Bulletin Board
The place where you can stay up to date with the latest events, stories, news, and opportunities for our City Relief community.
Week 6: An Invisible Crisis that Requires a Visible Response
Mental health is something I don't fully understand. Serious mental illness runs in my family, and chances are, it touches yours too. Maybe you've lived through a difficult season—depression, anxiety, or something harder—or walked with someone else through it. Mental illness is more common than we admit, and more complex than it appears.
Week 5: What We See, What We Judge: Substance Use Disorder, Homelessness, and Compassion
I've seen more track marks than I'd care to admit. I've poured bottles of liquor down storm drains handed to me by guests on their way to rehab. I've also lost dear friends to overdose, and it's heartbreaking when someone is finally ready for help, but can't access it due to insurance issues or restrictive Medicaid coverage.
Week 4: Mental Healthcare on the Streets
I met Maria in Harlem on a brisk April day in 2020. The city had come to a standstill. The world was telling everyone to "stay home," but Maria didn't have one. We were standing under the Metro-North tracks on Park Avenue, handing out meals in a city that had shuttered itself. As an organization, we didn't know what the consequences would be if we kept showing up. But we knew what would happen if we didn't.
The Vicious Cycle — How Homelessness Causes and Is Caused by Mental Illness
We like clean categories—stories that move neatly from cause to effect. But homelessness and mental illness defy that logic. This isn't a one-way street. It's a loop. A feedback cycle. A system that wears people down until even the strongest begin to break.
Week 2: A System Designed to Fail — How Deinstitutionalization Fueled Homelessness
When we look at the intersection of mental health and homelessness, we have to start with a critical turning point in U.S. history: the deinstitutionalization of psychiatric hospitals. Beginning in the 1960s and accelerating through the 1980s, states across the country closed large-scale mental health institutions with the promise of replacing them with community-based care.
Unhoused, Not Unwell: Rethinking Mental Illness and Homelessness
"Steve" is smart, articulate, and kind. But years of surviving on the street had aged him well beyond his years. His beard, tattered clothes, and slouched shoulders reflected what his quiet voice confirmed—he was struggling.
The Beautiful Minds That Refuse to Look Away
As Autism Acceptance Month comes to a close, I want to do more than acknowledge the challenges autistic people face, I want to celebrate those who are leading the charge for justice.
Moving from Awareness to Action: Reimagining a World for Unhoused Neurodivergent People
After sharing my last post about the intersection of autism and homelessness, I kept thinking about what happens after we finally see the problem. What comes next? Awareness is important, but it’s not enough.
Autism, Homelessness, and the Safety Net We Still Don’t Have
When I first started working on the streets of New York City and New Jersey, I was 24. I didn't have kids. I knew almost nothing about autism—especially how overwhelming noise, bright lights, and chaos could be for someone with sensory sensitivities.
Autism, Developmental Disabilities, and Homelessness
His name was Wes. He was in his late forties or early fifties, living in one of New York City's largest shelters on Ward's Island. Every Friday and Saturday, he’d come to our Harlem outreach, dropped off by a city bus, which transported residents into Manhattan to look for jobs, go to appointments, or simply pass the time.
The Power of Human Connection.
In a major city like NYC, it’s surprisingly easy to feel lonely. These days, it seems like connecting with others is difficult everywhere. In fact, studies show that 60% of Americans experience loneliness and isolation, and the problem is only getting worse. A 2018 study found that loneliness levels have been increasing over the past few decades.
How much do you know about mental illness?
Did you know that May is Mental Health Awareness Month? I don't know of anyone who hasn't been directly impacted by mental health challenges at some point in their lives. Whether it is you yourself, or someone you love, the reality is that at least one in five adults in the United States struggles with some form of mental illness.