Champions of Change

Champions of Change Blog

  • A World Where All People Have Dignity, Communities Thrive, and Everyone Belongs

    Posted by Sol Flores on July 16, 2012 at 3:49 PM EDT

    Sol Flores is being honored as a Champion of Change for her work to combat homelessness among children and youth.

    Justice, Family and Achievement. These are the pillars of my core values.  My passion and determination to serve those in need is rooted in these values. It has been my greatest personal and professional privilege to be of service to others and work towards fulfilling our vision of a world where all people have dignity, communities thrive, and everyone belongs.

    Ten years ago, with an enormous amount of passion, faith and dedication, a small group of people came together to step out on a bold mission of impacting youth, family and Latino homelessness in Chicago. As the founding Executive Director of La Casa Norte, I had the opportunity to design, develop and sustain an organization that has impacted the lives of thousands of youth and family households in Chicago. We have been accountable for ensuring that our mission is implemented such that our clients achieve their outcomes and that we exhibit the best possible stewardship with the resources allocated to us. As the Executive Director, I have provided infectious enthusiasm and boundless energy at La Casa Norte as we reshape the physical infrastructure of our neighborhood and rebuild broken lives to foster hope, stable homes, and healthy communities.  When this happens, I know I am being true to my values.

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  • Keeping Families Together to Prevent Youth Homelessness

    Posted by Sparky Harlan on July 13, 2012 at 11:07 AM EDT

    Sparky Harlan is being honored as a Champion of Change for her work to combat homelessness among children and youth.

    It takes great leaders to tackle a huge issue like ending homelessness. I am proud to be working with the White House and the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) and to be recognized as a Champion of Change for working to end youth and family homelessness. 

    In 2010, when I first heard USICH announce the Opening Doors plan, which included ending youth and family homelessness by 2020, I was a bit skeptical. After all, I had been working with runaways and homeless street youth in the San Francisco/San Jose area for over 40 years. How was the country going to end youth and family homelessness during an economic downturn, when families were losing their homes to foreclosures and unemployment was climbing?

    Each year the Bill Wilson Center serves over 10,000 individuals in Silicon Valley, providing counseling, housing, education, and advocacy. It is estimated that on any given night there are 1,500 homeless youth in San Jose either on the streets, couch surfing, or trading sex for a place to stay. We provide a continuum of services for youth and young families that includes street outreach and a drop-in center for homeless youth, emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent and supportive housing. Our vision is to prevent poverty by helping youth make the connections they need to be self-sufficient adults. Our primary goal is to keep families together and teach them the skills they need to prevent future crises. 

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  • Helping Youth Make Positive Choices to Transform Their Lives

    Posted by Deborah Shore on July 13, 2012 at 10:31 AM EDT

    Deborah Shore is being honored as a Champion of Change for her work to combat homelessness among children and youth.

    I am so honored to have been chosen as a Champion of Change in the Fight Against Youth Homelessness. It has been my life’s work to shelter and care for runaway and homeless youth, and it is deeply gratifying to be recognized for these contributions. It is also humbling, as there are many people who are important in all of the successes I have had and for them, I am grateful. This award has caused me to be very proud of the road I have taken but also to reflect more than usual about the lessons learned.

    I began my work as a volunteer counselor at an early runaway shelter in Washington, D.C. and quickly became centrally involved with many young people who had a wide range of family backgrounds, internal resources and reasons for being homeless. I was utterly compelled by the dynamic changes these young people were experiencing and saw how valuable we could be as allies in the transformations that were occurring in their lives. 

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  • Advocating for the Health Care Needs of Homeless Youth

    Posted by Lisa Stambolis on July 12, 2012 at 11:37 AM EDT

    Lisa Stambolis is being honored as a Champion of Change for her work to combat homelessness among children and youth.

    I’m humbled to be recognized as a White House Champion of Change. I am deeply thankful for the acknowledgement. I am honored to work side by side with the youth of Baltimore City. They inspire me to do my best every day. My work with homeless youth, children and their families is both a privilege and a responsibility. The privilege is in serving, for which the rewards are endless, and the responsibility is advocating on their behalf.

    Most nurses work in hospitals, and so did I for my first five years as a pediatric nurse. I quickly realized that I wanted to expand my work beyond the hospital walls and in 1993, after earning my graduate degree to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner I worked with Health Care for the Homeless, Inc. (HCH). This was my first taste of real public health nursing and I was hooked. I spent the next four years absorbing the issues of poverty and health and witnessing firsthand their mutual side effects.

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  • A Collective and Comprehensive Effort to End Youth Homelessness

    Posted by Tricia Raikes on July 12, 2012 at 11:24 AM EDT

    Tricia Raikes is being honored as a Champion of Change for her work to combat homelessness among children and youth.

    Each night in the greater Seattle area, hundreds of children, youth, and young adults are unaccompanied and have no place to go for a warm, safe place to sleep. As a parent of three children, I find this fact heartbreaking and unacceptable.

    Our community collectively spends over $7 million a year to combat youth and young adult homelessness and we have some of the best non-profit organizations in the country working on the front lines. Organizations such as YouthCare, Mockingbird Society and others provide excellent case management, housing, employment and education services to vulnerable youth. We are known nationally for innovative programs like the Groundwork Project or Catalyst Project that provide low-barrier, wrap-around services for homeless youth with complex needs.

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  • Tackling Youth Homelessness Is Not a One-Person Job

    Posted by Steve Bewsey on July 12, 2012 at 11:23 AM EDT

    Steve Bewsey is being honored as a Champion of Change for his work to combat homelessness among children and youth.

    It’s only a gift if you give it away…

    For some reason, people draw a natural connection between Santa Claus and me. Of course, over the years, I have come to embrace that connection.

    Santa is known for his work with children…so am I. Santa is jolly…so am I. Santa is successful because he works with and for amazing people…same here. Santa likes to give gifts to everyone…so do I.

    But…the gift LifeWorks offers is not something you can toss in the air, operate with batteries, try on or drive around. Our gift is the deep belief that the youth we serve do not need to be changed – they do not come to us to be changed; they are already okay, and our only job is to keep them safe and offer them a caring relationship. This alone has the greatest potential to make a positive difference in their futures. With this belief guiding my work, I am humbled to be honored as a White House Champion of Change.

    For the past 42 years, I have worked to help youth and those helping youth learn that the kids are not the problem – the problem is the problem – and if we can work at fixing the problem everyone will win. Of course, tackling the issues of youth homelessness or child abuse is not a one-person job. But, if we as a community can come together and start addressing the issues, work collaboratively, be innovative in our approach and, most importantly, genuinely listen to those needing help, then we can certainly make headway and one day…who knows.

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