Seven safety-net agencies spanning the length of Santa Clara County, California, came together to apply for a $3.3 million grant from Destination: Home, which was seeking innovative solutions to prevent families from losing their housing. The seven agencies—known collectively as the Emergency Assistance Network—had worked together informally for a couple of years, but they had never applied for a grant together. And we only had three weeks before the grant deadline.
I was asked to write the narrative sections of the proposal. We began as a group, hashing out the elements of the proposed program. I also got essential information about each agency and developed a cohesive way of presenting it. Finally, I created attachments about the seven agencies’ service areas and partnerships with local schools.
EAN’s proposal was successful, winning $3.3 million from Destination: Home. Shortly afterwards, I worked on another EAN grant that successfully gained funding of more than $250,000 from the County itself for safety-net services.
For example, a father who lives in San Jose may work in Mountain View, so the only agency he can get to during business hours is CSA. In the proposed HPS, CSA staff will perform the intake, make a “warm hand-off” to an agency in San Jose, and then work actively with that agency to ensure that his family receives all the help they need. “No Wrong Door” will therefore be a client-centered HPS designed to eliminate obstacles for at-risk families.
“Thank you for your amazing work on this proposal, and the patience to navigate through so much with so little time.”
“I sit here reading this proposal and I’m getting goosebumps about what you all have done.”
“Congrats Patty!!! You were a joy to work with…”
— EAN executives
