Iosbaker Leads the Opening of Cross Park Place 

Cross Park Place -a Housing First project of Shelter House is projected to open in January 2019. This initiative has been a tremendous team effort in collaboration with Shelter House staff and leaders of local social service agencies concerned with ending chronic homelessness. Read more to learn what Laura Iosbaker, Cross Park Place Manager, and team have been doing to prepare for its first tenants. Read More

When Days Aren't So Sunny | Sesame Street Takes on Homelessness

The New York Times: Lily, a fuchsia Muppet with a mop of hair, green eyelids and a lavender nose, debuted on "Sesame Street" seven years ago. She was shy and soft-spoken. Her family, she explained to Elmo, did not have enough to eat. At the time, Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit that produces "Sesame Street," wanted to create a Muppet that could help illustrate the food insecurity that was affecting nearly 17 million households with children.

Now, Lily will reappear for the first time, as someone who is homeless. In the story line, her family is going back and forth between shelters, crashing with relatives and staying with Sofia, a real-life person who works at the local community center. Read More

2018 Annual Homeless Assessment | HUD 12.16.2018

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): Homelessness in the U.S. remained largely unchanged in 2018, according to the latest national estimate. HUD found that 552,830 persons experienced homelessness on a single night in 2018, an increase of 0.3 percent since last year. Meanwhile, homelessness among veterans fell 5.4 percent and homelessness experienced by families with children declined 2.7 percent nationwide since 2017.

"Our state and local partners are increasingly focused on finding lasting solutions to homelessness even as they struggle against the headwinds of rising rents," said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. "Much progress is being made and much work remains to be done but I have great hope that communities all across our nation are intent on preventing and ending homelessness." Read More for detailed reports on homelessness in Iowa.