H.O.M.E. - Homelessness Outreach, Mentorship, and Education
A community service initiative rethinking what it means to succeed beyond limitations by addressing inequity in housing, improving access to social services, and empowering students with both practical and legal knowledge to be safe, proactive citizens.
Outreach
Giving back directly through volunteerism, donation drives, and fundraising for homeless charities across the Gulf Coast.
Recent Partners: Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (CAAH), Family Promise [Lake Houston, Acadiana, Ouachita, and St. Tammany], Habitat for Humanity, Capital Area United Way, The Salvation Army, and regional food banks [Houston, Greater Baton Rouge, LSU Student Pantry, and Second Harvest].
The “Miss Louisiana Legacy House” is just one way I want to involve all the candidates in homelessness outreach during my year as Miss Louisiana. As Miss Louisiana, I want to partner with all eight Louisiana chapters of Habitat for Humanity to allow the next Miss Louisiana class to fundraise for homes in their communities and physically work on building a home with Habitat for Humanity of North Louisiana. This tangible service opportunity will be a lasting memory for each candidate and a reminder that their work is truly making a positive difference in the world.
Mentorship
Mentorship is instrumental in shaping a young child’s life - particularly for homeless and at-risk youth. My involvement with The Big Buddy Program and Street Law has allowed me to mentor some of the community's most vulnerable youth and teach them practical skills that will enable them to reach their personal and academic goals.
Miss Louisiana's work with schools and children mentorship groups across the state serve as excellent partnership opportunities for H.O.M.E. I’d like to introduce a special Ambassador program for highly motivated titleholders in Louisiana who wish to develop their mentorship and leadership skills further through some of the responsibilities of the state titleholders, and promote other organizations that provide mentorship - like Big Brothers Big Sisters and juvenile teen court programs.
Education
The Hannah Helps the Homeless curriculum is for schools and community groups. There are numerous lesson plans and a family discussion guide to facilitate conversations in social and emotional learning, teach math and financial literacy, and empower participants with tools for civic engagement at any age.
Long term, I hope to encourage the integration of this material into state-mandated educational curriculums so students may learn methods of homelessness relief for years to come. I will expand my work with school systems to ensure they are effectively and appropriately utilizing state and federally-funded resources afforded to homeless students and assist in navigating the administrative law "maze" for administrators to find the best available resources.
The mission of H.O.M.E. is simple - reduce the number of people experiencing homelessness, educate the populace in practical ways to get involved, and guide parties to relief through HUD, the state and federal Departments of Education, and the McKinney-Vento Act.