The City of Tucson declared a housing and homelessness emergency earlier this year. This three-part series introduces a trio of organizations whose missions support the unhoused community around the city.
Our Space is bi-weekly program series at the Joel D. Valdez Library in downtown Tucson. The initiative connects individuals with resources, provides food and resources, and even programs like art and bingo. Youth On Their Own is a program for unhoused youth in Tucson. Pima County has thousands of unhoused students in need of help. The program helps them to get back on their feet and go through high school. Ever wondered how the unhoused can take care of their pets? Karl Wagner explains how he connects the unsheltered community with pet resources.
# Our Space: A bi-monthly resource- and community hub
Every second Thursday at 11 a.m., about 60 unhoused or food insecure people join the queue at the Joel D. Valdez Library –-some with all of their belongings— to grab a quick snack, some water, and hear about resources during the Our Space program.
“This is a community that we engage with a lot, and we want to be able to provide them with entertainment, with resources, and with a little bit of food,” said vulnerable populations librarian Jessica Miesner.
Apart from resources, unhoused people can also find a new community at Our Space.
“Sometimes we run out of seating, and people have to share tables,” Miesner said. “They might start up a conversation. Maybe one person is experiencing houselessness, and the other person isn't, and so people can kind of share information and make a new friend, even if just for that day.”
Miesner said they also cater with creative programs for the artistic folks, such as jewelry making or watercolor. The programming allows the unhoused community to participate in activities without a stigma.
Our Space currently operates in two locations, the Joel D. Valdez and the Sam-Lena South Tucson Library. Miesner said plans are underway to start a third program in the Columbus library in the summer.
# Youth On Their Own: Supporting “under-the-radar” unhoused youth
There are about 3200 unhoused youth in Pima County. While they fight uncertainties, a local organization helps over a thousand of them each year to get on their feet and excel both academically and personally.
“Youth On Their Own supports young people who are experiencing homelessness, and our goal is to help them stay in school and reach high school graduation,” said CEO Elizabeth Slater. “That's really important, because in the state of Arizona, less than half of the students who experience homelessness will graduate, and then they are sort of trapped in this cycle of poverty.”
Slater said most of the unhoused youth are under the radar.
“Most youth experiencing homelessness are not sleeping on the street. Most of them are couch surfing, so they're staying with other non parent adults, just for brief periods of time, and kind of moving around a lot. And one of our alumni said it best. She said, "the family took me in, but they didn't take care of me.”
The 40-year-old organization is present in a 100 schools in Pima County, with most students served from TUSD, Flowing Wells, Marana and Sunnyside.
# How can unhoused people support their pets?
For some unhoused people, pets are the only family left. For others, they are anchors, emotional support and the motivation to get up each day. Once losing their permanent address and becoming more vulnerable than ever, unhoused people have to make a decision whether they can take care of their pets along with themselves.
“If you’re out on the streets, typically the majority of society does not want to see you holding a sign, or people can be really cruel to folks who are unhoused,” said Karl Wagner, outreach coordinator for Pima County Homeless Services, who helps the unhoused locate pet food and other resources. “This is someone that's always there for you and it always supports you. So I can understand not wanting to give that up when you feel like the rest of the world is against you.”
Program manager Ellen Santos oversees Healthy Companions, a monthly clinic for both unhoused people and their pets. The clinic started in 2023 and helps an average of 25-30 people per month with pet- and healthcare all in one spot.
“Unhoused people with pets will often care for their pet before they care for themselves. This concept of bringing things together is really designed to help their people through helping their pets,” Santos said.
