Boston has been selected as one of the communities to receive federal funding from HUD for the creation of housing and to support homeless assistance programs. Mayor Martin Walsh announced the funding in a press release on Wednesday which states that nearly $26.3 million will be used to benefit Boston’s Way Home, a program dedicated…
Volunteers Build Beds for Homeless People at Boston Latin
Hundreds came out in single digit weather to attend the 13th annual Boston Cares’ Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, held at the Boston Latin School for the third year in a row, on Monday, Jan. 21. Among them were many news faces who took to various service programs throughout the school, which included…
‘Friends’ Star Inspired to Action by Friend’s Homelessness
David Schwimmer, former star of “Friends,” turned his artistic talent to telling stories that highlight the struggle of homeless people after discovering that his friend had been living on Skid Row, hiding his homelessness even from those who knew him best. Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons “I had a friend who was homeless for two…
Remember the Forgotten Before it’s Too Late
As this issue hits the streets many of us will be attending the Homeless Memorial Service in Boston — Dec. 21 will mark the solemn service’s 29th year. There will be other services throughout the country over the next few days. We are once again confronted with the fact that people are dying in the…
Gone too soon: Interfaith memorial honors homeless people who passed this year
At the 29th National Interfaith Homeless Memorial Service, people of many faiths, and people who have no faith at all, honored the lives and mourned the deaths of those who left this world behind while enduring hardships most of us can only attempt to understand. The service took place inside Church on the Hill on…
Massachusetts has highest increase in homeless population in the country
The homeless population of Massachusetts has increased by 14 percent in the last year, according to a recent report from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. According to the report, there are 20,068 homeless persons in the Commonwealth this year, up from 17,565 in 2017. This was the highest increase in the country…
Man indicted for deadly beating of homeless man
A Suffolk County Grand Jury has indicted 30-year-old Clifton Moore with first-degree murder in the Sept. 6 beating death of Joshua Rivera, 54, who was sleeping in a Charleston playground. According to a press release by the Suffolk County District Attorney, Moore is already locked up in Middlesex County on an unrelated assault charge. Suffolk…
Boston Has One of Nation’s Highest Homeless Rates
New research shows that while homelessness in the United States may be down overall, it’s still rising in the most expensive rental markets. And Boston has one of the highest homeless rates. Christopher Glynn, assistant professor at the University of New Hampshire, is one of the lead authors of the national Zillow-sponsored study. The researchers…
We Need More Than Words to Fix Boston’s Problems
Last week I went to a Boston City Council meeting where Annissa Essaibi-George presented a resolution to double-down on the council’s efforts to address hunger and homelessness. It’s a nice gesture, and I believe the councilor’s heart is in the right place. Some may see it, though, as a photo-op. Others may be even more…
Most Mass. communities fall short of state affordable housing goal
The Comprehensive Permit Act, usually called 40B, set a goal for Massachusetts towns and cities nearly five decades ago: develop at least 10 percent of local housing to be affordable in the long term for low or middle income residents. As of a late 2017 Department of Housing and Community Development report, just 67 of…