Far from cutting affordable housing in Kansas, we could use more resources for those in need
I have a dear friend who I have helped with different issues over the years. She is a disabled senior with limited eyesight, and she also has no car. I met her about 11 years ago, and while I am much younger we care about each other.
About four years ago, I recommended that she sign up for a program I had heard about — Section 8. That's a housing assistance program funded by the federal government in which individuals in need — those who qualify — can apply and receive help in paying for a house or an apartment whose landlord takes the Section 8 voucher.
I told my friend: 'You should sign up for this. It may take a while to hear from them but I think it's a good program.'
I picked her up and drove her to the Topeka Housing Authority office, where she picked up an application.
It took a couple of years for her name to come up on the list, but she was approved. It was just in time because her rent at her apartment was about to go sky high, and she couldn't afford to pay. Without the Section 8 voucher, who knows what she would have done.
That is why when I read about proposed budget cuts to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development totaling $32.9 billion, along with the idea of creating a grant program to send rental assistance funds to the states, my heart grieved over the precious lives this would affect.
The people who work at the Topeka Housing Authority are very special people, including the vice president of rental assistance programs, Annette Brown. They work hard to make sure those with limited incomes, the disabled and seniors find safe, affordable housing.
We are in a time when homelessness is at an all-time high. If anything, we need more funding for housing programs, including those beyond Section 8. I attended a meeting for the public in which the former executive director of the Topeka Rescue Mission discussed homelessness and how so many individuals who grew up traumatized or experienced trauma as adults often end up homeless. Barry Feaker has a true heart for the homeless and has dedicated his life to the issue.
People such as Theresa Douthart and Sehera Hays at the Topeka nonprofit organization Breakthrough House give of themselves to help assist clients to find housing. Robert Sanders, chair of the board of directors for Breakthrough House, works at the Topeka Rescue Mission and he helps the individuals there find employment and work on job skills. His work is vital and much needed.
When I think of the Section 8 program, I think of my good friend who might have had nowhere to go if she had not received her voucher. These people are good folks who need shelter. It's time to make sure they get to stay in their dwellings and to continue to provide the funding they need to live a productive life.
The time is now to help those in need of a place to live. I worked as a volunteer writer at the international headquarters of Habitat for Humanity in 1997 for a brief time, and I saw people from all over come together to help those who I believe are God's children.
Let's be the light of Heaven to folks who would otherwise be homeless. Let's offer hope. It's needed more now than ever before.
Rebecca Lyn Phillips is a published author, speaker and mental health advocate. Through its opinion section, the Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
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