Homeward Pikes Peak

Helping homeless find stability

By Leah Etling on Jun 7, 2012 in Giving, People

Dr. Bob Holmes, executive director of the Colorado Springs-based Homeward Pikes Peak, isn’t trained as a social worker. He has an MBA and a background in education. Holmes is also a Vietnam veteran who fervently believes that job training, support and residential stability is the way to get homeless Americans back on their feet.

His innovative model for doing so, Homeward Pikes Peak’s Homeless Outreach, is one of three programs Holmes oversees that support the homeless population of Colorado Springs. The Homeless Outreach effort focuses mainly on women and kids, and has served 1,868 homeless in the last 27 months.

“Our total helped toward self-sufficiency is 1,409 or 75% of those entering our program,” Holmes said. “The program budget is $217,200 per year and I raise this through the generosity of foundations, such as Yardi; faith-based organizations and individuals.”

Once jobs are found, the families are allowed to stay at the Aztec long enough to build up their savings for a deposit and first month’s rent on an apartment. Average residency time at the Aztec is two to three months.With room for up the 80 residents at the Aztec Motel, a struggling local property that agreed to rent exclusively to the program, Holmes and his team of 2 full time, one part time case workers assist their residents not just with housing but identifying job skills, seeking out interviews and support. Homeward Pikes Peak adults must make multiple job contacts daily, and they also participate in cooperative child care and eight hours of community service per week. Children – there are 42 at the Aztec this week – must be in school.

The success stories come from all sides of the spectrum. One resident, a jobless tech worker, landed a position at Hewlett Packard. Three veterans are sharing one room at the motel, but planning to be roommates in their own apartment soon, paid for by their veterans’ benefits. They’re learning the basics of cooking and cleaning from the program manager before they move out. They also participate in a nightly security detail that is staffed by resident volunteers.

Of course, the program doesn’t work for everyone. For chronically homeless, substance abusers and those with mental illness, maintaining a stable job-based lifestyle can be a real challenge.  Holmes is involved with other programs that aim to meet the needs of these populations. Homeless veterans are especially close to his heart.

“I’ve made a public pledge – as a Vietnam veteran, I will never, ever leave a (fellow) veteran on the streets,” he said. “The people that the VA doesn’t help usually come to me and we’ll put them up and get them started.” Despite retiring from his education career 10 years ago, he has thrown himself into the work of helping people right their lives.

“I get so much more back from the individuals I work with than whatever I put into it,” said Holmes, whose wife jokes that he has “failed” at retirement. “It’s really gratifying to see people head toward bottom, but then get some guidance and some assistance and move back toward self-sufficiency.”