Carson organizations work together to help the homeless

Carson City resident Jodi Miller, 41, knows what it’s like to live on the streets of Carson City, having spent years battling addiction to drugs and alcohol, drifting in and out of jail, searching for warmth.

“It’s hard being in that world,” she said. “If you don’t have something to offer, people aren’t going to let you in their house, so there were many times I would sit outside of the Nugget, in the cold for many hours, all hours of the night, and it was hard.”

Dec. 22, Miller celebrated five years of recovery. She’s back in school studying social work, is a certified peer support specialist and has worked for Friends In Service Helping, Vitality Unlimited and other organizations. Last year, after Night Off the Streets was awarded $148,770 in ARPA funding, Miller was hired as NOTS’ center manager.

“It’s where my heart is,” she said. “These people are so vulnerable, and they just need someone who has that compassion and caring personality to be able to help. They’re at their lowest. I’ve been there.”

Miller said if she can recover, so can others. Her personal experience helps her build rapport and credibility where others trying to help might fail.

“It’s really hard when you’re on the streets to hear somebody come at you with some stuff,” she said.

According to the NOTS website, the nonprofit was founded in 2017, a year after four people froze to death on Carson City streets. Local churches in the program have since offered nighttime space for unsheltered individuals November through March.

This winter, NOTS has seen around 20-30 people per night, with larger groups during snowstorms, Miller said. NOTS is a “low barrier” center, Miller explained, meaning people don’t have to be sober to get a place to sleep, though they can’t be disruptive.

“That’s the best thing that I love about NOTS is that everybody deserves a warm, safe place to sleep,” Miller said.

NOTs also connects people to services. Miller said she refers people to Carson City Health and Human Services or to FISH, which has its own shelter and program, or to Spirit of Hope, another organization providing housing.

“It just really depends, and it depends on what the agency offers,” she said. “We try to be knowledgeable on what all the agencies have to offer, so we can make an appropriate referral.”

NOTS is currently seeking a location for a permanent center to operate year-round. A dinner fundraiser for NOTS is 5:30 p.m. Friday in the Elks Lodge at 515 N. Nevada St. To buy tickets, call 775-600-2215.

“There is that stigma associated with people who are homeless,” said Miller. “If we can change that, change that stigma of addiction, of mental health, of homelessness, and kind of view it in a different light, then we can come up with solutions … We can come up with solutions together as a community.”

Outreach

Thursday, Carson City Health and Human Services (CCHHS) is performing an annual point-in-time count of unsheltered individuals in the community. Anyone interested in helping can call 775-887-2110.

“Ignoring it doesn’t make it go away,” Mary Jane Ostrander, human services manager, told the Appeal.

“Ignoring it costs more money,” added Nicki Aaker, CCHHS director.

According to CCHHS, there were 68 unsheltered individuals counted in Carson in 2023. In 2022, there were 69 unsheltered individuals. Those numbers reflect people on the streets without shelter at a given time. In general, “homelessness” can refer to those living with family or in motels, often a larger number. For instance, following the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, the Carson City School District tracks children experiencing homelessness. In 2022, the number of children was 230. That figure dropped to 186 in 2023, according to CCHHS.

Ostrander and Aaker estimated the city receives about $350,000 a year in state and federal housing grants. These funds are used to provide some emergency shelter through local motels and some transitional housing through local property managers who have available apartments.

“We don’t want to be in the shelter business,” Aaker emphasized. “Our goal is permanent housing.”
In 2023, CCHHS rehoused 84 individuals, the majority of whom found permanent housing. That number includes some who weren’t unsheltered but at risk of becoming unsheltered. When an individual becomes independent in permanent housing, the proverbial door is always open, said Ostrander.

“Once they stabilize, they don’t want to talk to us anymore,” she said.

CCHHS provides case management, tracking individuals and collaborating with other agencies and nonprofits for services. Many referrals CCHHS receives come from the Carson City Sheriff’s Office. However, CCHHS is temporarily contracting with Karma Box, another local nonprofit, to perform outreach tasks like locating homeless camps, cleaning camps, offering transportation and coordinating with CCHHS and CCSO.  

“Every person has their own issues that need to be dealt with in a certain way, so it’s not a cookie-cutter solution,” Aaker said. “You’re dealing with individuals.”

She further emphasized, “Sometimes, it takes years with some of these individuals.”
“Even the ones that don’t want services, you keep asking,” said Ostrander.

Law enforcement

Homelessness is not a crime, Sheriff Ken Furlong told the Appeal, but when homeless people commit crimes, they end up in custody.

“The role of law enforcement in homelessness is accessing services, getting people into shelters, to services needed. When we talk about homelessness and Carson City, we’re most often referring to those that are living on the streets,” said Furlong.

Looking at statistics from 2023, Furlong noticed “unwanted subject” was the second top call for services, with 1,212 calls logged. He attributed this high number to people calling in about homeless individuals.

“We have multiple layers of response for it,” he said. “Our first one is we have a deputy who has been assigned to respond to homelessness throughout the town. He keeps very close contact with them, their needs, their background and such. We have our mobile outreach team because mental health and homelessness are hand in hand.”

Calls to CCSO’s MOST unit (mobile outreach and safety teams) also were high last year at 966, and CCSO is considering adding more teams. The sheriff said CCSO works closely with NOTS and will take people to the churches for overnight shelter.

“Homelessness is a challenge. Where are the answers? I don’t have one,” Furlong said. “But we do everything in our capabilities to do our end of it. And law enforcement’s end is knowing who these people are and knowing how to connect them with resources.”

The sheriff said people should call 911 if someone is in crisis. For nonemergency situations, they can call 775-887-COPS (2677).

“People ask, ‘What can I do?’ There is a two-fold response to that. Where you see homelessness, that is not a coincidence. They are there because of something,” he said.

The reason could be family members in the area, he said. Sometimes, people “with great hearts” offer food or space. The sheriff cautioned against doing this, and he said authorities will respond if an individual is impeding a business.

“Generally speaking, our homeless population has been cooperative in moving along, and that’s because of the relationships of all these layers,” he said.

The best response, Furlong said, “is to support organizations both nonprofit and private that are experts or educated in dealing with the homelessness and how to get them off the streets and get them services.”

“That’s all of our jobs,” he said.