The Human Impact

A nonprofit organization

$105,845 raised by 69 donors

88% complete

$120,000 Goal

Mission and About Us

The Human Impact exists to befriend the homeless, bridge relational gaps, and build long-term community. We are focused on the group of homeless called the “chronically homeless.” While they only represent 20% of Dallas’ homeless population, they consume 80% of all resources (both philanthropic and government). Fundamentally, we believe that this group is mislabeled, and that using words like lonely, disconnected or traumatized, would allow for a better understanding of who they are as human beings and what the range of their needs are. Our work is aimed at responding to the root causes of their trauma and disconnectedness—through befriending and family-ing the lonely, connecting them to the resources necessary to address medical, emotional, legal issues, and walking with them towards deep healing.

Our work of friendship advocacy starts with consistently stepping into the margins to build trust with those who live on the streets. Since 2013, we have shown up in some of the loneliest spaces in Dallas, day after day, to offer our presence and an open heart. This trust-building process fosters genuine friendship that can lead to healing and restoration in the lives of our homeless friends. We bridge relational gaps by creating spaces where our housed and unhoused neighbors can meet, see each other’s faces, hear each other’s stories, and form bonds of caring and support. We build long-term community by connecting our volunteers and friends in ways that allow them to grow into deeper and more consistent relationships. Every part of our mission is guided by the same truth—we are all made in God’s image and we are all His beloved children. Our work is to see and love others the way God sees and loves us, and it is through this, that healing and restoration can begin.

Through our work, we play a unique role in the homeless care system. Shelters, healthcare services and other programs are part of the economic "safety net" that helps those experiencing homelessness. The work of THI is to provide a relational "safety net", something that the chronically homeless particularly need. Our work has shown us time and time again, that for our chronically homeless friends to navigate the path towards housing and healing, they need the relational safety net — someone to walk alongside them in trust and friendship, supporting them each step of the way.

Needs

The Human Impact is fully immersed within the homeless community. Our work happens on the sidewalks of South Dallas. As a result, we have the unique ability to maintain consistent relationships among an often difficult to reach population.

Our work fills in the gap for the deeper, unaddressed needs that cause our friends to remain in homelessness or return so easily to it. We would be so grateful for your support to help us continue the restorative work of community among the most marginalized and under-resourced in the city of Dallas.

CURRENT NEEDS:

1) Capacity building - There are over 1,000 friends in Dallas who are experiencing long-term and chronic homelessness, and this number continues to grow. - We have 6 staff members on our Advocacy team dedicated to spending 160+ hours per week on the street with hundreds of people who are currently unhoused. - Bringing in more capacity and training allows us to quickly connect our friends to the resources and opportunities available to them.

2) Support Network - Our friends have doctors appointments, attorney meetings, social security obligations and a simple desire to be connected that could be matched by the ability to travel more conveniently - We want to ensure we can meet our friends transportation and emergency needs that come up regularly.

3) Relocation and Stability - As rents rise, our friends' lose their once regained ability to live in a home and stabilize - Moving fees like rent, utilities, and other household items quickly add to our friends financial burdens - We continue to provide weekly care and a support network to our friends beyond the streets.

4) Join us and volunteer - We host regular events to engage with our friends and share a meal or do something else fun. This is a great opportunity for individuals or groups. We also have regular streets time opportunities to visit our friends experiencing homelessness each week.

Equity Statement

The Human Impact is actively engaged in advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of our

organization. In 2021, Senior leadership attended trainings hosted by Dallas Truth and Racial Reconciliation Council to help us look inward at our biases, identify root causes and create a plan to heal and change. With their help, we created an organizational statement on inclusion and equity to help us clearly state what we demand of ourselves.

In June of 2022, we created a plan to expand our board from 6 members to 9 members by the end of 2023. Each new member will reflect our desire to advance inclusion and equity and will increase the diversity of our board. We are actively cultivating relationships with prospective board members from underrepresented communities, and seeking advice from partner organizations like Housing Forward who are leading well in this space.

We are currently in the process of creating an advisory board that will be intentionally inclusive and represent the lived experiences of the people we serve.