SHAWN LOE & DENYSE SCHWENGELS-LOE

We would have been homeless on the streets without LCSA.

We got into the transitional housing program through the union and LCSA. We were not prepared for the actual help we were going to get. We usually didn't qualify for things because we are married and only I (Shawn) can work. We entered the program after being unable to afford our rent on our home, and then running our credit out on motel rooms. If it hadn't been for the union/union coworkers, we would have been stranded on the streets with our cats and no money.

Homelessness is not just people on drugs or with mental health problems. It's a combination of everything and you have to stay focused and disciplined or you won't make it. We were in trauma-response mode.

Our barrier was our credit. The transitional housing program helped us; we stepped into a minefield of resources when we entered the program because it is tailor-fit to meet your barriers. Caseworkers are there to glean how to best help you because everyone has unique barriers. They helped us with wrap-around services like food stamps and disability. They had funding that helped pay our utility debt, legal fees, overdue storage unit bills, and cell phones. We are thankful because we went from being in survival mode to coming out of it.

It was two years to the day that we entered the transitional housing program, and then entered into our own home that we got to pick! The program funds paid our move-in fees, security deposit, first month’s rent, pet fee, and moving truck/moving labor. It was a blessing and the best thing that could have happened to us.