Mission Statement:

Our mission is to educate our community about issues surrounding homelessness through regular communication and meetings highlighting things that happen in our towns and state; to advocate for changes in laws and policies to benefit homeless individuals in their quest for a dignified place to live and collaborate with local social service agencies that aid the homeless and near homeless individuals in our community.

Brief History:

In November 2010, through the efforts of the Social Action Committee of Channing Church, a meeting open to all churches in the area was held to show “You Can Make a Difference” a film on homeless people in Newport produced by Officer Jimmy Winters of the Newport Police Department and founder of Housing Hotline.  The meeting was well attended by members from various religious congregations and community agencies.

In December 2010 a follow-up forum on homelessness was again held at Channing with Don Boucher from Housing First RI/Riverwood Mental Health, Steve Ostiguy from Church Community Housing and Cheryl Robinson of Turning AroundMinistries.  Based on the Church/community support shown at these meetings Housing First RI secured two housing vouchers for the Newport area.  Two men, who previously had been chronically homeless, were found permanent housing in January 2011.  Funding by Channing and St. Paul’s Methodist Church helped supplement the housing vouchers and many churches helped furnish the apartments.  Today over 45 people have been housed in the Newport area.

 The program outgrew the scope of the Channing’s social action committee and a broader based group (NCCEH) was formed to continue the push for zero homelessness.  Among others, some of the issues discussed at follow-up public meetings were: Housing First’s Impact in Newport and RI in general; housing issues for ex-offenders; what is needed in the state budget to make a difference in homelessness in RI; how homelessness affects children in Newport schools, stories of hope from people who had previously been homeless and more.  We also started a Remember the Homeless Day and recently had our fourth annual commemoration of this day in November 2015.