This Fall, MIH Executive Director Tim Wiens has met with organizations form other states as part of our organization’s interest in collaborating with other groups around the country as we work to move forward new models of helping people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) access and maintain affordable and inclusive housing of their choice.
In early October, Wiens had a video conference call with Grey Persons, the Advocacy and Outreach Liaison for the Hope House Foundation in Norfolk, Va. and Board President of the Arc of Virginia. Hope House has been at the forefront of separating housing and services as well as supporting people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) living in their own homes for decades. Hope House’s recently retired Executive Director Lynn Seagle has spoken frequently at national conferences about their work. Grey reported that this work has for the most part received limited support from the State of Virginia, and they have often had to go this route on their own.
Persons was very interested in how Maryland has supported this model by offering Housing Support Services; funding supported living at the same level as group home funding; grant funding the work of MIH; and funding a rental assistance program for people receiving DDA services.
Persons talked about having Weins come and speak at an Arc of Virginia conference. He hopes to build some of these types of supports into their system in Virginia.
Later in the month, Wiens and Steve Keener of Jubilee Association of Maryland traveled to Oregon to meet with Loralei LaVoie of Oregon Mennonite Residential Services and Jennifer Knapp of Community Vision. The group discussed the state of supported living in Oregon. Community Vision provides support to 40 people who have developmental disabilities and who live in their own homes in Portland. There was great interest in the potential of Oregon developing housing support services and rental subsidies similar those in Maryland.