Hold that Stimulus Check! House Homeless Vets!
SUPPORT
OUR VETS, BRING THEM HOMES ORGANIZATION ANNOUNCES CAMPAIGN TO
RAISE $150,000 BY ASKING SEATTLE-ITES TO REINVEST STIMULUS TAX REBATES IN
HOUSING PROGRAM FOR VETS
Party and Kick-Off Event:
May 22, 2008
5:30 – 7:00 pm
Benham Gallery
1216 First Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101
Contact:
Marita Holdaway
Phone:
(206) 622-2480
Email:
marita@benhamgallery.com
Website:
www.lihi.org/stimulus
Support Our Vets, Bring Them Homes, a grassroots organization founded by a Seattle grandmother, is urging recipients of the Bush administration’s so-called Economic Stimulus Payments to donate part or all of their payments to Lake City Court, an affordable housing project being built in North Seattle. The new construction project will have 75 units, 38 of which are specifically designated for housing chronically homeless veterans, and will feature on-site supportive services designed to foster stability and self-sufficiency for residents.
Support Our Vets, Bring Them Homes was founded by Hinda Kipnis, a 76 year-old grandmother and member of the activist singing group the Raging Grannies. Through a mutual acquaintance Hinda was introduced to Chloe Collier, a 17 year-old student at Seattle’s Nova Alternative High School, and the two bonded over their shared opposition to the economic policies of the Bush administration. They hit it off and Support Our Vets, Bring Them Homes was born. Kipnis and Collier said, “The Iraq war has seriously damaged the economy, the lives of veterans, and our society as a whole. The president would have you get your stimulus check and go to the mall with the hope that it will magically fix the economy. We felt a better approach would be to invest the money into something more lasting and substantial: homes for people who truly need them.”
Support Our Vets, Bring Them Homes has already garnered the support of a wide variety of groups and individuals around the city, including several economists. According to Dan Jacoby, Professor of Economics and Labor Studies at the University of Washington, “I think this common sense campaign is very sound from an economic standpoint. A shopping splurge will do little to provide jobs, serve human needs, or build our local economic base. Investing in permanent neighborhood-based housing and services will reduce long term social services spending and keep our dollars reverberating at the local level. I will be investing part of my tax rebate into this program and urge others to do the same.”
Joshua Okrent, a fund developer from the Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI), which is building and will administer Lake City Court, says, “We are thrilled that this project has attracted so much community support and will benefit from the enlightened generosity of people who choose to redirect their tax rebates to help reduce homelessness in our community and help our local vets. The Lake City Court project includes a full array of services that help residents transform their lives for the better. The generous efforts of Support Our Vets, Bring Them Homes can only help to ensure the success of this innovative project.”
Those
who wish to dedicate all or part of their stimulus rebate to the program can
send their tax deductible contributions to LIHI or donate through the
LIHI website.
For
more info, contact press liaison Marita Holdaway at (206) 622-2480 or marita@benhamgallery.com.