Sign Welcome Home Coalition’s petition to ask Portland City Council and Multnomah County to stop funding the expansion of mass shelters and sweeps and invest in peer support, rental assistance, and case management.
https://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/FH-featured-sq-min.jpg400400Liz Starkehttps://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/header_logo.pngLiz Starke2025-10-27 15:21:082025-10-29 16:52:56Welcome Home Coalition: Read the 2025 Report and Sign the Petition
The Portland Metro Area has a high funding per capita investment to solve the homelessness crisis, and yet our results are lackluster. What we can do collectively to have more of a positive impact on people’s lives is paramount to Rose Haven’s mission.
Welcome Home, a multicultural alliance in the Portland metro region generating a movement for housing justice, released a policy brief in April. The data on the current homelessness situation in Portland is sobering, but there are recommendations, tested and proven in other cities, for Portland to better leverage the investments being made to help our vulnerable populations secure stable housing.
Read on for a short summary of the brief, and then check out and share the full paper to learn more. Hoping this sparks conversations within your community.
What is driving the housing crisis?
Rising rental prices and lower vacancy rates
Portland is higher than the national average. According to Redfin, Portland’s rental increase rate was DOUBLE the national average between 2021 and 2022 at 39%
It’s not surprising then that during the same period, Multnomah County saw a 30.2% increase in people experiencing homelessness since 2019.
Today, one in four renters pay more than 50% of their income for housing costs. In East Portland, the number is even higher – one in three. If you need to pay more than a third of your income on housing, you are considered Rent Burdened.
Finding an affordable place to live is directly tied to your income. The Gap report released in the spring shows that in 2023 in the Portland metro, individuals making at least $81,000 can find an available and affordable place to rent. But this percentage drops significantly if the individual is living on $41,000 or $25,000 or less a year.
Over 80% of evictions in the Portland metro area are consistently for nonpayment of rent.
What has been Portland’s response?
The main policy solution to ending homelessness has been prioritizing shelter. Called the “Community Sheltering Strategy”, this policy has expanded shelter capacity by 107% since 2022. Regardless, the FY23 auditor’s report revealed bleak results with only 24% of people moving into permanent housing from a shelter. Net-net, the policy is driving long term homelessness instead of decreasing or ending it. Data also indicates that there has been a decline in moving individuals from emergency shelter into permanent housing.
In addition to the meager results of the investment, shelters are not a preferred housing solution by those in need of shelter.
The Good News
Other cities are seeing success by implementing different policy approaches. Portland can learn from these proven approaches to successfully reducing homelessness.
Los Angeles has seen a decrease in unsheltered homelessness after adopting practices borrowed from Houston, including encampment resolution efforts, forming a strike team to prevent bureaucratic and policy related bottlenecks, identifying multiple people for every supportive housing unit though a single universal housing application, and leasing entire apartment buildings.
Houston has seen steady declines in homelessness by focusing on public investment on permanent housing support in conjunction with looser permitting requirements to accelerate housing construction.
Milwaukee reduced overall by homelessness by 46.3% and cut unsheltered homelessness by 91.8% in five years, success attributed to investing more in Housing First practices than in shelter.
A Housing First Strategy is based on five core principles
Providing Immediate Access to Housing without “readiness conditions”
Ensuring consumers have choice & self determination in their path to housing
Taking a recovery orientated approach that provides the resources individuals identify as needed to re-stabilize their lives
Individualized & person driven supports for addressing their personal circumstances
Facilitating social & community integration.
Welcome Home supports an investment shift to provide a stronger emphasis on housing and support services.
It’s National Make-a-Will Month! Did you know that nearly 2 out of 3 American adults still don’t have an up-to-date will? August is the perfect time to take a simple yet powerful step to protect your loved ones, plan for the future, and support the causes that matter to you. We’ve partnered with FreeWill to make this step easier than ever.
Rose Haven is proud to provide community, support, and love for our neighbors experiencing homelessness and poverty. But we can’t do it without you. We rely on funding from our community to maintain our programs–and budget cuts under the current political climate mean that, in times like these, your support is needed more than ever. By making your estate plan, you can pass on your values and make a difference in stories like this, today and tomorrow. Our partner, FreeWill, can help you make or update your will in just 20 minutes at no cost.
There are also ways to make a difference now. Donating stock or cryptocurrency is a chance to see your generosity at work and be part of the change you want to see. Giving appreciated assets allows you to witness the impact of your generosity in your lifetime—supporting your community and continuing Rose Haven’s mission for generations to come.
Statement from Rose Haven Executive Director Katie O’Brien:
At Rose Haven, our work has always been rooted in compassion, dignity, and the unwavering belief that every person deserves safety and stability. That includes our guests and the incredible staff who make our mission possible.
Over the past several months, Rose Haven staff engaged in a thoughtful process to explore union representation. That process has now concluded, and our team has voted to unionize with ILWU Local 5. We respect this decision and are committed to moving forward in good faith.
The next step is collective bargaining, and we enter this phase with care, collaboration, and a shared commitment to our values. Our mission remains unchanged—and our services to guests continue with the same care and consistency our community counts on.
We’re proud of our team, and we’re grateful to everyone who stands with us in this work.
Rose Haven guests had the opportunity to respond to the prompt, “What do you wish people knew about homelessness?” Some guests preferred to keep their responses private, but others wanted to share their responses with you. Here’s what they said…
“That we are grateful for the assistance we receive. Without the generosity of others we would not be able to survive as well as we do. We are not all bad people. Many have strong held values and moral integrity. We can also contribute to society if given opportunity even if we can’t ‘work’ we would love alternative ways to earn money when we can’t hold a job.”
“Well, it’s a 24 hour survival thing. It’s very dangerous and lonely. I’m not happy at this time.”
“It sucks being homeless hardly any privacy people stealing other people’s personal belongings no respect no remorse.”
“Nowhere to go and weather is beyond extreme (cold and hot). Money only goes so far and no money half the month or so and no place to go behind four walls like on weekends when some day shelters in area [are closed].”
“The loss of self-worth associated [with homelessness], the isolation, the depression, the decrease in ambition, drive, and motivation. The will to keep trying because the world has given up on you—therefore you give up on yourself because it feels like proof that you no longer matter because you’re not worthy of a shelter or housing. Also the courage and challenge to ask for help when I personally was taught that I’d be punished for.”
“You would be surprised where some of us have been before we got here. Engage us and strike up conversation… what you may be curious about, a lot of us would be glad to tell you. Tuck and roll off that high horse it’s a long way down – I never thought I’d be here either. After COVID, 64% of families in the US have been 1 pay day or medical crisis away from sudden and catastrophic $ crisis and/or homelessness.”
“I do not like being pitied for living outside. I’ve survived some pretty severe abuse and domestic isolation and abuse and I do not have to suffer at the hands of another trauma victim who controls my life, and keeps me shut away from the world any longer. I believe and know now—homelessness freed me from that co-dependent, sexual, emotional, and physical abuses. If someone hurts me I can walk away and know that I do not have to stay with an abuser to survive.”
“Please don’t judge us all because of the poor behavior of one person. I am decently educated and fairly well spoken… Lastly, be kind! If we have enough to be ok that’s plenty!”
About the Responses
Guests addressed misinformation and stigmatization from the larger community in their responses. What was unexpected was the diversity, complexity, and intimacy of the responses provided by the guests. Guests used the prompt not only to explicitly correct misinformation or challenge stereotypes but also to share stories of the physical and emotional experience of homelessness, as well as their experiences navigating social services. Some guests wanted to share positive experiences with homelessness such as a preference for being in nature rather than living a traditional lifestyle or describing homelessness as a freedom and escape from domestic violence.
This writing exercise allowed guests a means to reduce feelings of invisibility while encouraging empathy from the larger community. Regardless of how participants chose to respond to the prompt, many of them expressed emotion, describing incredibly intimate feelings and experiences related to their homelessness. While many did aim to address misinformation, most expressed a desire for empathy from community members and an opportunity to share their stories. As one participant shared: “Engage us and strike up conversation… what you may be curious about, a lot of us would be glad to tell you.”
We need more caring people like you to engage in community with our guests, whether that’s through volunteering your time or donating so that we can continue to do the work that we do in meeting basic needs, reducing the harms associated with homelessness, and getting folks into housing. At Rose Haven we strive to go above and beyond for our guests because every person deserves their humanity, autonomy, and a community that listens. Thank you for taking the time to read a bit about our guests today!
Want to learn more about homelessness in our city? We want to learn what you know!
My name is Sarah Smith and I am a student intern at Rose Haven studying Psychology at Lewis & Clark College. When I’m not at school or working at Rose Haven, I run a small outreach organization with some friends in my neighborhood, distributing food, water, hygiene items, clothes, safer drug use supplies, and outdoor survival gear to my neighbors who are living outside.
Over the course of my time doing outreach, and throughout my shifts at Rose Haven, I have had the opportunity to hear stories from people living outside about their experiences with homelessness. Again and again I hear from people that they wish their housed neighbors would take time to get to know their stories and learn about what it’s like to be homeless. As someone who experienced temporary homelessness as a teenager, I understand what it’s like to feel invisible to the larger community, and was moved by these stories to initiate a project that gave Rose Haven guests an opportunity to share experiences of homelessness with their housed neighbors.
For my senior capstone project, I decided to write about misinformation and stigmatization of people experiencing homelessness, while advocating for opportunities to uplift narratives of people with lived experience to increase empathy and dispel stereotypes. If you’re interested in learning more about my project reach out to research@rosehaven.org.
https://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-04-142302.png6091098Liz Starkehttps://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/header_logo.pngLiz Starke2025-06-10 13:56:042025-07-30 16:13:59What Rose Haven Guests Wish You Knew About Homelessness
Rose Haven’s Reigning Roses Walk which took place on Mother’s Day was highlighted on the front page of The Oregonian on May 11th. The article highlights the efforts of our volunteers, attendees, donors and the centers mission in providing food, clothing, shower and care to women, marginalized genders and kids who need it the most.
Three Reigning Roses Walk attendees on route of the walk (Mark Graves)
As volunteers set up swag bags for people who would be taking part in the 5k walk through Northwest Portland’s Alphabet District, Sarah Hobbs sat a table wearing a colorful outfit decorated with the “Star Wars” logo and characters. Hobbs clutched a stuffed figure of Grogu, the lovable character from “The Mandalorian” TV series, affectionately known as “Baby Yoda.”
Sarah Hobbs was among the people who attended the 2025 Reigning Roses Walk, a fundraising event for Rose Haven.Kristi Turnquist/The Oregonian
“I started coming to Rose Haven in 1997,” Hobbs said. After some tough years, Rose Haven has been a source of support, helping her with housing and other needs.
“This is really what supports our programs all year,” Liz Starke, head of development, stated. This is the twelfth year Rose Haven hosted the event and the fundraising goal was $250,000. The shelter had met that goal and more before the walk even began, Starke said.
“Right now, we’re all strained,” Starke said of Rose Haven and other nonprofits, “and we’re seeing increasing need.”
Marshell Hines, 62, found help from Rose Haven following an accident that left her with a traumatic brain injury that made it impossible for her to work. She was homeless for a time, sleeping on the street, “dazed and confused,” she said.
Marshell Hines, Rose Haven guest and Reigning Roses attendee. Kristi, Turnquist/The Oregonian
“Thanks to Rose Haven, I became a new person,” Hines said. Staff there helped her get her current apartment and now, as she said, she feels like she’s “on top of the world.”
“I just support women,” said Heidi Needham, 43, who was joined by her husband, Ivan Needham, 51. Attending the walk on Mother’s Day was especially meaningful, Needham said, because “I want to support mothers.”
Rose Haven volunteer serving food at the center during the Reigning Roses celebration (Mark Graves)
We want to thank the support of The Oregonian for showcasing the efforts of the Rose Haven community.
Our partners at the Common Law Center will be available to meet one-on-one our guests several times over the next few months! Guests will be able to work with an experienced family law attorney and receive legal advice on matters such as divorce, custody, restraining orders, name and gender marker changes and more.
Stronger Together: Fighting for Women, Children, and Safe Shelter
Rose Haven is proud to provide day shelter, vital resources, and trauma-informed care to our community members. Although Rose Haven is the only day shelter specifically serving women, families, and children in Portland, we haven’t been working alone. Our services are made possible through our membership to the National Women’s Shelter Network, or the NWSN. Every year, over 1 million women and 2.5 million children experience homelessness in our country. Our mission is to make it none. Follow the NWSN to stay updated and informed.
The NWSN is a united network of women’s and family shelters and safe havens who serve and protect overlooked, marginalized, and vulnerable populations. With 400+ members and growing, the NWSN provides shelter, safety, and support to women, children, and families facing homelessness and trauma across the nation. Safe shelter saves lives.
The achievements of the NWSN display the strength that comes in numbers. By fostering a collaborative repertoire of shared information, resources, and solutions, its members are more adequately equipped to achieve their goals of serving their communities and ending and preventing homelessness. Thanks to this network, Rose Haven has been able to raise awareness about the homelessness crisis as well as gender-based violence as a cause of homelessness and its disproportionate impact on women and children. But we’ve gone farther than raising awareness–this membership has enabled us to make real-world impacts and save lives.
Safe Shelter Saves Lives
The NWSN aims to amplify the voices of women, challenge stereotypes, and raise awareness. Homelessness can happen to anyone, and gender-based violence makes women, children, and families especially vulnerable. We should ensure that these populations have access to safe shelter and resources.
The streets are no place for families to live. That’s why Rose Haven produces spaces designed specifically to keep women, gender-queer individuals, and children safe and to provide them with the support that they need. Access to safe shelter shields against violence, crime, weather conditions, and the other dangers of the streets. To empower our guests, we emphasize radical hospitality, trauma-informed care, advocacy on an individual and community level, and meaningful connections to resources.
Shifting Federal Terrain
Shelters and safe havens like Rose Haven are the nation’s last safety net for the vulnerable populations that we serve. We act as first responders for women, children, and families facing homelessness, but the current federal landscape is shaping our ability to do so.
The types of services provided by the Rose Haven are under siege from the current administration; the elimination or suspension of Federal grants could hinder shelter programs and services, make it difficult to maintain staffing levels, and pose threats to our basic operations and programs. Additionally, the threat of ICE raids looms large over programs like ours.
These barriers would jeopardize our abilities as first responders and put the lives of women, children, and families even more at risk. In times like these, we need your support more than ever. Donate through our website and follow the NWN to stay updated about our mission!
I’m Cam Wilder, and I serve as an Integrative Health Student Intern from the University of Portland. As part of my internship experience, I was tasked with implementing a health promotion or education project to benefit Rose Haven’s guests. Past projects by interns have taken the form of health related events or formal needs assessments, but I knew that I wanted to do something a bit different.
Throughout my internship, I served in direct hospitality roles to assess which needs were still left unmet before deciding on my project. At Rose Haven, guests have access to plenty of tangible resources—food, supplies, and clothing. Hygiene resources and medical attention are prioritized through the wellness desk and in the clinic. As for emotional support, you can feel the sense of community the moment you walk into Rose Haven. My early experiences with Rose Haven demonstrated that they are able to meet most, if not all, of their guests’ basic survival needs. I knew I needed to dig deeper to find out how I could add to the guests’ experience.
During a conversation with a guest, inspiration struck. I sometimes volunteer in a weekly yarn group that Rose Haven holds every Friday, and one week I had the opportunity to sit down, chat, and crochet with guests. One of the guests I was chatting with about my project asked for more mental health resources, and mentioned that it would be great if Rose Haven brought in therapy dogs. So I did some research on the health benefits of working with therapy animals and found thatspending time with trained therapy animals can increase happiness and decrease anxiety.
Guests often bring their pets when they visit Rose Haven, exciting other guests and staff alike and bringing more joy into the space. While Rose Haven frequently has pets that accompany their owners, I decided it would be impactful to expand the therapeutic experience of being in the company of animals to make it accessible for all guests.
Maddy Linder (Rose Haven’s Mental Health Manager), Shannon Duggan (another University of Portland Student Intern), and I strategized to make the event happen. We researched non-profits in the Portland area that send out therapy dogs to various locations to help reduce stress, and DoveLewis’s Portland Area Canine Therapy Teams (PACTT) was a perfect match.
We met with PACTT director, Kathy Loter, and she coordinated with her team to send a pup and their owner to Rose Haven for a one-hour session. We were extremely grateful to welcome Jenny Collins and her sweet puppy Metzi to Rose Haven on Tuesday, April 15 for our first Rose Haven-PACTT event!
Everyone involved—PACTT, volunteers, staff, and guests—responded with overwhelming positivity. Each guest spent ten minutes petting, chatting, and relaxing with Metzi, and those ten minutes seemed to have quite the impact. Stress was low and spirits were high after their experience. Several guests completed a short survey and every one of them shared that they felt happier and calmer after spending time with the therapy animal.
Metzi reminded guests of their own pets, giving them the time and space to reflect on how important their animals are to their overall well-being. Even after ten minutes, I could sense an emotional release, and the guests’ stress seemed to dissipate after sharing their time with Metzi. It’s safe to say that Rose Haven guests wouldn’t oppose another visit from a PACTT pup!
This one short visit with a therapy animal sparked emotional vulnerability and healing—and it’s only the beginning. With PACTT’s interest in a long-term partnership, we hope therapy dog visits can become a regular source of comfort for Rose Haven guests. What began as an open-ended internship project turned into something far more meaningful—for Rose Haven and for me. I’m grateful to have played a part in bringing relaxation and connection to a space already so full of care.
Want to support our guests and their furry friends?
We are always looking for more donations of these supplies:
https://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/paws-centered.jpg430800Liz Starkehttps://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/header_logo.pngLiz Starke2025-04-28 13:11:042025-07-30 16:16:36A Time for Paws: Therapy Dog Brings Comfort to Rose Haven Guests
We were honored to take part in Rip City Remix’s Celebration Game Series during their G League season! On Saturday, March 22nd, we participated in Women’s Empowerment Night to highlight and uplift women in sports and across our community. Our development director Liz Stark joined Remix president Hannah Grauert on Katu2 ABC to share our mission.
https://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ScreenShot2025-06-26at10.37.51AM.png852892Liz Starkehttps://rosehaven.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/header_logo.pngLiz Starke2025-04-26 10:29:002025-07-30 16:17:04Rip City Remix & Rose Haven: Women’s Empowerment Night
