Owning a home, or at least having one, has long been considered an essential part of the American dream.
But what if Americans judged success not by whether people had housing, but by whether they discovered – or rediscovered – who they were created to become?
Imagine the hundreds of thousands of people who could be strengthening cities like New York, Seattle and Los Angeles had local leaders invested in systems designed to restore lives and cultivate human flourishing, rather than embracing the federal government's Housing First approach adopted in 2013.
Housing First made housing placement the primary intervention and measure of success, while removing expectations for treatment, sobriety, employment or progress toward self-sufficiency. In doing
so, it too often treated the symptom of homelessness – lack of housing – while leaving the deeper human crises that frequently accompany and perpetuate it unaddressed.
Consider Julianna's story. In 2017, she entered the program for homeless women and children that I ran for 13 years, a program that saw beyond addiction to the woman she was created to become.
She arrived addicted to methamphetamine, trapped in violent relationships, physically abused and on the verge of permanently losing custody of her two young sons. She had lost her career, her confidence and nearly everything that had once defined her.
Today, she is a single mother raising those same two boys, four promotions into a career with the same employer that we introduced her to in 2019, and is now the proud owner of her first home.
Treating the root causes of homelessness
Julianna didn't just need housing. She needed recovery – and a program that expected her to flourish.
As a young adult, she had excelled in school and quickly built a promising career in the fitness industry. Then someone handed her methamphetamine.
Within a remarkably short period of time, addiction stole nearly everything.
Her promising career disappeared. Violent relationships became normal to her. She endured repeated physical abuse.
One son was born into chaos. Her second entered the world with drugs in his system. Child protective services workers took both boys away from her.
Thankfully, her mother and sister stepped in to care for her sons, while pleading with Julianna to get help.
By then, addiction had buried her hope, but not her potential.
In our clean and sober Sacramento-based program, the fog of addiction began to lift. With clarity came honesty. With honesty came healing.
Julianna confronted years of trauma, learned to recognize abuse instead of accepting it, rebuilt her confidence, strengthened her parenting, developed workplace and financial skills, and one decision at a time, rediscovered the woman she was created to become.
She returned to work in the fitness industry and, with stable employment, regained custody of her sons. In 2019, ready for her next challenge, we helped place her in a position with UC Davis Health.
She never looked back.
Today, she serves on the alumni board of the program that helped transform her life.
And in one of the nation's most expensive housing markets, she recently achieved something many lifelong Californians never do: She became a first-time homeowner.
Transformation doesn't begin with housing, or end with home ownership
Think about what that really means.
A woman once consumed by addiction. A victim of domestic violence. A mother who nearly lost her children forever.
Today she is raising those same boys, building a career, paying taxes, mentoring other women, strengthening her community and owning a home.
That is what human flourishing looks like, and it raises a question America can no longer afford to ignore: Why isn't this the type of outcome our homeless system is designed to produce?
Julianna's transformation didn't begin with housing. It began when someone believed her life was still worth restoring.
To end homelessness, we must focus on restoring lives
It’s the lesson the federal government, the largest funder of homelessness programs, is finally beginning to embrace.
While we cannot expect every person to become a homeowner, nor that every journey will look like Julianna's, all people deserve a system that treats them as if they were created to flourish.
Imagine America with thousands more Juliannas. Thousands more parents reunited with their children. Thousands more people overcoming addiction and mental illness. Thousands more individuals discovering meaningful work, rebuilding healthy relationships and achieving self-sufficiency.
Thousands more employees strengthening businesses. Thousands more taxpayers instead of lifelong dependents. Thousands more neighbors restoring their communities.
Public spaces would be reclaimed. Health care, emergency response and criminal justice systems would face less strain. Taxpayer dollars would produce restored lives instead of perpetuating dependency.
Every person has immeasurable value. Every person was created for a purpose. Our treatment strategy should be built around helping people discover – or rediscover – that truth.
If we know how to inspire thousands more stories like Julianna's, why would any leader accept a system that aims for anything less?
Julianna is living proof that restored lives, not simply housed lives, must become the standard by which we evaluate our systems and hold our elected leaders accountable.
Michele Steeb is the founder of Free Up Foundation and author of “Answers Behind the RED DOOR: Battling the Homeless Epidemic,” based on her 13 years as the CEO of Northern California’s largest program for homeless women and children. She is a visiting fellow with the Discovery Institute’s Fix Homelessness Initiative.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: We're ignoring the cause of homelessness, and how to solve it | Opinion
