Quicken Loans has announced a long-term partnership with Community Solutions, a leading national nonprofit focused on ending homelessness in America. Together, they will work toward putting an end to veteran homelessness in communities across the country, with an emphasis on Quicken Loans’ hometown, Detroit. The company’s commitment includes financial and operational support for Community Solutions and the work it does on the ground in 60 communities across the country. The company also intends to bring its No. 1 resource to the table: its people. By investing team member time and expertise in areas like communications, logistics and data analytics, the company will help accelerate the progress the country has already made on ending veteran homelessness.
“Across the country, nearly 40,000 veterans will experience homelessness tonight,” says Jay Farner, CEO of Quicken Loans, who has joined the board of directors for Community Solutions. “This is both extremely heartbreaking and completely unacceptable. We are in the business of helping people realize the dream of homeownership, and we understand the tremendous value of a place to call your own. Together with Community Solutions and local partners, we will ensure that veterans are placed into permanent supportive housing, building the foundation they need to create permanent change.”
Through this investment, Quicken Loans aims to reach functional zero for homeless veterans in Detroit by supporting local efforts. Functional zero is met when the number of veterans experiencing homelessness within a community is less than the average number of veterans being connected with permanent housing each month. Permanent supportive housing is a model that provides a stable place to live with wraparound services, allowing those experiencing homelessness to focus on addressing mental health, addiction and other challenges rather than worrying about where they are going to sleep at night. Veterans come into homelessness for a number of reasons; the goal is to make it brief and, more importantly, nonrecurring.
“Quicken Loans’ engagement will have a direct, lasting impact on veterans experiencing homelessness around the country,” says Rosanne Haggerty, president of Community Solutions. “This partnership signifies an important step in the national movement to end veteran homelessness. Time and again it has been proven that the only way to achieve long-term success in this space is to work across groups and agencies, using data to drive a laser focus on housing. Seven communities have already achieved zero. This partnership will help many more reach that goal.”
Quicken Loans and Community Solutions are helping communities better utilize the resources they have by building coalitions of local service organizations, civic groups and leaders, and federal agencies like the Department of Veteran Affairs. The nonprofit has been recognized by the White House, the United Nations, the Smithsonian and others for its innovative and effective approaches to ending homelessness. Its model helps communities put housing first while leveraging data to make sure everyone has access to the help they need as quickly as possible. Participating communities have found homes for more than 90,000 people over the past three years.
As one of America’s largest Veteran Affairs lenders, Quicken Loans has a longstanding commitment to veterans and a responsibility to provide for the military community. The company has a dedicated veteran recruiting team, made up of former military members, focused exclusively on adding talented, hardworking vets to the company’s brain-force. Quicken Loans boasts more than 600 veteran team members across all areas of the business.
The company also has a rich history of supporting veteran causes through strategic sponsorships and partnerships. Later this week, the PGA TOUR’s Quicken Loans National kicks off outside Washington, D.C. The tournament has long supported service members and veterans. Following this year’s event, through unique onsite activations at the tournament, the company will have raised $1 million for U.S. military-affiliated charities since the program began in 2015.
The Community Solutions and Quicken Loans partnership was announced at Community Solutions’ Built for Zero Conference, held in Detroit on June 26.
For more information, please visit www.quickenloans.com.
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