Staff Feature

Blog Post

The City of Portland Shelter Services could not have served nearly 2,000 people experiencing homelessness in the past two years without the invaluable staff who provide daily support at our 10 alternative shelters. We asked our partners at these sites why they do this work. Here's what they said:

"When I meet with a participant for the first time, I say, 'I'm Leif, I'm here to support you. I know it might be a little overwhelming right now, but I have an open-door policy, let's see how I can support you.' I always first let them know that I'm just their advocate and whatever journey they choose in this whole process of working with me, is their choice. I act like a passenger in the driver's seat. They're the driver, I'm the passenger."

- Leif, Housing Case Manager at Cultivate Initiatives, a nonprofit organization which operates Menlo Park Safe Rest Village

"I'm in recovery, and it was really important early on in my recovery and still today to be around people who understand, who have the same goals and want to change their habits. When you come from a life of chaos, that's all you know."

"I love on the people that come through these doors. I empower them. Like I wanted to be empowered. I look at our guests, and I see myself. But I also see them as their best. And then I pour that into 'em. And it's not just me. It's a team. That's what we do."

"One of the guests that I used to interact with ran up to me, very emotional, and let me know that I saved her life. That was very touching. Because I didn't know that. So that gives me purpose in my own life to know that I helped her. I'm very, very grateful and I feel blessed to be able to have the opportunity to give back to my community. I have a passion for this. I found some purpose."

-Kaesha, Health & Wellness Director at Clinton Triangle

"I got into this line of work to give back. I have been in sobriety for several years now. I was in an active addiction for over 10 years. I lived in my car, I've been on the street, I've been in institutions, jails, treatments, detoxes, all of the things. And so when I come to work, I get to help other people. That is why I love this job. That is why I show up 5, 6, 7 days a week."

"I see people come in here every day, broken, bruised, tired, exhausted. There's a lot of different reasons why people end up in shelters. There's a lot of different reasons why people end up on the street. It's not something that we like to judge or assume here. We just accept you for who you are. Let's get you to the next step. We're here to help you. We want to help you get from point A to point B. Whatever point B is for you, that's fine, but we're here to help you get there if you want to. Because healing doesn't happen overnight. We've got to allow people time and space to do that."

-Ashley Duncan, Shelter Program Manager at River District Navigation Center

"It's a very exciting thing to get to the end of the line when all the paperwork's in, keys are ready, and somebody's transitioning into an apartment. What most of us don't know, and what we have kind of an unconscious competence about is all the things that we take for granted… like a driver's license and social security card, which you need to apply for an apartment. Or if you don't have income, (figuring out how to get) a housing voucher, which are not easy to come by. These are all the things that case managers help glean for people. It's basically a series of opening doors saying, 'Hey, this is a door to walk through. It's yours to walk through, you gotta do it, but I can identify the door for you.'"

"The sense of joy, pride, and even fear (our participants) feel as they set aside the freedom of wheels for the security of four walls is an incredible and tender thing to witness with somebody. It's awesome."

-Phil, Shelter Manager at Sunderland Safe Rest RV Park

"What really motivates me in this work is that while we have seen traditional shelter models that really focus on providing a safe place for people to stay, I feel excited about the ways we can be really innovative...not just the style of sheltering that we provide, but the programming. It is so exciting to grow as providers and grow our spaces to be person-centered. To be able to look at the individual and really ask what their needs are and provide precisely what they're asking for is unbelievably rewarding."

"If every day is about just getting to the end of the day and surviving and meeting your needs for that day, you're not gonna be thinking about the big picture. You're not gonna be thinking about big goals or dreams. And what our shelters are able to provide is a space where our participants can start thinking about those big goals and dreams because they have a place to rest."

-Eli, Director of Social Services at Sunstone Way, a nonprofit organization which operates three of the City's alternative, transitional shelters: BIPOC Village, Queer Affinity Village and Multnomah Village