At 42, Herman Thomas never had a place of his own.
He grew up in foster care, became addicted to drugs and eventually went through rehab. Along the way, he always slept outside or on someone else’s floor.
“I will say it has definitely been a journey with a lot of bumps in the road,” he said.
Thomas describes his life with energy and optimism. And now, his situation is looking more positive.
He’s one of more than 450 people who were once homeless and now have an apartment under a new city program.
COVID-19 actually made the housing program possible.
As part of the federal government’s response to the virus outbreak, it gave Atlanta nearly $20 million to help people who are homeless during the pandemic. Once Atlanta made sure it could protect people from the virus, the city put the relief money toward a new goal.
“We wanted to create an ambitious strategy to permanently house as many people as possible,” said Cathryn Marchman, leader of Partners for Home, which oversees homelessness in Atlanta.
The city set a number: 800 people.
It aimed to house 800 of the most vulnerable residents in the city. That meant people who were homeless under the age of 24 or had been homeless for more than a year.
After several months, Atlanta’s Continuum of Care, a network of homeless service providers throughout the city, is more than halfway toward reaching that number.
Thomas had been living in a hotel with the help of his church when he learned of the housing program. He remembers going to see his new one-bedroom apartment in Sandy Springs for the first time.
“When I walked in here, it was so big. Like, ‘What in the world?’ It was a little overwhelming. But fast forward,” he said, making the sound of a tape speeding up. “I love my own place.”
Thomas has lived there for a month now. He’s decorated the walls with photos of members of his church and words, like “faith.”
Getting to his job at Chick-fil-A takes a little more walking, but Thomas says he feels independent. As part of the program, he receives help with rent and support from a case manager.
The city expects to reach its goal of housing 800 people in a little over a month. At the same time, it’s started working on an effort to move another 1,200 residents, who’ve been homeless but for less than a year, into homes.
To fund the two programs, Atlanta is raising $5 million in private donations in addition to the federal relief money.
