Homelessness, More Than a Housing Issue

Homelessness Is More Than a Housing Issue. It is a Human Issue.

Why ending homelessness requires more than a roof over someone’s head.

For nearly eleven years, Dusty and I have been behind the work of The Hangar, a grassroots, boots-on-the-ground mission in Waco, Texas, committed to ending chronic unsheltered homelessness.

Over those years, we’ve learned a lot. We’ve had our assumptions challenged, our hearts broken, our faith stretched, and our understanding of people deepened.

One of the most important things we’ve learned is this: Homelessness is about so much more than housing.

Inside an old Quonset Hut under the 17th Street Bridge at Webster, The Hangar operates as homeless hospitality house. Inside this private residence, we provide a daily meal, showers, laundry, open Wi-Fi, and something many of us take for granted: an address.

We help people obtain essential identification documents, connect with employment, access treatment, navigate health care, and mental health services, and the list goes on.

These practical resources are essential. For someone trying to rebuild their life, something as simple as obtaining an ID or having a reliable address can become an important first step.

But as important as all of these things are, the most important thing we provide is community and connection.

We offer a place where people are known and welcomed by name. A place where we can connect, and where relationships can grow. A space where someone who might have spent years being isolated and disengaged can begin to believe that they are not beyond hope and healing.

Looking Beyond the Visible Problem

Homelessness is complicated and multifaceted. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. Just as there is no single path that leads someone into homelessness, there is no single path that will

lead them out.

We believe that if we truly want to end homelessness, we have to be willing to look deeper than the circumstances we see on the street. We have to look at the people behind those circumstances, the stories they carry, the trauma they’ve experienced, and the relationships that have been broken along the way.

Among the people we serve each day, most of whom have been living unsheltered for long periods of time, we encounter significant barriers to accepting services. Most are struggling with addiction, untreated mental health conditions, and layers of trauma that have accumulated over years, and oftentimes decades.

If we only address where someone sleeps tonight, without understanding what has shaped their life, we miss opportunities to help them build a different tomorrow.

Dusty and I walk alongside people, every day, that need someone in their court. Someone who will advocate for them but also hold them accountable as they work toward stability, healing, and restoration. For many, this might just be the first time they have ever experienced this kind of support, love, compassion, and honesty.

Safe, stable housing is essential, and we do believe people deserve a place to call home.

But housing alone cannot resolve all of the barriers a person may face.

Our friend Alan Graham (founder of Community First in Austin, TX) coined the phrase, “Housing alone will never end homelessness, but community will.”

And we believe housing and community belong together.

People need a place to live, but they also need relationships, support, opportunities, and a community where they can continue to stabilize and rebuild their lives even after they have a roof over their head.

More Than a Bed. A Place for Connection and Compassion.

The Hangar is not an overnight shelter, but it is a place for those who are experiencing unsheltered homelessness to spend a few hours a day away from the chaos on the street. It's a place where they can connect with themselves and others, and discover a healthy combination of grace and accountability, patience and boundaries, tenderness and courage.

We show up with consistency each day, not to create dependency, but to gain trust and show reliability.

But, we have witnessed the impact of unending handouts and unearned material aid, and the unspoken and unintended message of inferiority, or helplessness that it sends the people we serve.

That is not the message we want to impart.

That is not compassionate or loving.

Relief is the compassionate response short term, but when relief is used long-term or out of context, one-way giving can quickly transition from appreciation to expectation, entitlement, and eventually dependency.

At The Hangar we focus on doing things with people, community development, and mutual restoration. We hope to help each individual recognize their strengths, rediscover their potential, and take steps toward stability and restoration. This is rehabilitation and development.

And our faith reminds us that every person is made in the image of God, and circumstances, struggles, or past decisions do not diminish dignity, ability, or worth.

That is how we approach this work.

We believe compassion and accountability can and should coexist.

We believe people can be loved without being defined by their struggles, and supported without being robbed of their dignity.

We believe restoration is possible, even when the path is long and hard.

A Different Kind of Community

The Hangar exists to end chronic unsheltered homelessness in Waco by bringing people together—neighbors, churches, law enforcement, government, and community organizations—to address the root causes of homelessness with compassion, accountability, and action.

And the question isn’t simply, “How do we get people off the streets?”

It’s also, “How do we come together as a community so that people can find a way forward?”

We believe the answer can be found in viewing homelessness as a human problem, and the people experiencing it as our neighbors.

Because who are our neighbors? (Luke 10:29)

What is the most compassionate way can we walk together toward restoration and development?

We may have opened Pandora's Box,

But HOPE remains.

And this is why The Hangar exists.