You need a shower. You need boots that aren’t falling apart. You need to show up to an interview feeling like someone who deserves employment.

Through partnerships with township trustees and case managers, Nest helps provide these basics that restore dignity: laundry facilities, showers, and clothing for job interviews. These aren’t luxuries, they’re essential stepping stones back to self-sufficiency.

The Ultimate Goal: Self-Actualization

The top of Maslow’s Hierarchy represents reaching one’s full potential, becoming the person you’re meant to be.

“The last step is the step that we’re all hoping for, and that’s self-actualization, which is reaching one’s full potential. So basically, getting a job and getting out on their own, returning to the community, and such. This is what Nest does.” Holtkamp said.

In 2025, 76 individuals found housing through Nest and our community partnerships. Seventy-six people transitioned from survival mode to stability. Seventy-six neighbors rejoined the community as housed, employed, contributing members.

“This is the basics of where we start with our guests. And we’re really proud to be doing this.” Holtkamp added.

The Perfect Storm We’re Facing

The need has never been greater. Nationally, homelessness increased 18% in 2025. At Nest, we’ve seen nearly 60% growth in services within our community since 2022.

“We knew the numbers. We’ve seen, on a nightly basis, that those numbers continue to grow,” Holtkamp said when discussing the rise of need within the community. “We actually saw higher numbers in May and June than we saw in October and December, which is the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

This pattern changed in ways we’ve never seen before. Historically, shelter use peaks in winter and drops in summer. Not in 2025.

We averaged 36 people per night year-round in Michigan City. In La Porte, we’re seeing 16-20 people nightly at a shelter that’s been open for just 6 months.

Why the Surge? The Housing Crisis

The elephant in the room is affordable housing, or rather, the lack of it.

We’re seeing elderly residents on fixed incomes facing impossible choices. When utilities jump from $200 to $400 in a one-bedroom apartment, that $200 difference is devastating for someone on a fixed income.

We’re seeing apartment complexes that were income-based housing abandon those programs. We’re seeing landlords requiring first month’s rent, last month’s rent, and a deposit, nearly $4,000 to move in.

“There is a large, large handful of individuals who are saving their dollars, who are ready to start getting back into an apartment. They just can’t find an available place. Rents are outrageous.” Holtkamp commented on the community’s need on-air this morning.

Meanwhile, housing success rates have dropped. In previous years, we saw 33-35% of guests find housing. In 2025, we’re closer to 17% due in significant part to a lack of affordable housing.

A True Team Effort

Nest doesn’t work alone. Our partnerships with township trustees, case managers, probation officers, other shelters, and community organizations create a safety net that catches people before they fall too far and helps them climb back up.

“It’s a team effort. It’s not just one organization or one person. It’s a whole team effort. And if we don’t all continue to work as a team, we’re not going to get anything done.” Holtkamp said about the importance of community support.

How You Can Help Meet These Needs

Every level of Maslow’s Hierarchy requires resources, people, and support.

Volunteer Your Time

“Your time matters to us, and you really do help the community out because our people need to be shown that they are loved,” Holtkamp said in talking about the role of volunteers within the community. “You may think that coming to volunteer, I have to be working. I’m here for two hours or whatever. Listen, listening to individuals really helps those individuals.”

You don’t need special skills or training. You need to care. Whether you prepare meals, help with maintenance, work in the office, or simply spend time talking with guests, you’re providing that essential third level of the hierarchy: belonging and connection.

Make a Financial Donation

If you are not able to give of your time, consider donating to Nest. Every dollar helps us provide the foundation of the hierarchy: food, shelter, warmth, and safety.

Corporate Sponsorship

We’re seeking business partners who understand that addressing our unhoused population strengthens our entire community. Your sponsorship can help us expand services, improve facilities, and serve more neighbors in need.

Act Today

• Sign up here to volunteer.
• Make a one-time or recurring donation.
• Explore corporate sponsorship opportunities here.

Join us in this life-changing work. Because everyone deserves the opportunity to climb Maslow’s Hierarchy, starting with a safe, warm place to sleep tonight.

The post Meeting Basic Human Needs: How Nest Strives to Address Every Level of Maslow’s Hierarchy appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

David is 67 years old.

At an age when most of his peers are enjoying retirement, David is his son’s full-time caregiver.

Ben is 25. Several years ago, he incurred a traumatic brain injury. The specifics of how it happened matter less than what followed: Ben’s life changed entirely. He needs structure, routine, and predictability. When his environment shifts unexpectedly, it can take hours, sometimes days, for him to regain his sense of peace.

David and Ben lived in an apartment for three years, then the complex was sold to a property management company. The apartment wasn’t fancy, a modest two-bedroom that suited Ben’s needs perfectly. Ben knew every corner; he’d grown up there and felt safe there. He had his routines, morning coffee at the kitchen table by the window. Afternoon walks around the same block. Evening TV in his room, door cracked open so David could hear if he needed anything.

Then the rent increases started shortly after the sale of the complex went through.

First, $50 a month. Then $75. Then $120.

David’s income is fixed: his Social Security check and Ben’s disability payments. Together, they bring in $2,100 a month.

The rent climbed to $1,400.

Then $1,550.

Then $2,000.

David did the math over and over, as if the numbers would change. They never did.

After the first rent increase, the remaining balance was incredibly tight. After rent, they had $450 left for everything else: utilities, food, Ben’s medications, transportation, clothing, and David’s own medical expenses as his mobility declined.

It wasn’t enough, and the situation escalated quickly.

David tried to go back to work. At 67, with knees that barely supported him and a back that screamed every time he bent down, he took a part-time job stocking shelves at a grocery store. He lasted six weeks before his body gave out.

This is the reality for thousands of aging caregivers: disability payments don’t even begin to cover the actual cost of living, let alone caring for a dependent.  Affordable housing has become a fantasy for so many in our community.

Three months ago, David and Ben were evicted.

The Motel

Left with no other options, they moved into a motel. $275 a week, paid every Friday. No lease. No deposit.

The motel was chaos.

Doors slamming at all hours. Shouting from neighboring rooms. Hallways that smelled like smoke and stale food. Sirens outside every night.

For Ben, it was sensory overload.

He couldn’t establish routines because nothing was predictable; life changed daily at the motel. He couldn’t settle because the environment was constantly shifting. He stopped sleeping through the night. He became more anxious, more withdrawn.

David watched his son unravel and felt powerless. He kept the room as consistent as possible, but it wasn’t enough. Same breakfast every morning. Same walking route around the parking lot. But you can’t create stability in a place designed for temporary living.

After six weeks, David knew: this wasn’t sustainable.

Ben was getting worse, not better. And David was draining what little savings he had at $275 per week, $1,100 per month for a single room, which was making his son’s condition deteriorate.

The Shelter

When David and Ben arrived at our shelter, we knew immediately: this wasn’t going to be easy.

Emergency shelters are not designed for people like Ben. They’re loud. Crowded. Unpredictable.

Every night, guests are assigned mats based on availability. Tonight, David and Ben might be near the back corner. Tomorrow, they could be in the middle of the room. The next night, near the door.

For most guests, this is an inconvenience. For Ben, it’s disorienting. Sometimes distressing. He needs to know where he’ll be. He needs the same spot, the same spatial relationship to his surroundings. When that changes nightly, he struggles to process it.

Some nights, Ben can’t settle. He paces. He gets agitated. David stays up with him, soothing him, exhausted himself, but unable to rest until his son does.

What We’re Building Toward

Here’s what David and Ben are doing while they’re with us:

Saving money.

By not paying $1,100 a month to the motel, David is finally able to save. Every dollar that isn’t going to rent is going into an account. In three months, he’ll have enough for a security deposit on an apartment.

Connecting to services.

Our case manager is working with David to navigate the complex web of supports for caregivers and adults with disabilities:

• Long-term care coordination
• Medicaid waivers for home and community-based services
• Respite care so David can have breaks.
• Accessible housing programs
• Benefits counseling to maximize what they’re eligible for

David didn’t even know most of these services existed. He’s been doing this alone for years, burning himself out, with no roadmap.

Building a plan for stability.

David is 67. His mobility is declining. He won’t be able to care for Ben alone forever.

We’re helping him think long-term: What happens in five years? Ten? What supports does Ben need to live as independently as possible? What does sustainable caregiving look like?

For the first time in months, David has hope because he has a pathway. A plan. People in his corner who understand that disability payments don’t cover reality, that aging caregivers need support, and that families like his deserve more than crisis management.

The Numbers That Don’t Add Up

David and Ben’s story represents a systemic crisis.

Families with children are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population in the United States, accounting for 40-50% of people experiencing homelessness. However, hidden within that statistic are families like David and Ben’s: adult children with disabilities and their aging caregivers, pushed out by costs they can’t control.

The average monthly Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) payment in 2024 was $1,537. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) averaged $698 per month. For many recipients, these payments represent their only income.

In not a single U.S. state can someone earning minimum wage or relying on disability payments afford a modest two-bedroom apartment. The math is simple, and it’s devastating:

Ben’s disability payments: $698/month David’s Social Security: $1,402/month Total monthly income: $2,100

Rent for a two-bedroom ground-floor apartment in our area: $1,400-$1,700/month.

That leaves $400-$700 for:

• Utilities
• Food
• Medications
• Medical copays
• Transportation
• Clothing
• Any emergency

There’s no room for error. One bill rises. One medical crisis. One rent increase.

And families like David and Ben’s fall through the cracks.

What Makes It More Difficult

Caring for an adult child with a disability is expensive in ways disability payments don’t account for:

• Special dietary needs
• Adaptive equipment
• Transportation to medical appointments and therapies
• Higher utility costs (medical equipment, temperature control needs)
• Professional care support
• Specialized clothing or supplies

And then there’s the invisible cost: David can’t work full-time because Ben needs him. At 67, with his own declining health, he must carefully balance his son’s needs and their financial survival.

Aging caregivers of adult children with disabilities are among the most vulnerable, most isolated, and most underserved populations experiencing homelessness.

Why We Exist

In 2024, 4% of our shelter guests were children. But that number doesn’t capture families like David and Ben’s, an aging father and his adult son, both vulnerable in different ways.

When we talk about unhoused families, we have to expand our definition. Family isn’t just parents with young kids. It’s aging caregivers with adult disabled children. It’s siblings raising siblings. It’s grandparents raising grandchildren.

These families love and care for their dependents and simply want stable housing for them. 

These unhoused families need case management that understands the complexity of their situations. They need connections to services they don’t even know exist. They need time to save money and plan for sustainable futures. They need someone to say: “You’re not alone. We’re going to figure this out together.”

David and Ben have been with us for five weeks now.

It hasn’t been perfect. Ben still struggles with the rotating sleeping arrangements. Some nights are more complicated than others.

But David is saving money. He’s connected to services. He’s sleeping better knowing he has support.

Last week, he told our case manager, “For the first time in two years, I don’t feel like I’m drowning alone.”

That’s why we do this.

How You Can Help

David and Ben are representative characters, but the families they represent are real.

Right now, there are aging caregivers trying to support adult children with disabilities on incomes that don’t cover the cost of living. Families are being priced out of housing because disability payments haven’t kept pace with rent.

Your donation provides what families like David and Ben’s desperately need:

• Emergency shelter so they stop draining resources on unsustainable motels.
• Case management that connects them to needed services, housing programs, and long-term supports
• Time and space to save money for permanent housing.
• Advocacy and navigation through complex systems; they can’t navigate alone.

This holiday season, we ask for your support to make David and Benjamin’s wish come true: stable, sustainable housing.

Every donation expands our capacity to serve families who don’t fit the traditional unhoused shelter model but desperately need help.

The post My Holiday Wish: David and Ben’s Story appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

The path to housing is rarely straightforward. When someone is ready to take that step forward, they often encounter a system that seems designed for people who’ve never experienced a housing gap. Our community, like many across the United States, has a significant and devastating lack of affordable housing, which means that when an affordable rental unit does become available, the competition can be fierce to rent. Often, rentals classified as affordable are substandard in terms of safety, stability, and quality, or are not actually affordable.

For those coming out of an unhoused situation, the upfront costs alone, first month’s rent, last month’s rent, security deposits, and application fees, can total thousands of dollars before someone even gets the keys. While we know that between 40-60% of unhoused individuals have a job, saving this amount of money is incredibly challenging.

Even after funds are saved, the challenges are far from over. Credit scores that plummeted during a medical crisis years ago. An eviction resulted from an unplanned vehicle repair that had unintended consequences for their financial health. These records follow people long after they’ve done the hard work of recovery and stabilization. They become permanent markers of someone’s worst moments rather than measures of their current readiness and determination. Even when someone has overcome these hurdles, many landlords carry deeply ingrained assumptions about people experiencing homelessness.

This is where organizations like ours can provide support for our guests, not to solve homelessness for people, but to walk alongside them as they solve it for themselves. This is one of the ways in which we live our mission to reconnect our guests back to their community. We provide the practical support that makes the difference: help with financial management and setting realistic budgets, advocacy with landlords, connections to additional support services that can help with housing, and, perhaps most importantly, the affirmation that someone’s past does not define their future.

We see every day what happens when people are given a real chance. When barriers are removed and support is available, individuals who have survived the trauma of being unhoused prove themselves to be resilient, resourceful, and ready.

The barriers to housing are real and many. But they are not insurmountable. With community support, compassionate policies, and organizations willing to bridge gaps in our community and beyond, we can ensure that everyone ready to come home has the opportunity to do so. We hope this month-long series on the challenges our unhoused neighbors face in securing safe, stable housing has provided some insight into the complicated, complex landscape. We encourage you to learn more about affordable housing and the impact of its lack on our entire community.

The post Understanding The Housing Landscape for The Unhoused Community appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

The Credit Score: A Three-Number Barrier

Here’s something that might surprise you: credit scores are still a massive indicator of a renter securing housing. According to the local housing nonprofit Homeward Bound Villages,

“Credit scores have become a near-universal requirement in today’s rental market. Nearly 90 percent of landlords reported that they checked for previous evictions, income, job history, rental history, credit scores, and criminal backgrounds when making their decisions. For many property managers across Indiana, a minimum credit score between 580 and 670 is standard, and anything below that threshold results in automatic denial.”

When someone becomes unhoused, priorities can change very quickly, as they move into survival mode, struggling to meet basic needs like food and shelter. Often, bills go unpaid. Medical debts pile up. Credit scores drop. According to U.S. News Money, 51% of background checks conducted by employers include a credit check, which means that bad credit not only affects housing but can also impact the ability to secure a job that provides housing. It’s a cycle that can be incredibly challenging to break.

Furthermore, more than half of rental applications are submitted online. When a rental application is submitted online, often these applications are never reviewed by a human, but an AI tool that is meant to reject applicants that do not actively fit the criteria. Some estimate that up to 90% of online applications are reviewed this way. A computer will not understand how hard a someone worked to overcome homelessness, how they are actively working to repair their credit, which takes time, like a human would.

When “Just Save Up” Isn’t That Simple

Now, let’s discuss security deposits. They’re meant to protect landlords. When a renter leaves a home, these funds can be used to repair any damage done by the tenant. However, when you’re trying to overcome being unhoused, coming up with the first month’s rent, last month’s rent, AND a security deposit can feel impossible. When you combine this with an application fee, and a background check, or credit check, this can and often is thousands of dollars, before the renter ever moves in.

In 2020, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment nationwide was $1,621. In our community, the average is about $1,200. When landlords require three times that amount upfront, which many do when they see a low credit score, we’re talking about nearly $5,000 or more to get keys to an apartment. Studies show that 40% of Americans can’t afford an unexpected $400 expense, so imagine how impossible $5,000 feels when you’re living paycheck to paycheck, are on disability, or are living in a homeless shelter. Coming up with these funds, while trying to repair credit to secure housing is a monumental task.

All of our guests want is a safe, stable home, somewhere safe to lay their head at night. Most of the guests staying at Nest Community Shelter have regular employment, but it simply is not enough. When deposits and credit scores come into the equation, sometimes it doesn’t matter how hard someone works to repair the financial damage. What is important to understand is that the slide into becoming unhoused can be gradual or sudden, but either way, economic damage is often done along the way that will pose real barriers to reacquiring stable, safe housing.

The Real-World Impact

When we see people struggling with these barriers, we’re not just seeing numbers on a page; we are seeing our guests, real people who are working hard to rebuild their lives. With the dream of a front door of their own, a bathroom of their own, and a bed of their own. These are simple things to most, but they mean the world to our guests.

For some of our guests who have worked beyond hard, leaned how to better manage their finances, and found a potential place to live, it can all fall apart because of three little numbers, their credit score or a massive slew of deposits and fees. The real-world impact is that this current system can be a true barrier to those who are truly working to secure safe, stable housing.

What We Can Do Together

At our Nest, we work with people every day who are ready to get back on their feet. They want to work or are actively working. They want to pay rent. They want stability for themselves and their families. But these invisible barriers, a three-digit number, and a large sum of money they can’t save while surviving often block the path.

We need more landlords willing to look beyond credit scores and applications reviewed by humans, not AI, that don’t discount any renter based on a single number. We need more programs that help with those upfront costs. We need policies that recognize that someone’s past financial struggles don’t define their ability to be a good tenant today.

Because at the end of the day, everyone deserves a place to call home. And sometimes, all it takes is someone willing to give them that chance.

Sources:

• Homeward Bound Villages. (n.d.). The credit catch-22: How poor credit traps low-income Hoosiers in a cycle of housing instability. https://www.homewardboundvillages.org/the-credit-catch-22-how-poor-credit-traps-low-income-hoosiers-in-a-cycle-of-housing-instability/
• Graeber, F. (2020, May 11). Homelessness and job security: Challenges and interventions. University of Michigan School of Public Health. https://sph.umich.edu/pursuit/2020posts/homelessness-and-job-security-challenges-and-interventions.html
• Williamson, A. (2021, June 1). Security deposits are a barrier to affordable housing. What can be done? Shelterforce. https://shelterforce.org/2021/06/01/security-deposits-are-a-barrier-to-affordable-housing-what-can-be-done/
• Couloute, L. (2018, August). Nowhere to go: Homelessness among formerly incarcerated people. Prison Policy Initiative. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/housing.html
• Farmer, B. (2023, September 11). Medical debt is putting some Americans at risk of homelessness. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/09/11/1198534328/medical-debt-housing-security-homelessness

The post When Finding a Home Isn’t So Easy: How Credit Scores and Deposits and Fees Can Be Barriers to the Unhoused appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

Did you know that in January 2024 (the last PIT Count), there were 32,882 veterans experiencing homelessness in the United States, representing a record low since measurement began in 2009. And while we are making strides in the right direction for this population, each number represents a person who served their country and is now unhoused, with challenges and obstacles to securing stable, affordable housing.

The Affordability Crisis: When Income Can’t Keep Pace with Rent

The most fundamental barrier facing unhoused veterans is, simply put, that housing costs far exceed what they can afford in many parts of the country. About a third of veterans who served after 2001 pay more than 30% of their income on housing, according to the National Veterans Homeless Support, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving unhoused veterans. For veterans living on fixed incomes from disability benefits or struggling in low-wage jobs, even modest rent increases can mean the difference between being housed and being unhoused.

While many believe that there is funding assistance for veterans, often this population goes unserved due to a lack of funding for housing assistance. Simply put, the help that should be there often isn’t due to underfunding.

An estimated 1.3 million, or approximately 56 percent of low-income veteran households, experienced housing insecurity directly due to the rising cost of housing. When more than 30% of one’s income is spent on housing, this puts that individual at higher risk of experiencing housing insecurity or becoming unhoused. This means that for an individual spending a large amount of their income on rent, one financial disaster, such as an illness, broken car, or job loss, can quickly spiral into becoming unhoused.

The Upfront Cost Barrier: Security Deposits and Move-In Expenses

Before a veteran can even move into affordable housing, they face a financial wall: security deposits, first and last month’s rent, application fees, and utility deposits. These costs, which can total thousands of dollars, can be out of reach for most veterans experiencing homelessness to conquer on their own.

While programs exist to help, such as Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) which provides up to one month’s rent assistance for security deposits, and the Homeless to Housing (H2H) Program offers up to $2,000 for housing-related costs, including deposits; these resources remain limited, and not all veterans know they exist. Navigating these programs while unhoused poses an entirely new set of challenges, and this is where an organization like Nest comes into play. For example, simply proving you are who you say you are in order to access these programs, an ID is required. While this may seem simple and straightforward, for those who’ve been unhoused, this can be a massive undertaking, simply obtaining an ID in order to begin the process for receiving support.

Source of Income Discrimination: When Your Voucher Isn’t Welcome

Even when veterans secure housing vouchers designed to make rent affordable, they often face another hurdle: landlord discrimination. While there is no recent number (the last count was in 2014), the last reported number of veterans utilizing the Housing Choice Voucher program (formerly known as Section 8) was 340,000 veterans to cover rent. There are no federal protections in place to prevent individuals from being denied housing solely because of their source of income. A housing voucher does not automatically mean secured housing; in many cases, it can mean the opposite.

Landlords in most states can legally refuse to rent to veterans simply because they use VA benefits or housing vouchers to pay rent. According to the National Fair Housing Alliance, in 2023, fair housing complaints increased to over 34,000, with complaints related to source of income discrimination as the largest category of discrimination.  Veterans who served their country find themselves turned away from housing, not because they can’t pay, but because of how they pay.

Mental Health and PTSD: The Invisible Wounds That Become Housing Barriers

The mental health challenges many veterans face create profound barriers to obtaining and maintaining housing. The National Coalition of Homeless Veterans and the Department of Veterans Affairs estimate that between 48% to 67% of homeless veterans were diagnosed with mental health disorders. Furthermore, seven out of every 100 veterans will suffer from PTSD throughout their lives. While this does not mean that every unhoused veteran will experience these mental health issues, it is significant to mention in this article as it can present a firm barrier.

These conditions can be a leading contributor to becoming unhoused, and they make it more challenging to heal from. Navigating housing applications, maintaining appointments, and following through on complex bureaucratic processes becomes exponentially more difficult when you’re dealing with untreated PTSD or severe depression. Landlords may view symptoms of these conditions as red flags, further limiting housing options.

The Discharge Status Trap: When Service Doesn’t Equal Benefits

Not all veterans have equal access to housing programs, and discharge status creates one of the most significant divides. Veterans with other than honorable discharges make up 3 percent of the veteran population, but they compose 15 percent of the unhoused veteran population.

These veterans often received their discharge status due to issues directly related to untreated mental health conditions or substance abuse, conditions that frequently stem from their military service. Veterans with other than honorable (OTH) discharges face the loss of some veteran benefits, such as housing programs offered by the VA, and they are typically not eligible for GI Bill education benefits. They served their country, but when they needed help most, the door was closed.

Eviction History: A Permanent Mark

For veterans who have previously lost housing, that history follows them. Even a single eviction, perhaps due to a hospitalization, a mental health crisis, or temporary job loss, can make it nearly impossible to find new housing. Landlords routinely screen for eviction history, and many automatically reject any applicant with an eviction record, regardless of how long ago it occurred or the circumstances surrounding it. This means that even if a veteran has worked to rebuild their lives, saved for a deposit application fee, and is financially stable, they are often denied housing due to a previous eviction.

The VA Benefit System: Challenging to Navigate

Many veterans reported that understanding the regulations for receiving subsidized housing was difficult, and the lack of pertinent information and educational support to guide them through these programs was a significant challenge. The very system designed to help veterans can become another barrier. Complex paperwork, long wait times, confusing eligibility requirements, and the need to prove service-connection for disabilities all create obstacles that can take months or years to overcome.

For a veteran in crisis, perhaps staying in their car or couch-surfing, the patience required to navigate these systems while managing mental health challenges, job searching, and meeting basic survival needs is often impossible to sustain.

Accessibility Challenges: When Housing Doesn’t Fit Physical Needs

For veterans with service-related disabilities, finding housing presents additional challenges on top of the ones we’ve already discussed. Not only were homes with accessible accommodations difficult to find, but they often come with an extra expense and or long waitlists for occupancy.

The Compounding Effect: When One Barrier Becomes Many

These barriers don’t exist in isolation, and that is truly important to understand. A veteran might face affordable housing shortages, mental health challenges, a source of income discrimination, AND poor credit from medical bills. Each barrier makes the others more challenging to overcome. A veteran dealing with PTSD  may find it more difficult to navigate the complex system of following the proper channels for support. A veteran with an eviction on their record due to a mental health crisis finds fewer landlords willing to work with them, even with rental assistance.

What This Means for Our Work

Understanding these barriers is crucial to effectively addressing veteran homelessness. At Nest Community Shelter, we encounter these challenges often with the veterans who come through our doors. It’s not enough to provide a bed and a meal; we help our veteran guests navigate housing applications, connect them with mental health services, assist with benefits advocacy, and work with landlords willing to give veterans a chance, as we do with all guests.

This Veterans Day, seeking to understand why veterans struggle to find housing is the first step toward meaningful change. These barriers are not insurmountable, but overcoming them requires resources, policy changes, and a sustained commitment to ensuring that no one who served our country should have to fight for a place to call home.

If you’d like to learn more about this topic, please visit a list of the sources used to write this article.

Sources:

1. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (2024). Veteran homelessness reaches record low, decreasing by 7.5% since 2023. https://news.va.gov/press-room/veterans-homelessness-reaches-record-low-decreasing-by-7-5-since-2023/
2. New Visions Homeless Services. (2025). Top Challenges Facing Homeless Veterans in 2025. https://nvhs.org/top-challenges-facing-homeless-veterans-in-2025/
3. Kaine, T., Schiff, A., & Peters, S. (2025). Kaine, Schiff, & Peters Introduce Bill to Protect Veterans and Low-Income Families from Housing Discrimination. U.S. Senate. https://www.kaine.senate.gov/press-releases/kaine-schiff-and-peters-introduce-bill-to-protect-veterans-and-low-income-families-from-housing-discrimination
4. LifeSTEPS. (2025). Veterans help with security deposit: 3 Easy Steps! https://lifestepsusa.org/veterans-help-with-security-deposit/
5. Urban Institute. (2022). In Their Own Words: Veterans with Disabilities Share Their Housing Challenges. Housing Matters. https://housingmatters.urban.org/research-summary/their-own-words-veterans-disabilities-share-their-housing-challenges
6. U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2007). Rental Housing: Information on Low-Income Veterans’ Housing Conditions and Participation in HUD’s Programs. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-07-1012
7. National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. (2025). Veteran Homelessness. https://nchv.org/veteran-homelessness/
8. Tsai, J., et al. (2023). Prevalence, correlates, and mental health burden associated with homelessness in U.S. military veterans. PMC. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10317824/
9. Tsai, J., et al. (2015). Risk Factors for Homelessness Among US Veterans. PMC. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4521393/
10. New Visions Homeless Services. (2024). What are the Causes of Veteran Homelessness. https://nvhs.org/causes-for-veteran-homelessness/
11. Peters, S. (2020). House Passes Peters’ Bill to Reduce Veteran Homelessness. https://scottpeters.house.gov/2020/1/house-passes-peters-bill-to-reduce-veteran-homelessness
12. Military.com. (2023). Other Than Honorable Discharge: Everything You Need to Know. https://www.military.com/benefits/military-legal/other-than-honorable-discharge-everything-you-need-know.html

The post The Battle for a Place to Call Home: The Challenges Unhoused Veterans Face in Securing Safe, Stable, Affordable Housing appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

Barriers that Keep Individuals Away and Make Choice Complex:

While our shelter provides a safe place for many to rest and eat, we recognize that several factors may influence someone’s decision to remain unsheltered. Below, we have compiled a list of the most common barriers we see within our community to receiving support services and being sheltered at Nest Community Shelter.

The Stigma of Shelter Use:

The stigma associated with homelessness and shelter use presents a powerful psychological barrier. Many people feel profound shame about their housing situation, leading them to hide their homelessness from friends, family, and even service providers. This stigma can present in several ways:

• Fear of judgment: Many individuals worry about being stereotyped as “lazy,” “addicted,” or “mentally ill” if it becomes known that they are utilizing services from a homeless shelter. Or that their homelessness is somehow a character judgment of them as a person.
• Loss of dignity: The perception that accepting shelter services means admitting failure or giving up independence.
• Social isolation: Research shows that people experiencing homelessness often withdraw from their support network for various reasons.

Our mission at Nest Community Shelter is to connect our guests back to their communities. We work diligently to create an environment of respect and dignity, but we understand that the societal stigma around homelessness remains a significant obstacle for many. By reconnecting our guests, we break these barriers one case at a time, one guest at a time.

A Beloved Companion, Pets:

This is perhaps one of our most common barriers, that we cannot accommodate pets. Imagine losing your home, car, and possibly your job, yet you’ve managed to keep your pet. The stigma of homelessness has caused you to withdraw from your support circle and access the needed services. Now, it’s you and your pet, and your pet does not look at you as experiencing homelessness, but simply the human companion they’ve always loved. Now, you finally decide to seek out shelter, only find out that your pet cannot come into the shelter.

While this story may seem far-fetched, it isn’t. We encounter this a lot. This is heartbreaking for us as shelter providers and for our guests. This is an extremely common barrier to receiving services across the United States. While we work with potential guests to find a solution to having a pet fostered, more often than not, this remains a significant stumbling block for potential guests.

Safety & Storage Concerns

For many who have experienced trauma, crowded communal living spaces can feel unsafe. Concerns about personal safety, privacy, and protection of belongings are valid considerations in shelter environments. This is especially true for vulnerable populations, including LGBTQ+ youth, domestic violence survivors, and those with past traumatic experiences.

At Nest Community Shelter, our open room accommodations and site monitors on both our men’s and women’s floors do help alleviate some safety concerns. However, our shelter can be challenging for those sensitive to loud noises or large crowds. We provide our guests with a plastic tote to store their things for the evening each night. This can be very challenging for our guests who may have more belongings with them. As a smaller shelter, we do not have the ability to allow guests to bring in all of their belongings with them. This poses a real challenge for some of our guests. If you’ve lost everything and your belongings are all that you have left, and now you’re being asked not to bring them with you, this poses a significant barrier.

Restrictive Rules and Schedules

While structure is necessary for communal living, some shelters have rules that don’t accommodate the complex realities of people’s lives. Strict entry and exit times may conflict with work schedules, especially for those working evening or overnight shifts.

At Nest Community Shelter, our doors open in the evening and once guests have checked in for the night (signed in, have a temperature check, evaluation for drugs and or alcohol use) they are not able to leave the shelter for the night. This is a safety precaution for the good of all of our guests. Some find this rule to be too strict, but we must think of the safety of all of our guests.

Working Beyond the Barriers:

Despite these challenges, we remain a vital resource in addressing homelessness in La Porte County. Shelter services like ours provide far more than just a bed for the night, at Nest we strive to provide:

• Immediate safety from the elements, violence, and exploitation
• Access to healthcare, through connection to support services, including mental health and substance use treatment.
• Case management to navigate complex social service systems.
• Housing support services to find more permanent solutions
• Community and support to counter the isolation of homelessness.

At Nest Community Shelter, we recognize these common yet complex barriers and continuously work to make our services more accessible and effective for everyone experiencing homelessness in our community. While we have addressed a few of the most common barriers, the reasons why individuals may not want to seek our services are just as complex as the individuals themselves. We hope that by sharing some of these common barriers, the misconception that simply choosing to be sheltered solves the issue, when in fact, for some, it creates more problems. Our guests are complex and often the issues and decisions they’re faced with are not as simple as choosing to be housed.

How You Can Help

We hope that this article helps build an understanding of the illusion of choice for some and truly heartbreaking choices. By learning about this misconception, you can be part of creating more compassionate solutions:

• Challenge stigma by speaking thoughtfully about homelessness and recognizing that it could happen to anyone.
• Volunteer your time and talents at local shelters and support services.
• Support organizations working on innovative housing solutions in our community.
• Advocate for policies that increase affordable housing and support services at the state, federal, and local levels of legislation.

By understanding the real barriers people face, we can work together toward meaningful solutions that genuinely address the needs of our neighbors experiencing homelessness.

The post Breaking Misconceptions: Why Don’t Those Experiencing Homelessness Go To A Shelter? appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

Statistics Tell the Story: The Working Homeless in Indiana

Let’s start by saying this myth is simply not true!

The reality of working homelessness in Indiana is stark and often full of misconceptions. So, let’s set the record straight. National data from the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness indicates that as many as 40-60% of people experiencing homelessness in the United States have a job, but housing remains unaffordable because wages have not kept up with rising rents. We see this situation almost daily at Nest Community Shelter and Nest La Porte. Individuals are working, but affordable housing is just out of reach. This employment rate among homeless individuals demolishes the misconception that homeless people don’t work or don’t want to work.

For comparison, The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 64.2% of the total U.S. population worked in 2023. This means that neither population has a 100% employment rate. When looking at the immense challenges those experiencing homelessness face, the fact that the number is as high as it is shows that these individuals are working to improve their situation. This also demonstrates the tremendous strain they find themselves under. Imagine trying to do a good job at your place of work while you don’t know where you’ll lay your head that evening.

The 2023 Point-in-Time Count from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority recorded 4,398 individuals experiencing homelessness across the state —an increase of 710 people compared to the previous year. Here in La Porte County, we see this reality firsthand through our work with families and individuals at our shelters. The need continues to grow within La Porte County. We opened Nest La Porte; we knew there was a need there. Since opening in early January, we have sheltered no less than six individuals nightly in this new emergency shelter. The need within our county continues to grow, as our internal data shows year over year.

The Economic Reality: Wage Stagnation and Housing Costs in Indiana

Earlier this week, we discussed the myth of choice of homelessness, but in reality, it is an illusion of choice perpetuated by the affordability gap for Indiana’s minimum wage workers. We see this gap continuing to grow at an alarming rate. According to the “Out of Reach” report published in July 2024, Indiana’s “housing wage” (the amount needed to afford a two-bedroom rental unit) has increased to $22.07 per hour – a stark $3.07 increase from just one year prior. Meanwhile, the average Hoosier renter’s wage only grew by $0.06 during the same period, now standing at $17.92 per hour.

Source: Prosperity Indiana

These statistics paint a troubling picture of housing affordability in our region:

• At minimum wage ($7.25 per hour), Hoosiers must work 122 hours weekly to afford a standard two-bedroom apartment (Based upon Fair Market Rate two-bedroom apartment in Indiana (valued at $1,148)
• In Michigan City, that same apartment will cost $1,151, and in La Porte, that apartment will cost $1400.

Barriers to Maintaining Employment While Homeless

Our last month’s blog series highlighted numerous obstacles homeless individuals face while maintaining and obtaining employment. As a reminder, here are some of the most common barriers we see at Nest Community Shelter. These barriers create a vicious cycle that can be extremely difficult to overcome without assistance:

1. Transportation Challenges Lack of reliable transportation remains among the most significant barriers for individuals experiencing homelessness seeking employment. Many jobs are not accessible by public transportation, especially for night shifts. While we do have public transportation in Michigan City, the schedules can be varied, and there are times when the buses don’t run, leaving those who depend on this transportation stranded.
2. Identification and Documentation Issues Individuals experiencing homelessness often struggle to maintain essential documents required for employment. Many of our guests frequently lack a safe place to store important documents like IDs, birth certificates, and Social Security cards, which can be lost, stolen, or damaged by the elements when they are unsheltered. Without these documents, securing and maintaining employment becomes extraordinarily difficult. Often, one document is needed to secure the next, and when a permanent address is not present, this only further complicates this situation, which requires specialized support to solve.
3. Lack of Childcare. For families experiencing homelessness, access to affordable childcare presents an enormous challenge. Homeless parents often work evening or overnight shifts when childcare is often not available, or this specialized care often costs significantly more. The cost of childcare is often out of reach for individuals experiencing homelessness. There is also the fear that childcare facilities learning of the unhoused situation for the family. These issues present a significant obstacle for working parents who are experiencing homelessness.
4. Address and Communication Barriers Employers typically require a permanent address and reliable contact information. Without a stable address or consistent phone access, homeless individuals face significant hurdles in the application process and in maintaining communication with employers. These seemingly simple requirements become major obstacles for people without housing stability.
5. Stigma and Discrimination As we explored in our blog series last month, homeless individuals often face discrimination from potential employers. Employers’ reluctance to hire individuals experiencing homelessness is often based on misconceptions surrounding homelessness. If you’d like to learn more about this topic we encourage you to visit our blog post: The Employment Paradox: How The Stigma of Homelessness Can Create a Vicious Cycle

Changing the Narrative

The myth that homeless individuals don’t work is an ugly misconception rooted in biases and misinformation. The reality is that many people experiencing homelessness in La Porte County and throughout Indiana are employed but caught in challenging economic situations where wages don’t match housing costs, skyrocketing energy, medical, and food costs. By understanding and acknowledging this reality, our community can move beyond stereotypes and work toward solutions that address the true causes of homelessness.

The post Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Don’t Work: Dispelling this Myth appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

In this next series on the Nest Community Shelter blog, we are going to take a deep dive into common misconceptions about homelessness. Today, we are going to tackle the idea of choice and look at a few of the reasons why, in most cases, choice is not active but rather a victim of circumstance.

A Complex Network of Compounding Issues

One of the primary causes of homelessness isn’t personal failure or poor choices—it’s a nationwide housing affordability crisis. At the root of modern-day homelessness are failed policies, severely underfunded programs that have led to affordable housing shortages, wages that don’t keep up with rising rents and housing costs, inadequate safety nets, inequitable access to quality healthcare, and mass incarceration. In our own state, just this week, a bill, SB 197, would punish individuals experiencing homelessness with up to 60 days in jail or a $500 fine for those arrested and charged.

According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, when median rents increase by $100, homelessness rates rise by roughly nine percent. In Michigan City, we see this happening in the lives of our guests. For example, according to rent.com, a studio apartment in town saw a +12% rise from last year, a 1-bedroom apartment saw an +8% rise, and a 2-bedroom apartment saw a +11% rise. With limited rental stock available within Michigan City, the scarcity is causing rent prices to rise sharply year over year. This means that the growing gap between housing costs and wages is pushing more people to the brink.

Housing Costs vs. Wages in Indiana

Across the state, the situation is dire. To afford a two-bedroom rental at fair market rate ($1,148) at the state level, a full-time Indiana worker would need to earn a “Housing Wage” of $22.07 per hour—far above both the state’s minimum wage of $7.25 and the average renter’s wage of $17.92. In Michigan City, the cost is slightly higher at $1,151 for the same apartment.

Indiana’s housing affordability has worsened, dropping from 43rd to 34th most affordable state between 2021 and 2024. This figure from Prosperity Indiana and The National Low Income Housing Coalition demonstrates the growing wage gap. The truth is many of our guests are currently or have worked consistently, yet still struggle to find affordable housing.

Lives Behind the Statistics

Behind these statistics are real people. We’d like to highlight what this looks like in real life. To protect the anonymity of our guests, we’ve compiled a scenario that we would expect to encounter at our shelter. We are going to call our example guest Sarah.

Sarah worked as a healthcare aide, earning $14.79 per hour—almost $8 less than the housing wage needed for basic shelter. When her car needed emergency repairs, she faced an impossible choice: fix her transportation to work or pay rent. Without savings to cover both, she lost her apartment despite working full-time.

This experience, while fictionalized, is exceptionally common at Nest. Even people earning above minimum wage struggle with housing costs. According to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, 40%-60% of people experiencing homelessness have a job, but housing is unaffordable because wages have not kept up with rising rents. There is currently no state where a full-time minimum-wage worker can afford a modest apartment.

Structural Factors, Not Personal Choices

Today, many individuals who are experiencing homelessness find themselves in this situation because they simply don’t make enough money to pay for housing. This inability is caused by stagnant wages, benefits, and other issues impacting one’s ability to work, such as medical conditions, limited education, gaps in work history, or justice system involvement—barriers further exacerbated by a lack of affordable housing. We highlighted the challenges individuals experiencing homelessness face in securing and maintaining steady work on our blog last month.

The myth that people choose to live outside in tents or cars ignores the reality that tens of thousands die yearly due to the dangerous conditions of living without housing. According to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, the average individual experiencing homelessness dies nearly 30 years earlier than their housed counterpart—often from easily treatable illnesses.

Building Understanding For a Healthier Community for All:

The January 2023 Point-In-Time count identified roughly 653,000 people experiencing homelessness nationwide—the highest number ever recorded. Here in Indiana, homelessness has been on the rise as housing costs grow further out of reach for those with the lowest incomes while our housing safety net remains inadequate. These numbers reflect a system failing more people each year.

Ending homelessness requires addressing its structural causes: creating truly affordable housing, strengthening social safety nets, raising wages, and ensuring healthcare doesn’t lead to bankruptcy. This also means sympathetic policies that lift our most vulnerable out of poverty, homelessness, and housing insecurity, not criminalizing means beyond their control.

The next time you hear someone suggest homelessness is a choice, remember the faces we see each night are individuals working to put a roof over their heads, individuals who choose a stable and healthy living environment. Almost no one chooses to spend a night at a shelter.

Our neighbors experiencing homelessness don’t need judgment about imagined choices but meaningful opportunities to rebuild stability in a system that has failed them.

The post Dispelling Common Misconceptions About Homelessness: The Myth of Choice appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

The paradox is both simple and devastating: To leave homelessness, one typically needs stable employment, yet many employers are reluctant to hire someone who is experiencing homelessness for various reasons, which we will examine further in this blog post. This creates a vicious cycle that traps individuals in their current circumstances through no fault of their own.

Consider this completely fictitious scenario built from familiar stories that we see all too often at Nest Community Shelter:

James has been living in his car for three months after losing his apartment following a medical emergency that drained his savings. He’s qualified for numerous positions, but their demeanor changes when potential employers learn of his living situation (which becomes evident when they request an address or notice he’s wearing the same clothes repeatedly). They begin to question his reliability, character, and capabilities—not based on evidence but on preconceptions about homelessness. Many see James’ situation as a moral failing, not a victim of circumstances beyond James’ control.

This scenario, many like it, happens countless times daily across the country and in our community. The stigma surrounding homelessness is so powerful that it often overrides all other qualifications an individual might possess.

These judgments stem from persistent myths about homelessness: the belief that people choose to be homeless or could easily choose not to be; the assumption that homelessness results from laziness, addiction, or moral failings; the presumption that someone experiencing homelessness lacks skills or intelligence; and the fear that people experiencing homelessness are inherently violent or unpredictable. We work with individuals experiencing homelessness every day, and we know that this is not true. Each individual is complex and has a story that led them to our door; no two individuals are the same, nor are the root causes of how they found themselves at our shelter.

Research consistently debunks these myths. Most individuals experiencing homelessness are there due to economic hardship, housing crises, medical bankruptcies, domestic violence, or mental health challenges that went untreated due to lack of access to care—not personal failings.

For jobseekers experiencing homelessness, stigma creates barriers at every step of the employment process. At the application stage, they face challenges like not having a permanent address to list, gaps in employment history due to housing instability, limited access to professional clothing, and a lack of a reliable phone number or email access. During interviews, they may face judgment based on appearance, questions about stability and reliability, implicit bias affecting interviewer perceptions, and transportation challenges, making punctuality difficult.

Beyond the obvious economic impact, stigma carries psychological tolls. This internalized stigma can lead to diminished self-worth, depression, and eventually, giving up on the job search altogether—further entrenching the cycle of homelessness.

Fortunately, programs across the country demonstrate that people experiencing homelessness can become valuable employees with the proper support. When employers understand that homelessness is a circumstance, not a character trait, they make more equitable hiring decisions.

We encourage all employers to examine their biases and consider whether their hiring practices inadvertently discriminate against people experiencing homelessness. Focus on skills and potential, judging candidates’ abilities, not their circumstances. Offering flexibility, such as providing advance pay for transportation or uniforms, can help immensely and make all the difference. Partner with support organizations, many of which will provide ongoing support to the employee and employer. Create a supportive environment where your workplace culture doesn’t perpetuate stigma.

As community members, we can challenge stigmatizing language, support businesses with inclusive hiring practices, advocate for policy change, and volunteer with employment programs. Terms like “the homeless” reduce people to their housing status; using “people experiencing homelessness” instead acknowledges the temporary nature of their situation and maintains their humanity.

The employment homelessness paradox is not insurmountable; we see this daily at Nest Community Shelter and through our work with community partners. By recognizing and actively combating the stigma that fuels it, we can create pathways to meaningful employment for everyone, regardless of their housing status. When we see people for their potential rather than their circumstances, we not only help individuals escape homelessness—we strengthen our entire community and economy with the contributions of people who may have been systematically excluded.

The question isn’t whether people experiencing homelessness can be valuable employees. They already are. The question is whether we’ll let stigma continue to mask that truth.

This post concludes our month-long series on employment and homelessness. Thank you for exploring this critical issue with us. If you’d like to learn more about how you can help break the support of those experiencing homelessness, we encourage you to look around on our website for additional resources or get involved with our shelter through many of our volunteer opportunities.

The post The Employment Paradox: How The Stigma of Homelessness Can Create a Vicious Cycle appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.

The Reality of Educational Barriers

Basic survival when experiencing homelessness is incredibly time-consuming. Finding a safe place to sleep, securing food, and managing day-to-day challenges become the priority. This makes pursuing education, upskilling, or training programs impossible without additional support. While it is not impossible to upskill or seek to fill educational gaps while experiencing homelessness, it is incredibly difficult. For example, if a course is online, many public computer terminals have a time limit, so others may also use them. More formal educational settings require documentation and often incur a bill. While not impossible, this situation is incredibly challenging, and support is often needed for a successful outcome.

The Impact of Education and Employment on Generational Homelessness:

We know that many experiencing homelessness first experienced this situation as children. Often, for many, experiencing homelessness is a generational experience. When children and teens grow up unhoused, they face unique educational hurdles that carry on into adulthood. Young people experiencing homelessness often:

• Experience frequent school changes that disrupt learning
• Miss important school days due to transportation issues or housing transitions
• Lack quiet spaces to study or complete homework
• Face stigma and social challenges from peers
• Have limited access to extracurricular activities that build skills and confidence

When experiencing homelessness as a child can have a massive impact on the educational impact into adulthood and the ability to obtain and secure steady employment.

Without access to education and training, many talented individuals cannot advance in their careers. Job opportunities remain limited to lower-paying positions that don’t provide enough income for stable housing. This creates a frustrating cycle in which housing insecurity leads to educational barriers, which then maintain housing insecurity.

These challenges can affect young people who grow up without stable housing. Many youths experiencing homelessness don’t complete high school, which severely limits their future options. Without a diploma or GED, these young adults face even greater hurdles in breaking the cycle of poverty and housing instability.

Providing The Needed Support:

At Nest Community Shelter, our goal is to help our guests move into permanent housing. This means that steady work must be obtained in order to afford housing. Each guest who comes through our program works with a case manager and community partners to not just obtain these goals but also work towards forward advancement. We want our guests to be successful in remaining housed and building happy and comfortable lives. This goal can only be achieved through stable and steady employment. Community support for those experiencing homelessness while in need of upskilling and further educational opportunities will continue to rely on community support as we work together to help individuals experiencing homelessness in our community.

The post Common Educational Barriers for Individuals Experiencing Homelessness appeared first on Nest Community Shelter.