The History of the Homeless Coalition

The Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County is the lead entity for the Continuum of Care planning process in Tampa-Hillsborough County, Florida. Established in 1986 in conjunction with a state task force on homelessness convened by then-Governor Bob Graham, the Coalition is a nonprofit organization that was incorporated in June 2000. Coalition members include state, regional, and local government agencies and funders; the public housing authority; nonprofit organizations that provide medical, substance abuse, mental health, housing, and employment services; the local school district; individual businesses; homeless and formerly homeless individuals, and representatives of homeless advocacy groups; the faith-based community; veteran service agencies; and law enforcement and corrections.

The purpose of the Coalition, as stated in its bylaws, is “to bring together various entities, agencies, service organizations, and individuals to establish and maintain a concentrated effort to break the cycle of homelessness in Hillsborough County, Florida.” Towards this end, the Coalition seeks to prevent individuals and families from becoming homeless and to ensure the availability of a comprehensive and holistic continuum of housing and support services that assist persons who are homeless to become as self-sufficient as possible.
 

Functions of the Coalition include:

• Educating and Advocating members of the public on behalf of the homeless population,
• Directing resources for preventing at-risk families and individuals from becoming homeless,
• Improving links between homeless service providers and mainstream services providing health care, mental health care, substance abuse treatment and other emergency, preventative, and primary care services;
• Developing strategies to ensure the availability of stable employment opportunities and associated job training;
• Developing new approaches for providing temporary shelter opportunities for men, women, and children that include linkages to needed services;
• Planning for the development of transitional and permanent affordable housing, and permanent housing with support services.

Except as otherwise provided in the bylaws, the powers of the Coalition are exercised through and its affairs conducted by its governing body, the Board of Directors. Coalition bylaws require the Board to be comprised of no less than 7 and no more than 19 members. Directors must be affiliates of active members of the Coalition. Directors are nominated by the nominating committee and voted on by the members. Directors receive no monetary compensation, are elected for two-year terms, and may serve no more than two consecutive terms.

The Coalition’s general membership and Board of Directors meet 11 times a year. With the exception of the Nominating Committee, which meets on an as-needed basis, many standing committees meet at least once a month. Various work groups and ad hoc committees are appointed throughout the year to accomplish specific tasks, such as completion of the homeless survey or updating of the resource directory. These groups meet as often as necessary to accomplish the tasks assigned to them by responding to the needs of the community.

By Responding to the Needs of the Community, the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County’s challenge is to establish and maintain a concentrated effort to break the cycle of homelessness.

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