by Ellen Conover
guest contributor

The average median household income for Ward 4 is just over $94,000 (according to DC Health Matters). Juxtapose that with the ugly truth that, every year, as a community, we lose neighbors to hypothermia and overexposure. You can help.

Winter is here. For most of us that means time off from work, and time to enjoy various comforts with our families. For the rest of us, that means a brutal gauntlet of trying not to get wet during the day- and trying not to freeze at night.

Over the pandemic, neighbors have utilized mutual aid to address local community needs. Both housed and unhoused neighbors came together to organize grocery deliveries, direct cash assistance, and supply runs for neighbors living on the street and in shelters. And while we are so lucky to be able to grow our community connections and get to know each other, we at Ward 4 Unhoused Advocacy realize that we could be doing, not just more, but doing things better, to build a long-lasting community that breaks down socioeconomic and racial boundaries.

The average cost of monthly housing for someone in Petworth is $2,000 and people can find cheaper places closer to the capital.

Housing is essential, not just for the individual- but for the community. Undesired and reinforced homelessness is expensive. For our unhoused neighbors, it’s personally expensive because people can’t sleep and have to constantly move to stay warm or protect our belongings. For our housed neighbors, people must spend 10+ hours and hundreds of dollars a week to replace stolen, damaged, or lost items. For the city, it’s expensive to spend tax dollars paying hospitals, police officers, and social workers to handle easily mitigatable problems that escalate into life threatening emergencies.

These are the basic numbers and realities of homelessness. I'm not going to lie. We have some real challenges in this community (and everywhere) trying to cross racial and economic divides and get to a better place of understanding what causes them, but I strongly believe that we can do this together. I believe that in listening to neighbors, in REALLY getting to know them and in lifting up and helping people get on their feet, they, in-turn, will support the community that brought them to a better place. I have already seen this start to happen.

Donate to help out
I cringe a little having to ask for something that I believe should be a basic right, but Thanksgiving has come and gone. Giving Tuesday just passed and it is COLD! This year, I want to ask the community to support one another. Ward 4 Mutual Aid's Unhoused Advocacy group is trying to do something we haven't yet tried. We'd like to get 10 unhoused neighbors into housing this winter. We've done the math and know what it's going to take. Housing is the preferred and preventative measure.

A dear friend has started a GoFundMe page for their birthday, and my own birthday just passed, so I'm piggy-backing on their initiative. This year we’d like you to please consider joining us in support of housing our neighbors.

Or, you can donate directly to Ward 4 Unhoused Advocacy. In the "honor of" section, please note "Unhoused"

Learn more about Mutual Aid Networks on the Cut: "So You Want to Get Involved in Mutual Aid"

100% of all Birthday donations will go to help shield someone from homelessness in DC.