San José, CA
South Bay California’s largest provider of housing and other services for the homeless.
InnVision started in 1973 as a church initiative between nine churches in downtown San José. Community members began noticing that more and more people were sleeping in downtown doorways and that there was an increase in the number of homeless and at-risk persons in the city of San José. Deciding to do something about it, church members created the San José Urban Ministry. Initially started out as a small operation; at first, the Ministry only provided basic needs such as blankets, food, and support. Gradually, through collaborating with schools, federal and state agencies, civic groups such as the Gardner Family Healthcare for the Homeless, and foundations, the Ministry expanded the support they could offer.
In 1992, the San José Urban Ministry changed its name to InnVision. Today, InnVision has an annual budget of $6.5 million. It receives 27% of its funding from donations made by the community, 26% from contributions made by private enterprises and other civic groups, and 37% from government grants
Nuts and Bolts
- Today, InnVision is South Bay’s largest provider of services and housing to at-risk and homeless individuals.
- InnVision offers a range of care that includes emergency shelters, transitional/supportive housing, and features multi-service centers providing life skills training, counseling, healthcare, child development programs, vocational training, and employment services. All these services promote InnVision’s goal of helping the homeless become more self-sufficient and eventually attain independence.
- InnVision’s emergency shelters, called “inns”, provide a temporary, modern, clean, comfortable and safe environment that is home-like and non-institutional. A trained staff provides guidance and encouragement to clients who are seeking self-sufficiency as they are rebuilding their lives. There are currently four such shelters servicing the city of San José. Their holding capacity ranges from 15 to 70 men, women or children. Individuals are permitted to reside in these emergency shelters for periods of up to 90 days.
- Longer term transitional/supportive housing offered by InnVision offer services that make a lot of difference in the lives of many men and women who have work but have found that they cannot afford to move directly from a shelter to a new home. There are four houses that offer this type of transitional/supportive housing to clients. Each house provides a different service. Examples are the Steven’s House in San José, which provides housing for mentally disabled men and women, and the HomeSafe House operating out of Santa Clara, which offers women and children who are survivors of domestic violence a safe and secure place to recover from their abuse and develop new life skills. Clients can reside in this type of housing for up to two years as they move more towards the self-sufficiency of renting and maybe later on to owning their own home.
Successes:
- InnVision Multi-Service Centers offer a full range of services to over 500 people a day who wish to get back on their feet. Any homeless person who wants to become self-sufficient may drop in at any one of the centers.
- InnVision’s location on the west coast allows it to enjoy funding and volunteer support from national organizations and corporations such as the San Francisco 49ers, IBM, NVIDIA, and the Silicon Valley United Way.
- InnVision offers its clients a comprehensive set of support programs such as: daily one-on-one rehabilitation, case management and employment assistance, money management, and computer skills
How can you do it?
- Engage community members to combat local problems like homelessness.
- Encourage community members to volunteer. Without the help of community members who volunteer their time and services, InnVision would not be able to provide the services, programs, and services currently offered to its clients.