Taking a Pause

In 2015, we launched A Tiny Home for Good. We wanted to provide housing that is safe, affordable, and appropriate for men and women facing homelessness. We opened our first two homes on a quiet, one way street just South of downtown Syracuse in 2016. And since then, we have not stopped building. Until now.

SUNY-ESF students working at our first two units on Rose Ave. 2016.

With the Syracuse winter coming to a close and longer, warmer days upon us, our construction should be in full swing. But COVID-19, making a case for the story of the recently birthed decade, has other ideas. It has nudged us into a pause from our normal, frenzied pace. And for the first time in four years, for the moment, the staff and volunteers of A Tiny Home for Good are hanging up our tool belts.

Our three units on Syracuse’s Northside sit empty of volunteers, begging for attention. And completion.

Site dog, Brady, in the same boat.

But, we have to. Our builds are essential, and our subcontractors continue to show. But we rely on our volunteers, many of whom are retired, to see our projects to completion. It would not be safe to continue, business as usual. Our regular, dynamite volunteers are part of a group text that typically shares details on the day-to-day build schedule; what the project is for the day, location, time, etc. Now, the content of the group text has shifted to book recommendations, TV thoughts, speculation on the reality of the Tiger King, and jokes. Lots and lots of jokes.

The group taking a break.

And there are lots of check-ins and talk of what the heck people are up to.

And as the Director of this small but mighty organization, I have asked myself that question a lot over these past two weeks. Since 2015, I have grown accustomed to a schedule that mixes tool-belt-on construction work, with tenant support and engagement, with fundraising and administration. If I get tired of computer screens, I can lace up my boots and swing a hammer for the day. Or if stuff onsite is slow, I can take a tenant out to coffee and get a sense of how they’re doing. And sprinkled in there is strategic planning, speaking, fundraising, accounting, board development… the other stuff. I realize, I am very lucky.

Volunteer Sean and I sharing a laugh at South Salina. 2016.

But right now, my options are limited. With a break from work onsite, and my tool-belt hung up, I am focusing on the items that don’t often get the attention they deserve.

One item that I can never give enough attention is tenant support…

Dolphus has been with us since 2016. He is the reason we exist.

Coffees, tech support, ticky-tack maintenance issues, food drop-offs, more coffees, whatever. Those are all excuses to see our tenants and get a sense of how they’re doing and share that they have people thinking of them during these difficult times. I’m thankful to have the time to do some of these items these days.

Fundraising and Thank Yous…

Tenant and all around All-Star, Ted and me speaking at a Ribbon Cutting event in 2019

We have been able to provide housing for some of our city’s most vulnerable thanks to the support of hundreds, yes hundreds, of individuals, families, companies, and organizations. We’d still just be an idea, a pipe dream, if it was not for our supporters. And, while we’re making strides toward sustaining our work with our modest rental income and other program fees, we’re not there yet. And until we are, we have to rely on the generosity of our supporters.

But here is the thing, for good reason, people are careful about how they give these days. At A Tiny Home for Good, we’ve seen a drop in our giving since March 1. With questions of what we’ll wake up to tomorrow, I blame no one for taking a pause on their philanthropic giving, or directing it towards initiatives directly supporting relief of COVID-19.

But at this moment, behind a computer screen, I am taking the time to thank our supporters, let you all know we’ll continue to foster a healthy environment for our tenants, and ask for your continued support. Because these past few weeks have reaffirmed my belief that our work is absolutely essential…

We have all been bombarded over this past month with the message to “Stay Home.” Sound advice if you are young and healthy, imperative if you are anything but. But what if you want or need to follow that advice, but simply can’t? I feel desperately for those facing homelessness who are staying in shelters now or are jumping from couch to couch or find themselves in an abandoned building each night. It makes the practice of “staying home” an impossibility. And for a population as vulnerable as those facing homelessness, the ability to “Stay Home” and all that implies, could be a lifesaver.

The message reaffirms my belief in the importance of our work at A Tiny Home for Good. Most of our tenants are not young. Many of our tenants have preexisting conditions. Most would be in the shelter system if not for our housing. Yet all of our tenants, at this moment, are healthy. All of our tenants have the ability to heed that advice and stay home.

I am getting antsy. Our staff is getting antsy. Our volunteers are getting antsy. And we have big plans once we can all get back to work. But for the meantime, I am thankful that I have the time to think about what’s next, thank our supporters, and check-in on our tenants at their own homes.

Thank you for reading. Wishing you all well over these next few months. Take care.

Sincerely,

Andrew Lunetta, Director at A Tiny Home for Good