SAFE Coalition Delivers Housing Support to Dozens of Franklin Residents over Holidays

Local nonprofit SAFE Coalition has helped more than 30 Franklin residents, many of whom parents and children, find safe and stable housing since December.
Funded by the Town of Franklin’s ARPA grant for housing insecurity, SAFE’s housing services help Franklin residents seek temporary housing, connect with housing resources, advocate in housing court, and prevent imminent eviction. Additional support includes financial literacy, vocational opportunities, and clinical care.
SAFE Community Outreach Counselor Dr. Stephanie Heath works directly with SAFE’s housing clients and says homelessness can take many different forms. “It can look like living in your car, spending time on the couches of different family members, living in hotels, staying in churches, or other situations,” says Heath. “Circumstances like joblessness, domestic abuse, and forced eviction can all impact a person’s ability to access safe and stable housing. Every situation is unique, so it is important that we treat everyone on a case-by-case basis.”
Heath says SAFE’s recent surge in support cases affords opportunity for understanding and compassion. “This can truly happen to anyone. So often, people have done everything right, and they still end up without a reliable place to stay during the coldest months of the year. These are our neighbors and friends, people you’d never guess this is happening to.”
Heath works with clients as they build 90-day support plans. The plan helps identify factors impacting not only housing but personal, financial, and environmental wellness, expand the client’s support network, set goals, and create accountability check-ins. “We help people see themselves as capable of making their own best decisions. Homelessness may be out of their control, but we want to support people in ways that they feel ownership over decisions about their own life,” says Heath.
This support comes at a critical time in Massachusetts, with homelessness growing by 74% since 2022. Of the people experiencing homelessness in the state, 76% are families with children.
The state also has a high rate of chronic homelessness, which the Department of Housing and Urban Development defines as someone who has been homeless for 12 months consecutively or who has experienced four or more episodes of homelessness over the course of three years.
SAFE’s ARPA-funded housing services are a vital resource for local families. Where the state Section 8 low-income housing wait time is currently several years, SAFE can help families avoid eviction and access safe and stable housing in a matter of days or weeks.
In 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act federal stimulus bill (ARPA) was created to address public health and economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. This bill included support for rental and housing services, affordable housing initiatives, utility assistance, grant programs for tenants and landlords, food security programs, childcare, and community outreach services.
In receiving an ARPA grant from the Town of Franklin in 2024, SAFE increased their ability to meet the needs of residents experiencing housing insecurity and the issues that come with it.
Community members wishing to grow SAFE’s ability to help can donate online (https://www.safecoalitionma.org/donate) or email [email protected] to volunteer