OUR HeartIS - Ability Housing

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Opening Doors to Independence
We all need affordable housing; it’s the definition of affordable that varies for each of us.
Ability Housing is creating housing for those with the greatest need – families and
individuals with disabilities or challenged by homelessness. We are the only housing
provider in our community with this focus and we have proven that we can be more costeffective than other programs while providing better outcomes.
To fulfill our mission we have several successful and important initiatives:
CASA: a unique and award winning program which provides affordable single-family
rental homes to our target population. We call the program CASA because each home is
Convenient, Affordable, Safe and Attractive.
Villages: our latest initiative to provide quality small apartment communities designed to
meet the specific needs of those we serve.
Preservation: created in recognition that one of the greatest challenges facing our
community is the loss of existing affordable housing units.
Neighborhood Partners: we desire to partner with existing community development
organizations to revitalize existing rental stock that may be negatively impacting their
neighborhoods.
Ability Housing is blessed with a dedicated and dynamic board of directors. Each is
committed to our mission and fulfilling our agency’s potential. e board includes a wide
range of area leaders representing the construction, real estate development, banking, legal
and health care industries.
What we really need to achieve our vision of affordable housing for our entire community
is you. We need your financial support. Providing affordable housing to families with
disabilities and challenged by homelessness is cost-effective, provides better outcomes and
improves the quality of life for those served as well as the entire community. To join us
please visit our website at www.abilityhousing.org or call 904.359.9650.
SHANNON NAZWORTH
| EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Thoughts From
Our Residents
“I love where I live. It’s a peaceful
neighborhood and the house is nice.”
-Walter
“I wanted to thank all of you for
making this dream come true for me
and my husband. We really love our
new home. Since I have moved into
my new house I have become more
independent and we have nice
neighbors. We like the neighborhood
very much. My dogs have a big yard.
I can plant flowers. I can decorate
my house the way I want to. It’s very
close to my job. Thank you for helping
me accomplishing one of my goals...”
- Kari
“ I love it! I got stores nearby, I got
Walgreens, Publix, a fruit stand and a
CVS down the road. It is quiet. I love
the house and I got it decorated. When
I have the chance, we go for a walk.
Otherwise, we can take the bus.”
-Allan
“I like my house very much. I
can clean the house, do laundry
and I like to do the vacuuming.”
-Sunny
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Michael Cochran BOARD MEMBER, ON HOMELESSNESS
Michael Cochran, board member for Ability Housing and VP of Health Services at
the I.M. Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless, has a unique perspective on the issue
of homelessness. Michael used to be homeless.
“e perception is that people who are homeless are drug and alcohol abusers. It’s not
so much a matter of abuse, mental illness or disability. e great majority of people who
have a chemical dependency, mental illness or some other disability do not become
homeless,” he says.
“Homelessness is primarily about a lack of resources. It is about
not having the resources or income to pay for housing.”
Michael goes on to explain that a lot of people have limited incomes and that as housing
costs have increased they are priced out of the market.e number one cause of
homelessness is the lack of an affordable place to live. Most homeless adults have a job,
but the jobs do not pay enough to afford a place to live.
With his support, Ability Housing has added the focus of increasing the availability of
affordable housing for extremely low income households. Ability Housing’s approach of
partnering with its residents and their supportive service providers is a national bestpractice. It provides a place for the person to live while they receive assistance in
stabilizing their life and improving their situation. Ability Housing is a leader in this
field because it is the only housing developer with a mission to create permanent housing
solutions for the homeless.
“Part of the reason I’m an advocate is my personal story,” Michael explained. “I grew up
in Jacksonville, had a family and a business but problems with chemical abuse led me to
being homeless. During that time I lived in shelters, on the street, in the woods and I
actually worked but couldn’t see a way out of my situation.”
With treatment and support, Michael was able to break the cycle of homelessness. He
now uses his experience to help others every day through his board work with Ability
Housing and at the Sulzbacher Center.
Betsy Zahn SPECIAL OLYMPIC CHAMPION & ABILITY HOUSING RESIDENT
Like any parents Max Zahn and Kit omas wanted all their children to grow up to be
responsible, independent adults. But they were especially concerned about their daughter
Betsy. Betsy is developmentally disabled and while there are other siblings in the family,
Max and Kit wanted to make sure that Betsy could live independently after they were gone.
Betsy is a very social and physically active person . She is involved with Special Olympics,
bringing home two medals from last year’s National Special Olympics. She also swims
for a Jacksonville team, the First Coast Dolphins Swim Team.
When Betsy moved to Jacksonville following completion of a special high school program
in Birmingham, Max remembered sitting through a Rotary presentation about support
services for the developmentally disabled.at led to Betsy renting an Ability Housing
home with two other roommates. She walks or rides her bike to work at Publix and has a
great circle of friends.
“As a parent I’m thrilled that my child gets to live an independent life
so that when we are gone she will know how to live,” said Max.
“What I like most about Ability Housing is that they seek affordable homes for disabled
adults in safe neighborhoods,” said Kit. “eir apartments or homes are always wellmaintained, are clean and they keep the rent affordable.”
For Betsy, the entire experience has been positive. She is able to work, socialize with
friends and live independently as a responsible member of the community. Ability
Housing is the only organization in our community providing affordable housing for
this target population.
With Ability Housing providing affordable, safe, and convenient places to live, Betsy
Zahn and her parents know that the experience has been successful for all of them.
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Reggie Fullwood BOARD MEMBER, ON WHY AFFORDABLE HOUSING HELPS
Reggie Fullwood is no stranger to the concept of affordable housing in Jacksonville. After
serving eight years on the Jacksonville City Council, he has seen how important the issue
is to the entire city. So when a current Ability Housing board member asked him to join
the organization, their mission was very appealing to him.
“Affordable housing is becoming more and more critical,” he explained. “e segments
of the population we serve – the developmentally disabled and the homeless – are often
on very low fixed incomes or barely making it with minimum wage jobs. Higher paying
job aren’t generally possible.”
e idea of providing quality affordable housing, not “slum lord” housing, is critical to
Reggie’s thinking.
“I guess I’m a softee at heart but I believe it helps the entire
community if all of us have decent affordable housing,”
“People living in bad conditions aren’t going to be model citizens,” he added. “Quality
affordable housing helps the crime issue as well. It is sort of a cycle that all ties together –
stable families, children in school, model citizens, less crime. If you can fix the housing
part of the chain then it will help strengthen all the other parts of it.”
Reggie is very excited to be part of Ability Housing because of the direction the
organization is headed. He knows that all those associated with this nonprofit are
making a significant difference. Since the economic impact of homelessness
affects everyone in a community, it stands to reason that more options for affordable
housing helps everyone – not just the homeless.
Jan & Wesley RESIDENTS, FEELING BETTER THANKS TO ABILITY HOUSING
Imagine facing a life-threatening disease while not having a home. In addition to not
feeling well, you might have to battle the elements when sleeping outside or not have
a place where a doctor can get in touch with you regarding your treatment.
at’s what Jan and Wesley were facing until about a year ago. Jan is now feeling
much better and very happy to be living in a house provided by Ability Housing.
Jan and Wesley came to Jacksonville several years ago from their native Lakeland,
Florida. Jan met Wesley there and according to her ‘they hung out together and
eventually got married.’
Jan and Wesley’s challenge has been finding an affordable place to live.
“Every now and then I’d rent a place but I couldn’t keep up with the rent or I
couldn’t afford the deposit and the rent,” she explained.
ey eventually found their way to the Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless where
they attended the Homeward Bound program. eir living coach helped them find
a home through Ability Housing.
“Having a home has made a huge difference in my life,” said Jan,
who is a cancer survivor and HIV positive. “I can stay clean and
I get to cook my own meals. I’ve gained a lot of weight since we
have the house and I can now refrigerate food.”
“I think it’s a great program,” she added. “I really believe that the way to go now is up!”
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The Need FOR ABILITY HOUSING’S SERVICES
Homelessness
Jacksonville and Clay County has seen an 82% increase in the number of homeless in
just the past seven years. ere are now over 17,000 people in our community who are
homeless. e percentage who have been homeless for a year or more has grown 73%
since 2004, to nearly half of all homeless individuals surveyed.
A vast majority of the homeless, 83%, are not chronically homeless. Twenty-four percent
have served in the active military, and nearly three quarters have lived in our community
for more than a year. Many of the homeless report having a disability, such
as mental illness, substance abuse, developmental or physical.
Other Adults With Disabilities
Most adults with a disablity live on very limited fixed incomes, including SSI and
low-wage jobs. Housing costs have risen dramatically creating unmanageable financial
problems for adults with disabilities. An average one-bedroom apartment in Jacksonville
costs more than the typical SSI payment.
Simultaneously, many housing assistance programs have been reduced causing
increased risk of homelessness for these individuals. For an estimated 1,000 others
living in overly-restrictive settings such as group homes and nursing homes, this means
they can not be released to a home of their own because they can not find an affordable
place to live.
The Savings TO COMMUNITY TAXPAYERS
Homelessness
Many people think of the cost of homelessness in terms of shelter beds and meal services.
However, there are other more substantial costs to our healthcare, criminal justice and
educational systems. For example:
• Criminal justice system costs such as police dispatch, courts, county jail and
arrests primarily for minor infractions such as trespassing
• Healthcare system costs such as emergency rooms, untreated illnesses,
unreimbursed expenses, ambulance service, crisis stabilization units
• Illnesses caused or exacerbated by homelessness
• Detox services
• Education system costs of extra services for homeless children
ese costs continue to multiply as homeless individuals receive a particular service only
to return to the streets because they have no place to live. e waste of staff time, taxpayer
resources, individual efforts and the impact on the dignity of the homeless is immense.
A 2004 analysis of Duval County conservatively estimated taxpayers pay $35,000,000 a
year on providing services for the homeless, without providing a solution to the problem.
Other Adults With Disabilities
e cost savings for adults with disabilities receiving supportive living services through
Medicaid programs when services are provided in the community as opposed to a
facility-setting are extensive. According to the Agency for Persons with Disabilities:
• Savings vs. a group home
$20,000 per person per year
• Savings vs. a nursing home
$60,000 to $70,000 per person per year
• Savings vs. state hospital
$100,000+ per person per year
Using these figures, the savings for Ability Housing’s CASA program residents vs. the
cost of services provided in a group home is well over $4.5 million in Medicaid
expenditures since 1999. Additionally, data from the Agency for Persons with Disabilities
states that personal outcomes are 50% greater when services are provided in a home of
one’s own as opposed to a facility-setting.
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How Ability Housing Uses Support
Income
6.30.07
Program Revenue
Grants
Community Support
23%
58%
19%
Expenses
FISCAL YEAR END
CASA Program
Villages Programs
G&A
Fundraising
72%
15%
10%
3%
A Special Thank You To:
($50,000+)
Michael & Pepi Kahn Family Foundation
LISC Jacksonville
Matovina & Company
PRINCIPAL BENEFACTORS
($25,000+)
e Wachovia Foundation
MAJOR BENEFACTOR
($10,000+)
Washington Mutual
BENEFACTOR
ABILITY HOUSING OF NORTHEAST FLORIDA , INC .
Board Of Directors
PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR
Robert Jacobs, Oberdorfer & Barry, PA
Jane Elkins, First Coast Brain
Injury Support Group
VICE PRESIDENT
DIRECTOR
Reggie Fullwood, Rhino Harbor, LLC
J. Russell Richardson, Substance Abuse &
Mental Health Services Administration
TREASURER
Greg Matovina, Matovina & Company
DIRECTOR
SECRETARY
Angela Brown Swenson, Swenson Law Office
Christina Schwing,
Holland & Knight LLP
Jan Wurster, EverBank
DIRECTOR
DIRECTOR
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Michael Cochran, IM Sulzbacher
Center for the Homeless
Shannon Nazworth, Ability Housing
of Northeast Florida, Inc.
Thanks For Opening The Door
Ability Housing greatly appreciates the support of all our donors who help to open the door
to independent living for our clients. ere are a number of ways to get involved including:
• Naming Opportunities •Publication Recognition •Benefactor Club •Key Club •Independence Club
To learn more about how you can make a tax deductible gift to Ability Housing, a 501c(3) charitable
organization, contact Shannon Nazworth at 904.359.9650 or [email protected].
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The mission of Ability Housing is to provide
quality affordable community based housing
with an emphasis on adults with disabilities.
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126 w. adams street, suite 502
jacksonville, fl 32202
904.359.9650 | www.abilityhousing.org
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Ability Housing is a unique nonprofit dedicated to
meeting the housing needs of families challenged by
homelessness and adults with disabilities wishing
to live independently within the community.