The Ventura County Medical Resource Foundation (VCMRF) has presented a $40,000 challenge grant to United Way of Ventura County’s Landlord Engagement Program. The goal of the program is to increase housing stock and utilize existing housing vouchers and housing subsidies provided by local jurisdictions and community partners to prevent and end homelessness.
The grant will provide the activation for a funding mechanism designed to generate permanent supportive housing for chronic homeless individuals through a streamlined, one-stop funding collaborative comprised of public and private funders dedicated to ending homelessness.
“The Ventura County Medical Resource Foundation (VCMRF) is proud to stand with United Way to serve the most vulnerable in our community with this challenge grant,” said Victoria Chandler,
President & CEO. “Please join us with your gifts, large or small, to help end homelessness. VCMRF believes in partnerships and the generosity of others to support and deliver a program that houses those who need us most.”
The funds will further leverage support provided by a Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP) grant in the amount of $200,000 by the Ventura County Continuum of Care and a funders collaborative that has raised more than $200,000. The seven founding funders of the collaborative include Amgen, City of Oxnard, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Kaiser Permanente, Pacific Western Bank, Sherwood Cares Foundation, and Union Bank.
Since United Way launched the Landlord Engagement Program in December 2019, 33 unsheltered homeless households including seniors, veterans, individuals, and families have been permanently housed. As a rapid response to the COVID-19 pandemic in mid-March, United Way has helped 66 unsheltered veterans and family members by securing temporary housing in a motel and providing
