In 2019, a group of retired educators started Safe Shelter for Siuslaw Students with the goal of keeping families housed and providing them with more stability, making it easier for kids to stay in and finish school. Summer tourism has increased on the Oregon Coast, and families who live there full-time have faced increasing challenges balancing unpredictable tourist-industry income with increased year-round housing costs. Some families have no choice but to leave during economic dry periods, pulling kids out of school—Safe Shelter strives to change that.
“When tourists are here, people are busy. When tourists are not here, businesses either close or lay people off,” said Suzanne Mann-Heintz, executive director of Safe Shelter for Siuslaw Students.
If a family with children comes to any of the five rural communities that make up the Siuslaw region in March, for the busy season, and leaves in October because there are no more jobs, their children don’t get credit for the spring or fall term. “It takes them twice as long to get a high school diploma,” says Mann-Heintz.
Over the past six years, local rental rates around the Siuslaw Region, on the central coast, in Oregon—an area that includes a national forest, the Siuslaw River, and the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area—have increased an average of 70-percent. Over 80-percent of the area’s 18,000 residents spend more than 35-percent of their income on rent.
It’s made it difficult for families who want to stay in the area but struggle to find affordable and stable housing. Mann-Heintz along with Safe Shelter’s co-founders, all retired educators, saw this firsthand in their classrooms. “Homelessness and poverty are the conditions most detrimental to school success.”
Often it doesn’t take much to keep a family housed. Mann-Heintz recalled a client working at a casino where business slowed down over the winter: she used to get $100 a night in tips, but in winter she only got $90 over a two-week period. Safe Shelter was able to help her cover some of her expenses so she could stay housed. “Whenever I meet with clients, I ask if they can contribute,” Mann-Heintz said. “One client just needed $300 to make her $999 rent payment.” They were able to cover that gap.
Families can receive help for up to three months a year—an important lifeline for people whose income is seasonal. A grant from the Roundhouse Foundation will go toward eviction prevention, rental assistance, and crisis lodging for households with students. This short-term help can give families time to secure alternate employment or access additional funding before getting evicted: a major disruption with long-term adverse effects.
Because Safe Shelter for Siuslaw Students is a small organization serving one community, they can be flexible and fast with the help they provide. Sometimes this goes beyond rent and mortgage payments.
Some families live in RVs or other untraditional housing and Safe Shelter is able to help them through a diversion program that provides for other needs. For families without adequate cooking or refrigeration, Safe Shelter has given out cook stoves, microwaves, and a small refrigerator. They also regularly give out laundry vouchers so families without access to laundry facilities can keep their clothes clean. Last year they hosted a back-to-school clothing swap and giveaway that allowed 251 students to get clothes, hygiene products, and school supplies. It was so successful they hope to do it every year.
All of this work by Safe Shelter is in service of Siuslaw’s students. They deserve stability and to be able to go to school in clean clothes with full bellies and know where they’ll be sleeping at night.
