By Selah Jacoway and Alix Larsen
MOORHEAD, MINN. (Valley News Live) – “There is no solution to homelessness without housing: safe, affordable, permanent housing,” says Churches United CEO Pastor Devlyn Brooks.
Churches United is a non-profit supporting those experiencing homelessness in the Fargo-Moorhead area.
On June 26, it celebrated the grand opening of its new senior homeless complex, Silver Linings. It’s a 36-unit complex offering affordable and stable housing for seniors 55 and older who are experiencing chronic homelessness, long-term housing instability, or are very low income.
“Many don’t know, but one of the fastest-growing demographics of homelessness in America is seniors. To combat that, it’s been our goal to provide a specific facility for seniors because their needs are so much different,” says Brooks.
Brooks says, many seniors lack both community and connection, which, he says, are two key factors keeping many older adults in homelessness.
“One of the things that we’ve identified is that seniors who are homeless don’t have well-established social connections. They don’t have the web of support that the rest of us have,” says Brooks.
Silver Linings features a variety of community spaces and amenities such as an activity center, community room, on-site nursing area, laundry facilities, and a food pantry.
“You’ve waited long enough. You deserve peace, privacy, and a place to call home,” says Brooks. He tells us each story is unique and homelessness can happen for many different reasons.
“Every journey into homelessness is a unique story, right? There’s people that will come here out of generational poverty. There are people that will come here because they lost jobs,” he says.
Beyond housing, residents can expect on-site support.
“We have case managers, and so they work with the residents that are here to make sure that they’re receiving all the services that they’re entitled to.
Brooks says this wouldn’t be possible without the help from the community.
“The community saw us and said, ‘We see the work you do. It is vital,’ and they supported us,” says Brooks.
