“How Did I Get Here?” Tacoma Parents Reflect on Losing Home in StoryCorps Interview

Franklin and Sherry Gilliard live in transitional housing with their three children in Tacoma. Image credit: StoryCorps.

The Gilliards never thought they'd experience homelessness. Then the Great Recession hit, and their small business struggled. Drowning in debt, they eventually lost their home and moved their family of five into a shelter. Listen to their story, check out an infographic about child homelessness in Washington, and learn what you can do to spark change.

I’m an Advocate: August Mallory

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This Veterans Day, we thank members of the armed forces for their service. We also recognize that too many of these brave men and women experience homelessness when they leave the service. Today we hear from August Mallory, who served in the US Navy for 10 years, and later slept on the streets after the warehouse where he worked closed.

“Stepping Into Homelessness”: Domestic Violence and the Power of Empathy

Vince Matulionis and Catherine Hinrichsen talked about ending homelessness in their StoryCorps recording. Photo courtesy of StoryCorps.

Many families in our community face “an untenable choice”: Staying in a domestic violence situation, or leaving and stepping into homelessness. In a new three-minute audio story, edited from a StoryCorps recording, Vince Matulionis of United Way of King County tells colleague Catherine Hinrichsen of Seattle University about how empathy for that experience drives his work.

I’m an Advocate: Sharon Jones

Sharon Jones protests a plan to turn low-income housing into for-profit housing. Image credit: Tenants Union of Washington.

We're happy to feature stories and advice from another amazing advocate, Sharon Jones. Sharon is a Real Change vendor and a recent graduate of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance’s Emerging Advocates Program. Motivated by her belief that nobody -- and especially not military veterans -- should be without a home, Sharon is a tireless advocate.

I’m an Advocate: Lisa Sawyer

Featured advocate Lisa Sawyer greets Washington State Rep. Brady Walkinshaw at a meeting of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance's Emerging Advocates Program. Photo credit: WLIHA.

We're thrilled to re-introduce our "I'm An Advocate" series, which highlights great work being done across the state to end homelessness, and aims to inspire you to engage in advocacy in your own way. We've gotten to interview several inspiring advocates who work with Real Change, and we're excited to feature their stories and advice over the next few months. Kicking it off for us is the wonderful Lisa Sawyer.

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