Dear Friend,

With a New Year upon us, I look back at the long road we’ve traveled since the Partnership for the Homeless was founded. It was a time when we were confident that, as a city, we would quickly find lasting solutions to the problems faced by countless men and women who suddenly appeared on our door steps.

But today homelessness is at a near-record high – and is now seemingly entrenched in our society. Most disturbingly, the crisis has shifted its major impact from single adults to families with young children.

Indeed, if you look into the face of a homeless person you’re likely to see a child, who can expect to spend a year or more languishing in a crowded city shelter. As of January 1^st, there were nearly 17,000 homeless children in our city, making up 40% of our entire shelter population.

Though as I reflect on the past, I also look forward to a better future. Yes, we know the years ahead will bring great challenges. Challenges for the Partnership – and for our city and nation.

But I know there’s reason for hope. 

As an organization we have aggressively moved to implement model programs that serve individuals and families through both short-term emergency responses and longer-term initiatives that help them thrive in new housing.

I also know that our strategic approach – an integrated strategy of direct service, research, and advocacy – will yield evidence-based best practices to tackle the enduring root causes of homelessness.

But we won’t be successful without you.  

Together, we need to build a broad movement to promote the collective will to ensure that no New Yorker lives in terrible fear of homelessness. And we need to tackle the systemic problems that lead to homelessness – the crushing poverty that forces families to choose between rent and food, the outrageous cost of housing that leaves too many with no choice at all, the shortage of jobs that pay a living wage, an education system that fails to prepare children for a secure future, and a safety net that’s in tatters.

So as we enter 2012, let’s renew our commitment to work side-by-side to promote real change. While it often seems slow in coming, I know you share my belief in the urgency of acting now. As a community, we have the power to make a genuine difference.

Warmly,

Arnold S. Cohen
President