Hearth’s mission is to end elder homelessness. Our expertise is increasingly important as the problem grows. Massachusetts ranks second in the nation as the most economically insecure state for elders with the largest gap in the U.S. between income needed and median income. Hearth serves a diverse community of men and women in the Boston area who are at least 50 years old and homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless. The elderly homeless is an underserved and growing population for whom the impacts of aging compound the challenges of homelessness, and require solutions tailored to address geriatric health and behavioral health conditions. Hearth’s program of services addresses the needs of this population so that they can live with relative independence in community settings, as they continue to age.

Hearth began its work in 1991 when the increasing numbers of homeless elders in Boston prompted seven women with extensive professional experience in housing, social services, and health care to form the Committee to End Elder Homelessness. Now known as Hearth, our organization:

• Develops, operates, and locates affordable housing for homeless and at-risk elders
• Provides and links vulnerable elders with support and stabilization services integral to their well-being and success in housing; and
• Engages in research and advocacy to elevate the issue of elder homelessness to local, regional, and national policy forums for discussion and action

Hearth’s primary programs are service-enriched, affordable housing for low income and formerly homeless elders, and outreach and housing search assistance for homeless and at-risk older adults. Hearth currently owns or operates 188 units of permanent, supportive housing in seven locations within  Greater Boston. Hearth’s Outreach Program provides housing search and stabilization services to homeless older adults and homelessness prevention services to those experiencing housing instability.

Since inception, Hearth has made over 2200 placements of homeless elders into housing; over 2000 of these placements were made by the Outreach Program. Hearth has received 17 different local and national awards recognizing its community leadership, high-quality innovative programs, fiscal responsibility, and achievements in increasing the supply of affordable housing for vulnerable populations. In 2009, Hearth’s Outreach Program was recognized as a Social Innovator by the Root Cause/Social Innovation Forum of Cambridge. In 2013 Hearth was given the Excellence in Not-for-Profit Leadership Award from LeadingAge in recognition of Hearth's exemplary leadership and dedication to excellence and innovation in care and services for the aging.  In 2016, Hearth received a Community Hero award from Harvard Pilgrim Health Care.

Recent accomplishments include the opening of Hearth at Olmsted Green in Dorchester; working with the Massachusetts Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness, in partnership with the Executive Office of Elder Affairs to create the 2014 “Blueprint for Ending Homelessness among Older Adults” with an urgent vision that all older adults in Massachusetts have a safe, stable, and affordable home; the expansion of our Outreach Program; and the creation of the Community Advisory Council made up of residents and clients. In 2014 updated Hearth’s Strategic Plan. Following is some of our progress in the context of three of Hearth’s four strategic goals:

Goal 1:To increase the supply of permanent, affordable, and supportive housing for homeless elders and elders at risk of homelessness. The creation of affordable service-enriched housing is a challenging one, but Hearth continues to make progress, and today has 188 units. The 2012 opening of 59 units at Hearth at Olmsted Green in Dorchester is the latest example of successful collaboration between public and private partners. Hearth continues to work on identifying and exploring opportunities to create more units of service-enriched affordable housing.  Our newest development, Hearth at Four Corners at 16 Ronald Street in Dorchester is slated to open in 2018.  This will increase Hearth's housing portfolio by 54 units.

Goal 2: To place more homeless older adults into permanent, affordable housing, and help prevent homelessness for older adults who are at-risk of homelessness. Hearth’s Outreach Team has a Director and 6 case managers, five who work with homeless clients, and one is focused on homelessness prevention. This team works with approximately 325 of Boston’s elders each year, helping them navigate the often challenging process of finding a safe and permanent place to call home. Because of the low rate of turnover in Hearth housing, the majority of Outreach clients are placed in non Hearth housing.

Goal 3: To achieve national, state and local recognition of elder homelessness as a distinct problem requiring specific policy responses and tailored service solutions. Hearth’s partnership with the Corporation for Supportive Housing, Shelter Partnership, and LeadingAge has led to three national convenings and heightened awareness across the country of this under recognized issue, resulting in strategic thinking and the development of recommendations that we expect will lead to the creation of service-enriched affordable housing that meet the needs of this population in a cost-effective way. At the State level, Hearth was involved in creating Massachusetts' first Blueprint for Ending Homelessness among Older Adults with the Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness and the Executive Office of Elder Affairs.

As Hearth has grown to serve more elders, much of our government funding for services has been eliminated, reduced or remained level funded, resulting in a greater need from philanthropic sources to sustain our work as we pursue continued growth, and seek new government funding opportunities. Operating support, including support for capacity building and advocacy efforts, remains critical.

 In 2009, the Outreach Program required 44% from philanthropy and today 60% of the program is reliant upon philanthropy. In Hearth housing many Hearth services, including nursing and social work, are provided to residents who for a variety of reasons are not enrolled in programs that support it. Addressing resident needs result in timely interventions that lead to housing stability, better health, and cost savings.  In 2016, Hearth became a provider of the Pay for Success Program under a contract with the Mass Housing and Shelter Alliance.  We have 60 slots in the program that are provind much needed revenue for our Outreach Program.  The program's HUD funding was eliminated in February of 2016, so this new revenue source is critical to our ability to continue operating our award winning program.

 Hearth prides itself on its well-maintained homes. However, one of the challenges Hearth faces is that rental subsidies have not kept pace with the expenses of maintaining our residences. Therefore Hearth must seek private funding for capital repairs and improvements.

 Finally, resources are needed to support continued housing development. This includes funding for Hearth’s work with a consultant who provides advisory services in our efforts to create more affordable housing.

Dear Friends,

Too few of us know that homelessness among older adults is not only a serious problem, but that it is growing each year. Nor does it occur to most of us that elder homelessness involves a unique set of issues very different from those surrounding family homelessness or homelessness in younger individuals. The homeless elderly often suffer from mental health and substance use disorders, chronic medical conditions, or geriatric syndromes and are extremely high users of the health care system. Over the course of a year, 87% of homeless adults aged 50-69 in Boston had received ambulatory care; 70% received care in an emergency department; and 43% were hospitalized overnight. Much of this can be prevented with relatively simple interventions.

Hearth has created a model of service enriched housing coupled with outreach which brings elders into permanent housing successfully. Permanent, well managed housing for formerly homeless elders, combined with the right services for each resident, and supported by a collaboration of public, private and philanthropic partners, equals a humanitarian and economical end to elder homelessness.

While our work on the ground is here in Boston, Hearth’s mission is to end all elder homelessness. Hearth has been working to raise awareness across the country that homelessness among older adults and elders is a problem with a cost effective solution: supportive housing. The effort to shed light on this issue and share strategies that work has been welcomed and embraced by people and organizations who have been struggling as the numbers of homeless older adults continue to increase nationally.

Hearth found an important partner in The Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH), an organization with offices in eleven states that provides advocacy, expertise, leadership, and financial resources to make it easier to create and operate supportive housing. More recently, Los Angeles based Shelter Partnership, and national advocacy organization LeadingAge, joined Hearth and CSH to further this national dialogue about the growing problem of homelessness among older adults and elders, and the importance of permanent supportive housing as an effective strategy to address this issue.

Sincerely,

Mark D. Hinderlie
President & CEO

Dear Friends,

As we celebrate into Hearth’s 25th year, we are reflecting not only on our achievements of the past year, but on all that we have accomplished throughout the organization’s history. Hearth was formed in 1991 with a clear mission – to end elder homelessness – and we continue to pursue that goal with focus, commitment, energy and an unwavering conviction that our mission is achievable.

The past several years have been remarkably productive for Hearth and the culmination of much hard work over the years. A major accomplishment was the completion of Hearth at Olmsted Green in 2012, a 59 unit residence for homeless elders, and the result of many public and private partnerships. The project finished on time and on budget and was fully rented within months of opening, a testament to our dedicated team.

Over time, hundreds of elders have called Hearth residences home. Since inception, Hearth has placed more than 2400 elders who were homeless or at risk of homelessness in permanent housing. This includes more than 400 in our own supported housing and an additional 2000 through our Outreach Program, which finds permanent housing for seniors and links them with community based services for needed support.

Hearth’s challenges are several. We are undergoing rapid growth and expansion, which requires increasingly sophisticated systems to manage well. We receive support from public programs for our service-enriched housing, and maintaining this funding in difficult times requires continuous communication and negotiation with our dedicated public partners. We rely in large part on private support to carry out our work. It has been particularly critical for our Outreach Program, for our local and national advocacy for policies that prevent homelessness, for part of the cost of developing new residences, and for some supplemental services for residents for which there is little or inadequate reimbursement from public programs. Maintaining and growing private support for our expanding operations requires constant attention, public relations and fundraising.

Hearth’s achievements would not be possible without the consistent and generous support of individuals, corporations, foundations, and faith based organizations; the partnership of other non-profits; our public partners in the City of Boston and the Commonwealth; Hearth’s dedicated staff; the Board of Directors and Board of Visitors; and hundreds of volunteers. It is a great privilege to work with them. I am confident that, working together, we can indeed end elder homelessness. This is why I volunteer at Hearth.

Robert Wadsworth

Chair, Hearth Board of Directors

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