PADS of Elgin

This month’s Share the Plate recipient is:

PADS of Elgin

UUCE has been supporting their lunch program for over a year. You can learn more about this on our Justice Projects page. For this month’s Share the Plate, we’ll be supporting their “Housing First” initiative.

With the convergence of the pandemic and economic crises, we are facing a significant increase in homelessness in the United States. PADS is on the verge of finding a new site for their facility and creating a Housing First program in Elgin.

Housing First

Housing First is a homeless assistance approach that prioritizes providing permanent housing to people experiencing homelessness, thus ending their homelessness and serving as a platform from which they can pursue personal goals and improve their quality of life. It is based on the premise that the need for reliable sources of food and shelter come first.

• People are much more likely to pursue supportive services once they are securely housed.
• It works for a diverse population – families, individuals, the chronically homeless as well as those who are in acute crisis.
• It has been shown to be much more cost effective than temporary shelters.
• Success is sustained for much longer periods of time.
• Those with stable living situations are much more likely to seek employment, access treatment for mental illness, and attend to substance abuse issues.

Visit PADS of Elgin’s website to learn more about their organization.