Soon after she graduated in 2008, Tasha found herself houseless as a result of a falling out with her family. A few years after applying for a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, she was filled with excitement when she finally received the news she had been waiting for in February of 2021. What was supposed ...
Read More The Long Road Home: Navigating the Rental Market as a Voucher Holder
Success Stories
Eighteen months after the first residents moved in to Hale Maluhia, there many milestones to celebrate. The program has served over 25 survivors and 44 children, all of whom have remained stably housed at Hale Maluhia or have transitioned to other permanent housing in the community. The twenty apartment units remains at capacity, and vacancies ...
Read More Continuing to Serve – Hale Maluhia
The Office of the Governor’s Coordinator on Homelessness frequently receives messages from individuals who are concerned about family members or friends who may have become homeless while living in Hawaii. Our office is usually contacted as a last resort, after months – sometimes years – of unsuccessful attempts to reach their loved ones. When we ...
Read More Reunification Story – Calvin in Waikiki
The Haleiwa Project came about because it simply made sense to its partners: Alternative Structures International (ASI)/Kahumana, Residential Youth Services & Empowerment (RYSE), and ALEA Bridge. RYSE became involved because the former occupant of the property (Central Oahu Youth Services Association) and the Haleiwa community wanted the site to continue to serve youth. Meanwhile, ASI/Kahumana ...
Read More RYSE Haleiwa Project
In late June, the Office of the Governor’s Coordinator on Homelessness received an email from a Laie community member about a gentleman named “John” who had been living at a bus stop for several months. John had numerous bodily ailments and had trouble walking, but was friendly and non-threatening. John hailed from Utah and had ...
Read More Helping the homeless takes time, many hands and lots of patience.
About four years ago, “Anna” met a man online who “was very kind” to her. They struck up a long-distance relationship in which they chatted by video several times a day. Anna, who has a young son from her ex-husband, decided to come to Hawaii to visit the boyfriend because she figure that if he ...
Read More New Beginnings at Hale Maluhia – An Ohana Zones Project
Hale Kipa’s Step-Up Housing Program on O‘ahu assists former foster youth in obtaining a safe and affordable place to call home. Under the City & County of Honolulu’s Family Unification Program (Section 8), Step-Up Housing provides Housing Choice vouchers to youth aging out of foster care. Participants receive a voucher, funded by the U.S. Department ...
Read More Hale Kipa’s Step-Up Program
Did you know that Residential Youth Services & Empowerment (RYSE) has a medical clinic on its Kailua campus? It specializes in adolescent health care, with linkages to family planning, behavioral health and substance abuse treatment. It also offers COVID-19 testing, tuberculosis screenings and pre-employment physicals. “RYSE clinic plays an essential role in empowering these young ...
Read More The Medical Clinic at RYSE – An Ohana Zones Project
Each day, hundreds of domestic violence survivors and their children receive shelter and housing services from providers statewide1. While the array of supportive services offered ranges from counseling and safety planning to emergency sheltering and housing, all providers agree: more resources are needed to meet the growing demand. In March 2020, the City & County ...
Read More Changing Lives at Hale Maluhia – An Ohana Zones Project
Kupa ʻAina, a program of Partners in Development Foundation, is centered on restoring indigenous foods and food systems for the people of Hawaii to support the eradication of poverty by improving food equity for future generations. Now in the second year of operation, Kupa ‘Aina operates a five-acre demonstrative commercial luau farm practicing natural farming methods to establish ...
Read More Residential Youth Services & Empowerment (RYSE) and Kupa ‘Aina