We wanted to share this recent story in The New York Times, which profiles our Built for Zero initiative to end chronic and veteran homelessness.
Here’s the set-up: three years ago, our 100,000 Homes Campaign an
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At the groundbreaking for the John and Jill Ker Conway Residence, Jill Ker Conway shared the following stories about how military service impacted her life and the lives of both her father, William Ker, who fought in World War I, and her husband, John Conway, who fought in World War II. Today this plaque hangs in the John and Jill Ker Conway Residence, a supportive housing residence for formerly homeless veterans in Washington, D.C.
Jill Ker Conway wrote this of an exceptional couple who had shaped the opportunity for her to become the history-making first woman president of Smith College.
Thursday in Washington, DC, we released Getting to Proof Points: Key Learning from the First Three Years of Built for Zero.
What’s your history? How did you end up at Community Solutions?
I have been involved with and working in the Brownsville community for the past 50 years. I have been a motivator for change and an advocate for youth services, and I have encouraged inclusion in the process to create a dialogue that can help Brownsville residents be a part of solutions here.
I retired in 2013 to care for my mother, who passed away in 2014, which left a void in my life.
Nearly 50,000 veterans continue to experience homelessness in America, but we're committed to solving that problem. As they always do, veterans are leading the way in that work! We're sharing the stories of our team members with military backgrounds and why they've chosen to continue their service here at Community Solutions:
What’s your history? How did you end up at Community Solutions?
I started my career as an infantry officer in the Army’s 101st Airborne Division and eventually made my way to law school. Although I had an amazing experience leading soldiers, I was also excited by the impact that I could have in the private sector. On my first day of law school, I met a professor whose focus was urban revitalization, and I found my calling. The mix of public policy, politics, business, law, and service was very appealing to me.
What’s your history? How did you end up at Community Solutions?
I started my career as a social worker in Columbus, OH before making my way to Los Angeles to help further develop the supportive housing industry for people experiencing homelessness.
As an organization and as a group of people working together, and with communities, to create a more just society, the violence and hate on display in Charlottesville and other cities in recent weeks goes to the heart of our work and what we are fighting for at Community Solutions. We stand against this violence and the groups, beliefs and mythologies that are motivating it.