Room to Grow: Making a Difference for Children with Disabilities
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Rachel, mother of three— Jonah, Masen and Greyson (pictured above), was recently assisted by Housing Coordinator Shireen Alinani to move into an affordable three-bedroom two-bath apartment at our Partner Property, Jasmine Square in Morgan Hill, developed and managed by Eden Housing. A grant from another community partner, Seasons of Sharing, helped the family of four with the security deposit.
Before the move in July 2020, Rachel and her three boys, two of whom receive services from San Andreas Regional Center, had been renting a single room in Rachel’s mother’s apartment because Rachel’s paycheck as a public school teacher’s assistant excluded her from market-rate apartments in high-cost Silicon Valley. Living in such close quarters took a toll on everyone’s emotional and mental health, as well as the boys’ ability to do school work. This was exacerbated in March when shelter in place orders had everyone at home in their grandmother’s apartment 24-7.
Not only is the Jasmine Square rent affordable for Rachel, the size of the new apartment makes it possible for the boys to have privacy and a quiet place for their remote learning during the pandemic. Rachel observes that there is less chaos and more routine for daily chores as everything in the home has a place now. In addition, like many family affordable housing properties, Jasmine Square is designed to be kid-friendly, with a children’s play area and an on-site after-school program for homework help and social activities. Housing Choices’ Resident Coordinator, Adriana Robles, is available to help Rachel with any issues that may affect the family’s housing stability.
For every Regional Center family like Rachel’s who finally got an affordable apartment, there are thousands more living in overcrowded and unstable housing. Multiple health studies correlate overcrowded housing with increased risk of acute respiratory illness, like COVID-19; greater incidence of and more serious outcomes from chronic health conditions, like asthma, high blood pressure, and diabetes; increase in mental health problems; and delays in developmental outcomes. This is why Housing Choices joins the State Council on Developmental Disabilities and the Lanterman Housing Alliance in urging the Department of Developmental Services to track the housing conditions of those it serves and to mobilize all 21 Regional Centers to provide housing support services for adults and children with developmental disabilities— many of whom are suffering the short-term and long-term effects of overcrowding and housing instability.
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Grassroots Grants for Families Affected by COVID-19
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As a member of a broad-based community collaboration organized by Destination: Home and Sacred Heart Community Services, Housing Choices is awarding $100,000 in Grassroots Grants of $1,000 or $2,000 to Santa Clara County families served by San Andreas Regional Center who lost income because of COVID-19 but are ineligible for unemployment or did not receive the federal stimulus.
“This new partnership takes advantage of Housing Choices’ existing housing service relationships with families who meet the eligibility guidelines of the Grassroots Grants,” according to Executive Director Jan Stokley. “Our role is to connect the people served by the Regional Center with all available resources to help stabilize their housing, and the Grassroots Grants add an important new resource to this effort.”
To learn more about the Grassroots Grants, please contact your Housing Coordinator at Housing Choices, or ask your Service Coordinator at San Andreas Regional Center for a referral.
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Helping Our Community Stay Safe
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As the community transmission of COVID-19 surges and recedes, Housing Choices’ team of Resident Coordinators is helping people with developmental disabilities and their families stay safe by distributing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and sanitizing supplies to their homes, while maintaining social distancing protocols.
Our efforts are made possible by in-kind PPE donations from the California Department of Developmental Services, the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, the San Andreas Regional Center, the Santa Clara County Office of Emergency Services, the Valley Medical Center Foundation, and the Silicon Valley Council of Nonprofits.
We are equally grateful to the individual donors and the foundation and corporate donors, including Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Wells Fargo Foundation, Betty and Gordon Moore Foundation, Ronald and Ann Williams Foundation, and the State Compensation Insurance Fund, for donating funds for additional supplies, equipment and technology services, the re-organizing and cleaning of our facilities, and ongoing operating costs.
Never have the words of Helen Keller been so relevant---“Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much”. We are grateful to all those who are supporting Housing Choices in the transition to new ways of creating a safe, healthy, and inclusive community.
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New Report Warns of Eviction “Time-Bomb”
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The Law Foundation of Silicon Valley and Working Partnerships USA have recently estimated that, in Santa Clara County alone, 43,490 renter households are at risk of eviction if federal, state, and local officials do nothing to cancel or offset the back rent owed due to COVID-19 income loss. https://www.wpusa.org/research/eviction-time-bomb/
The report recommends that Santa Clara County extend its temporary eviction moratorium, which is set to expire on August 31 for the duration of the pandemic and permanently bar landlords from evicting tenants for failing to pay back rent that has accumulated during the months of lost income due to COVID-19. The report recommends funding for tenants’ right to legal assistance, education, and services to protect them from evictions and homelessness.
The report also recommends passage of AB 1436 in the California State Assembly to prohibit any tenant evictions in California until April 2021 or 90 days after the end of the pandemic. AB 1436 would also bar tenant evictions or bad credit reports for failure to pay back rent, and require landlords to seek repayment through the courts instead.
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Welcome, New Board Members
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Housing Choices has recently added four new members to our Board of Directors. These new Board members bring vision and new energy to the organization and enhance the diversity of skills, experiences and community connections that help the Board of Directors make sound governance decisions.
Shauna Imanaka (top left) credits her upbringing in Kaneohe, Hawai’i for instilling in her the importance of family and community. Following her graduation from the University of California, San Diego, Shauna participated in the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program, where she taught English to middle school students and participated in local community organizations. She went on to receive an MBA and JD from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa and is currently a litigation associate with Greenberg Traurig LLP in East Palo Alto. Shauna is excited to use both her business and legal skills to enhance the effectiveness of Housing Choices and to extend her personal commitment to pro bono service by assisting underserved communities in the Bay Area.
Vinita Singhal (top right) is an engineer turned technical communicator. She received her Masters degree in Electrical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University before moving to the Bay Area. A parent of an adult daughter with special needs, Vinita knows first hand the importance of advocacy for people with disabilities and looks forward to helping Housing Choices advance its mission.
Melissa Kinter (bottom left) is a CPA and Audit Manager with the accounting firm of Seiler LLP in San Jose. She received her degree in business administration from San Diego State, with an emphasis in accountancy. Melissa has special expertise in nonprofit accounting and has long had an interest in nonprofit organizations serving people with special needs. Melissa sees her Housing Choices’ Board service as an opportunity to strengthen the capacity of a nonprofit that is actively empowering a historically underserved community.
Jeremy Metz (bottom right) is an architect with HPC Architecture in Santa Clara. A graduate of the University of Oregon, Jeremy has enjoyed getting to know people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in his faith community and in his personal life. As an architect, Jeremy appreciates that inclusive housing is the necessary foundation for greater inclusion of people with disabilities in all aspects of community life.
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To donate please use one of the donate buttons on this email or mail a check to Housing Choices:
6203 San Ignacio Avenue, Suite 108,
San Jose, CA 95119.
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With appreciation,
Ron Soto
Board Chair
Jan Stokley
Executive Director
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Housing Choices is a nonprofit corporation exempt from tax under Section 501(C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Your gift is deductible as allowed by law. Our tax identification number is 77-0458221.
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