U-Haul Company of Cleveland volunteers recently teamed with Humble Design Cleveland to provide a mother and her three sons with a furnished home they will cherish forever.
Humble Design is a nonprofit that brings dignity to individuals, families and veterans emerging from homeless shelters by furnishing their residences with essential items and beautiful touches that turn a house into a home.
U-Haul has been Humble Design’s national sponsor since 2016, helping the organization expand from one office to five. Humble Design Cleveland is the fifth and newest branch.
Eight U-Haul Team Members participated in a day of service to assist Humble Design with its latest “deco day” in Cleveland. With shared enthusiasm, they tackled various tasks including hanging décor, making beds, assembling furniture and arranging rooms, all with the objective of creating a warm and welcoming environment for the family’s return.
“We worked in teams in different rooms to get everything accomplished before the family came home,” said Scott Ochocki, U-Haul Company of Cleveland president. “We were responsible for hanging the pictures, building anything that needed to be constructed, and arranging all of the rooms.”
Added U-Haul Company of Cleveland executive Annelis Bokman: “It was my second time volunteering for (Humble Design) and I wish that I could do it more often. The employees are so kind and caring. It felt so rewarding. I cried three times!”
Study Confirms: Humble Design Breaks the Cycle
Through their partnership, U-Haul and Humble Design continue to prove that a little effort can go a long way toward changing lives and addressing the issue of homelessness at the community level. In addition to Cleveland, this magic is happening in Detroit, Chicago, Seattle and San Diego.
The Homelessness Hub, an applied research center at the University of California San Diego, just released their findings from a case study that confirmed the effectiveness of Humble Design’s model in empowering people to break the cycle of homelessness. Its findings were based on a 10-month study that included 169 surveys and 30 interviews with Humble Design San Diego clients.
The UCSD findings were released at a press conference on Aug. 29 at the County of San Diego Administration Building attended by county officials and homelessness advocates. Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe, District 4, County of San Diego, noted that homelessness is a top issue for the county.
“The opportunity to have beautiful, custom belongings gives people dignity,” Steppe said. “It reminds all of us that people experiencing homelessness are PEOPLE. They’re our neighbors and our community members. Humble Design is a critical partner in the journey to new beginnings that brings together people from every corner of our community to help our neighbors.”
Stacey Livingstone, PhD, one of three UCSD researchers who evaluated Humble Design, said that her team had spent 10 months evaluating Humble’s impact on people’s ability to stay housed.
“Our findings are remarkable: nearly 98% of Humble’s clients stay housed after receiving Humble’s services,” Livingstone said. “This housing retention rate is more than 10 times higher than the county average, according to statistics from the Regional Task Force on Homelessness. What we discovered is that having a sense of home – rather than merely having access to housing – improves client physical, mental, social, and financial health.”
Get Involved
Would you like to follow U-Haul Company’s lead and help Humble Design?
To learn about personal/corporate volunteer opportunities, sponsorships, donating furniture, or making a financial gift, visit humbledesign.org.
