Rachael Myers, Executive Director

This month, I attended the annual Housing Washington conference presented by the Washington State Housing Finance Commission and the Department of Commerce. The Housing Alliance is a planning partner, so we get to be a little bit proud every year when the conference is successful. This year was no exception. Close to 600 people came together in Spokane to learn, build relationships, and advance our shared goal of creating more affordable homes.

I did all those things. But the highlight for me was the poignant reminder of why I’m committed to this work. That came from award-winning author Sherman Alexie. He closed the conference talking about colonialism, politics, and why you shouldn’t name your child after yourself (you had to be there). But the final point he made was about the transformational value of a home. Just days before his family’s too-small home burned to the ground, they had moved into a new home, built by the government. It wasn’t perfect. But walking into his own room, he told us, was the start of everything he’s created, every book, film, every poem and (these are my words not his) every bit of beauty he’s brought to the world.

Because of my time working at the Seattle-based street newspaper Real Change, I still know many people experiencing homelessness. I often run into them selling the paper and take a few minutes to talk and stay connected whenever I can. I also have a personal story that runs deep (this is for a later blog post), and I hope this will always ensure that I feel the urgency of our work. But still, I sit in front of a computer for a large part of most days and spend much of the rest of my time in meetings with other professionals.

Image L to R - Don André (Campion Foundation) and Rachael Myers

Most of us in those meetings are pretty distanced from the people who are most impacted by our work. Sherman Alexie’s talk was the reminder that I needed. And based on the utter silence and rapt attention of the room, I don’t think I was alone.

Housing Alliance staff members go to Housing Washington every year with a goal to reach as many people as possible about what we see as the most critical issue of the day. This year, our message was that the affordable housing community needs to get serious about building real political power. We made that point at every opportunity we could find – from the podium at a plenary session, at a special evening meeting we hosted with housing leaders, at the legislative roundtable we convened with Spokane area legislators, in hallways, etc. I might even be guilty of getting between someone and his first cup of coffee to make that point. That might not have been my best move, but this is important!

Most of us are in this because it's the right thing to do, because of stories like Sherman’s and the many other families whose lives are better because of a home, or for those who are still waiting. But being right isn’t enough. Many years ago, when I was a graduate social work student, ready to embark on a lobbying internship (it’s social work, trust me), my supervisor said something that stuck with me. She said that things happen in Olympia for a lot of reasons, but rarely is the primary reason that it’s the right thing to do.

Image Friend of Housing Awardees from L to R - Karen Miller (Staff Recognition Award), Sue Cary, Greg Winter for Opportunity Council, Gov. Mike Lowry (Margaret Sevy Lifetime Achievement Award), Chris Pegg, Helen Stevenson & Leah Greenwood.

Take the Housing Trust Fund. Together, we’ve successfully advocated for about $300 million for the Fund over the last five years. Because of how highly leveraged it is, that means more than $1.5 billion invested in 7,500 affordable homes. Obviously and most importantly, it means that there are 7,500 families who have a safe, decent place to live who probably wouldn’t otherwise. But that investment does even more than that. It’s created more than 9,000 jobs and generated almost $600 million dollars for local economies…all during the Great Recession! For many conference attendees – architects, banks, and builders for example – it means they’ve stayed in business and have even been profitable.

A lot of good reasons exist to support the Housing Trust Fund, whatever your motivation or political perspective.

Based on the impact we make, we should have real political power – for Washington families, for job creation, and for the state’s economy. We’re not there yet. But we’re working on it, and you can help. The Housing Alliance has a sister organization, the Housing Alliance Action Fund to educate voters, advocate for sound public policy, elect champions for affordable housing, and 
hold lawmakers accountable during the legislative session. It’s made up of individual members from all across Washington. Everyone should have the opportunity to live in a safe, healthy, affordable home. Visit housingactionfund.org and find out how you can help build the power to make that vision real.

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All photos courtesy of Patrick Dixon Fine Art Photography.