Section 8, Stigma, and the Woman Who’s Changing the Conversation

Hey, one more thing before you go. What if the key to solving homelessness isn't just policy, but personal stories?What happens when someone who needed shelter becomes the architect of housing solutions for thousands? We're going to answer these questions in so many more.My guest has lived both sides of the struggle, and now she's here to share her resilience, her advocacy, and her purpose that can transform lives and communities. Whether you find yourself in that position or want you to know how to help others that are, I'm your host, Michael Hurst.Welcome to one more thing before you go. Today I am joined by Jenna Ghisolfo, national speaker, housing consultant, and founder of Housing Consultants of America.Her journey began at 18, escaping an abusive relationship with an infant in her arms and nowhere to go. A Section 8 dowager became her lifeline and the foundation for a career devoted to helping others find safe, stable housing.Now, with over 18 years of experience in a national platform as Miss Arizona, Jenna is using her voice to advocate for lasting housing solutions for those experiencing homelessness, veterans and people with disabilities. Her story is one of grit, grace, and giving back. And I'm honored to welcome you to the show.

Jenna, hello. Thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here.

Your life has taken. It's been a journey, right?

That is the best way to put it. And a journey it will continue to be.

You know, I think, you know, we all are put on a journey in life. We all seek purpose and we'll talk about this as we go. We all want purpose in life.And I think you have you found a purpose that brings you passion and it's passion of yours. It gives you opportunity to help others in such a way that improves people's lives and moves them forward in a very positive way.And I'm grateful for having you here.

Yeah, well, thank you. And it's definitely something that fills my cup as well. It's not just the jobs that I have. It's a career. It's a passion of mine. It's my life story.So I'm able to put so much more into, into really the, the movement is really what it is to make people come up, become aware of not only the homelessness that's in their communities, but how to prevent it or how to help somebody who's currently experiencing homelessness or might be home becoming homeless in a few weeks. They might be getting evicted or whatever it might be. Homeless could be right around their doorstep.So it's something that can hit anybody at any time.

I agree with that.I Think that this is an opportunity for us to be able to hopefully educate some people, inspire some people, motivate some people and give them opportunity. I do like to start at the beginning though. Did you grow up here in Arizona? Where'd you grow up?

Yes, I am. I'm a Phoenix native, born and raised here in Phoenix, Arizona. A graduate of Xavier and love Arizona. Moved back here.I will probably forever be an Arizona native. And really where my story kind of started off was after I graduated from high school.I was in an abusive relationship and I found myself with a very low self esteem.I'm unable to really thrive in life and my only way out actually was it came to me, as I like to say, a guardian angel came to me in the middle of Walmart, which, you know, who would expect you get some saving grace in Walmart. But that's exactly what happened to me. And I was in the grocery line and a woman overheard my conversation on my phone and why I had hung up.She said, it sounds like you're looking for housing. Have you checked out this place across the street? I, I don't know much about it, but I know they based your rents on your income.That's really all she could tell me. And so I said no, I didn't.So I went over and I checked out the place and it ended up being Action 8 housing where they based your rents based on your income. So if you're not making that much, you're not going to be paying that much. It really is just a math calculation is all it is.And in fact they had immediate availability. And so I knew that this was my time to get out of this abusive relationship that I was in. I actually had an infant at that time.And so I took that opportunity to really start over, move into a place by myself with my son and, and really start over is the best, best way to put it. I gave, gave myself a second chance and went back to college.Started in a career that I knew with, with everything that had happened to me and getting into Section 8 housing, I wanted to give back to that same community that a second opportunity. So I immediately jumped into working for Section 8 Housing and Public housing and really never left the industry. The stories.And I'm sure, as you know, Michael, there are so many stories we hear of people going from homelessness to housing and owning their first home and there are so many success stories. That's what really fills my cup and drives me.And so I dedicated my career to helping families that were once in the situation that I Was in, get out of that and be able to start anew. And that comes from everything from domestic violence to homelessness to, you name it, veterans on the street.We work with everyone right now to get them off the streets and into safe, secure housing.

Well, I mean, you're, well, 18 years old. You have an infant in your arms, you have nowhere to go. I mean, survival, plain survival is, what do you do? How do you handle this?Where do you go from here? Especially when you realize that I need a place to live.Let's help people understand what Section 8 vouchers, what Section 8 housing is, if we can, please.

Yeah, absolutely.So what Section 8 is, is it's basically a housing assistance program that cities or government entities support part of your rent in exchange for you living there. And so what ends up happening is basically 30% of your income is what becomes your rent.The rest is then paid by the housing authority or the city entity or the government entity, whoever you're, you're, you're partnering with for your voucher. Most city and housing authorities have some sort of Section 8 program. You generally just have to check out their websites.But there's always a location within your city or your county that you can certainly research or you could reach out to us and we're happy to connect you with your local jurisdiction and partners there. But basically it's support for your rent. So you are not paying 100% of your rent, that someone else is contributing to a portion of it.And that is a lifeline for, for people. It is an absolute lifeline.

Well, it, I mean, it obviously changed the trajectory of your own life. It, you know, took it in a different direction because they could have gone so, so differently in regard to that.I mean, as you know, in my community knows, I'm, I was a police officer 17 years and you know, I dealt with homelessness from that position. I saw people who, who had. No, no longer had a home and, and from all different economic levels, all different, it didn't matter.Race, color, religion. It, there was no, there is no definitive thing. It only happens to those people. It only happens to those people. Doesn't happen to me.It can happen to somebody at any time.

Correct.

One emotionally practical challenge is it help us understand like what, at that time, what emotional or practical challenges did, did you find during that time? If you went through this?

You know, I would say besides having low self esteem, it was, it was just, even, even having the confidence that I could even start over again. I didn't believe in myself.I was so Living in a world of fear that I didn't feel like I was worthy enough to, to have the second opportunity or the second chance being given to me, I almost had to force myself through was. It was kind of like an out of body experience where I know I'm doing the paperwork, but am I actually really leaving this abusive relationship?And this was a big, it's always a big deal, but it's a mental game, a mental challenge that you have to overcome. You really do.

Well, I know working domestic violence for so many years, it also, you have to, you have to consider safety issues. I mean, you're not just looking for a place to live. You're not just looking to change your life, not looking to get a different job.You still have to worry about safety issues, especially in a violent domestic situation. Safety issues. What am I going to do here? What am I going to do there? Am I always going to have to look over my shoulder?I mean, so, you know, there's so many things being thrown at you. Given an opportunity to be able to change your life into a, a positive way. I'm sure that was a relief.I think then, you know, with like you, you've walked this path. Because you walk this path, you build bridges differently for people to cross.And, and I think that's probably the focus of what you came about with, with using your lived experience as fuel for your advocacy in this regard, right?

Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. That's exactly what I've done.And, and it, it allows me, like you mentioned, just a different mindset to understand where some of these families are coming from or these individuals are coming from. You just have a different level of, best way I can put it, is patience and understanding for them.And you really just, you have a heart for them, you want to help them, you want to see them be successful so that way they have a better life because that's ultimately what we want for everyone.

I agree with that. I think it's your personal story that shaped the way that you approach housing strategy.I think it gives you a more personal perspective because you have empathy and you have compassion and you have understanding because you were placed in a position like that. What kind of misconceptions do people have about Section 8 and public housing?Because I think when I say this, it's a situation that I would say that majority of individuals watch it on TV, they see people in Section 8 housing and they may get a misconception about what they see. Help us understand what that arena is, please.

Yes, and that's a great Great question. There is such a misconception of what section 8 in public housing is.And we typically think of, when we say Section 8 or public housing, you think of dilapidated old housing, you think of drugs, you think of crime activity. And that is not what it is. It is completely opposite of that. These communities are clean. Sometimes they're brand new.They are, they've been revitalized. They don't have criminal activity. Because we screen our residents just like we would for any other community that you'd be living in.And they really actually foster a sense of community because everyone is there with the same purpose of trying to rebuild their lives. So it's interesting, I've toured several communities here in Arizona, from shelters all the way up to section 8 to regular tax credit housing.There's multiple levels of affordable housing that we have. And what's interesting is there are no security gates around these communities. There are no security guards. They're, they're, they're not needed.It is, they're, they're staged communities. These are, these are individuals who want to build that sense of community within their, their apartment complexes.So I would say there definitely that misconception that there's a lot of criminal activity, there's drugs, there's, you know, you don't see that. The other misconception that we really see with section 8 in public housing is what's called NIMBYism and it stands for not in my Backyard.And basically it is communities saying, we don't want Section 8 or affordable housing in our communities. You're going to lower our property values, you're going to, you know, lower economic value. All this lovely. Right. And that is not the case.What it's actually shown is that when you develop affordable housing in communities, you can actually help rebuild that community and sustain the community longer because there's typically members of that community that cannot afford to live a higher cost of living at the market rate, or own their own home, things like that, have a mortgage, et cetera. So providing these extra opportunities actually helps sustain communities more so than actually break them down, which is a misunderstanding.So, yeah, there's a lot of misconceptions with Section 8 in public housing. And I, I love kind of debunking some of the myths.

Well, I think there's a misconception about homelessness in totality. I believe that, you know, you've dealt it with it personally. You've dealt with it on a regular basis with your business.I dealt with it personally myself as well, and I dealt with it from A professional perspective as a police officer. And I think that, you know, people forget that they're people, they're human beings.And, you know, the circumstances that put them on the street aren't always drugs or alcohol or, you know, some kind of a, you know, a dark road or put them out there. Sometimes it's circumstances that put there the cost of living has increased dramatically. Unemployment, it goes up. I mean, the.The aspect that life can change in an instant, including your own. With regard to housing, how am I going to pay my rent? How am I going to pay my mortgage? How am I going to pay my car payment? How am I going to.How am I going to eat? Can't go away. Those questions can pop at you at any minute now.

Absolutely no one is immune to it.

Well, I think, you know, a mission born from experience becomes a movement built on purpose.

Yeah. Perfect way to put it.

Your. Yours in itself did it.You know, my childhood, as I grew up, that was what inspired me to get into law enforcement and allowed me to help people from a different perspective. So I appreciate that. From your national perspective. I did it from a professional and personal. You did it from a personal perspective.How would you describe the current state of housing across the. Across the usa?

So that. That's a tough question. You know, we're definitely. There's definitely a need, and we can't build affordable housing quick enough. That.That's our current problem, to be quite honest. And then you also tie in the lack of funding that we're seeing or the loss of funding that also plays into a part of it.So, you know, we're kind of getting hit in 2 Avenue. But definitely it's simply just the need. We can't build housing fast enough to be able to house everyone that needs it. I mean, honestly, what we are.We're having to do is we're getting creative.Is the best way to put it in our development process where we're converting hotels or, you know, former schools, anything we can think of to convert them into housing units. Because sometimes we don't have the land to be able to develop from ground up. We have to get creative.

Well, and I think it's, Travis, today's day and age that they're in some regions, in some areas, they're outlawing homelessness. You know, like it's a crime. And it's not a crime. That's a situation. It's. It's a circumstance. You know, people don't choose to be homeless.It's something that happens.

Yeah.

Which obviously there are Ways to fight that or to be an advocate for that as well, Because I think that's in injustice and humanity are there. In helping us to better understand this. Are there regions where homelessness or housing insecurities, like especially severe or misunderstood.I know you work here in Arizona. Do you work outside of Arizona?

Yep, we work nationally. So we're helping management companies, housing authorities, shelters all across the nation.I'd say a majority of our clients are kind of clustered either east coast or in California, where you tend to see a majority of homelessness issues tends to be in your larger cities. That's where we see a plethora of it. You don't technically see too much in your rural areas. It's definitely more prevalent in our larger cities.

Yeah, small towns. I mean, small towns can be affected by the same as a large city or, you know, foodie or, or Buckeye. I mean, Buckeye I think has grown quite a bit.But something along that line. Obviously that's what led you to launch, you know, Housing Consultants of America. But can you help us understand. I mean, we've talked about it.We, we know said a little bit of what you guys do. What's your core mission today based upon. Let me rephrase this, please. What's your core mission based on?The circumstances today in the rising atmosphere of homelessness? Because it is. Seems like it's exploding now that the cost of living has gone up. The cost of how to get a homes gust has gone up.Rents have increased like immensely.Our daughter's rent jumped from thirteen hundred dollars a month and nineteen hundred dollars a month without, you know, without any kind of like, hey, we're going to do this or nothing. It was like, you want to renew your lease? Well, now it's nineteen hundred dollars. And that's a huge impact on a young person trying to make a.Trying to make a living and trying to, to live.

Absolutely. And, and she stuck probably because she said nowhere else to go.If you're, you're kind of in that situation of, well, if I can't find anything cheaper, I'm. I'm pretty much stuck living here. So yeah, that's a tough situation to be in. It's very difficult.And you know, what we're finding is that even on a national level with our company, we go in and we support anyone who needs our assistance. Any clients that reaches out to us, we'll go into any city. We're certainly not by it.But what we're finding is that a lot of nonprofit and shelters are really starting to Say, you know what?We need to expand our resources, and we need to partner with organizations like our company to help us house our residents a little bit quicker or our program clients is another way to put it. And so we're really partnering with a lot of nonprofit shelters, community partners, to really expand their.Expand their resources, because sometimes they're limited as well. And so we just step in and we help them find that connection, whether it's a vacant property, a voucher, whatever it might be.And sometimes we go in and we've got an entire apartment complex of vacants, and we just walk right into a shelter and say, give us 50 residents, give us 50 applicants so we can process these individuals and try and get them out. So it kind of goes both ways, which is what people. Beautiful. Because sometimes we can be able to help mass quantities at one time.And that becomes so rewarding because you get to hear the stories of people living in shelters for, you know, years upon years, or who have not had their own apartment keys since they were teenagers, and this is their first set of keys they've had in a long time. So it. It provides stories that really drive and fuel not only me, but I know my team members. Wow.

As well. I know that. And it's a great mission, obviously, because, you know, everything that is happening in. In this world, people need people like you.Individuals need people like you and what you do for them. You know, given those regional disparities in the misconceptions about homelessness or housing insecurity. I like. I like the word housing insecurity.I've been introduced to that recently, and I think that's a nice way of putting it. How do those misunderstandings affect the way communities respond? Do you think communities have a larger responsibility?Because what I'm seeing, at least what I'm seeing and I'm hearing is, like I mentioned a few minutes ago that they're starting to outlaw homelessness, and I think that's the wrong response.

I would absolutely agree with you. I think it's the wrong response. I feel like it should be more of.If there is obviously an uptick in homelessness in your community, there should be some additional resources then that are brought into because there's now a need in your community for those resources. And your community needs change year after year. They're never going to stay the same. They're always going to change.

Yeah, it is. Again, I have to reflect on my personal experience and have a reflect on my professional experience.You know, everybody that I ran into, I would say 98% of the people that I ran into that were homelessness or dealt with who were homeless or living in a car or living in a van, in parking, in parking lots. And we wore a lot of those where somebody would call us, we go to call. They think I said, hey, there's somebody parking my parking lot.You know, there was Safeway parking lot. They're in a Kmart parking lot. Well, Kmart's not here anymore. But I just hated myself again. But you get the idea.And, you know, we get there and they're living in their car, they're living in their van because they can't afford to go anywhere else else. Like in any situation that I dealt with, how do you balance it? Because I know there has to be some compliance.There has to be that we have laws, we have regulations, we have, you know, things that have to be complied with. There's how the apartments themselves have to comply with certain things. However you balance compliance and compassion and community and all that.Is it an easy task to try to mix all that together?

No, no, that, that is probably one of our biggest challenges that we face. Because when you tie in, obviously compliance, that comes with government funding, which there always is.There's always, there's always that chain that comes with government funding, and it then becomes a little bit more of a challenge.So to give you an example, when we're dealing with government funding, sometimes we have to request documents such as case birth certificates, Social Security cards. Some individuals might not have those documents anymore. They might not even have a driver's license on them.So really what we're finding is sometimes the immediate need isn't getting them housing, it's getting on these documents so then they can get into housing. Because without some of these critical documents, they're.They're kind of stuff for even getting any type of supportive services, whether it's food stamp, voucher assistance, whatever it might be.So sometimes we have to modify our approach when it comes to homeless individuals to really meet their needs first and then get them housing or additional resources or support that they need.But that is such a great piece that you mentioned is that compliance aspect of it, because we do have paperwork that we have to complete for the government, obviously, to ensure that the person that we're putting into a low income unit isn't trying to scam the system and making millions. Right. So we do have to do some additional paperwork, which can be time consuming and tedious, but it's part of the process.It's one of those things that Egypt, you Take it hand in hand. It's kind of getting your rent covered, but having to do some extra paperwork, you take it with a grain of salt.And we walk individuals through the paperwork, so it's not like they're just being tossed a stack of coursework to do and saying, here you go, try and figure it out. We walk them through. We certainly do.

Which.And obviously, either you have compassion for this or you wouldn't be doing what you're doing, because it's, you know, you have to have empathy, a passion when you deal with individuals that are placed in a position that they didn't have a choice to be placed into.

Correct. Correct. And sometimes impossible for them to give the documents due to their situation if they're in a domestic violence situation.So sometimes we have to get very creative and work with law enforcement or. Or other agencies to really help them out. But, you know, you. You've got resources for a reason.Sometimes it just kind of takes some coordination of all those resources.

And sometimes, I mean, people don't think about that. Sometimes they forget that. Well, they take it for granted. I have a driver's license. I've got a birth certificate. I've got this, I've got that.And when you're put into a position where you lost everything and you have nothing, how do I get those replaced when I have nothing?

Absolutely. And how do you even start over? How. I mean, those are basic needs that you think about. You can't do much without a driver's license.

No. Or an id. A driver license or an ID Ad or id.

You're right. Yep. Exactly. Exactly. So it. It becomes an essential knee said, you know, we.We work with them to get that taken care of, then we get them housing, and then it becomes, you know, what else can we get you? Do you need food stamp? Do you need. Do you just help you find a job? Do you need clothing? You know, what are your other needs? So we can.We can then, you know, what we'd like to call it, provide wraparound services. So we're really supporting them from all angles.

Now, I just. Out of curiosity, are you nonprofit? You're. Are you profit or nonprofit?

No, we're. We're for profit. We're not a nonprofit.

For profit. Okay. Well, I mean, we'll talk about how to get in touch with you here in a little bit, but I think that.That you still have an opportunity for individuals who are seeking that help that may not necessarily have the funds to help, I'm assuming.

Yes, absolutely. Absolutely.There are several resources out There that have vouchers available or have assistance programs that somebody could definitely tap into and utilize, or there's waitlist that we can certainly get them on. So. So that way, they're affirming this in mind. Absolutely.

Well, you haven't. You have a very unique opportunity as Mrs. Arizona.

I do, Yes, I do. You know, just add something else onto my journey and play.

Hey, that. Congratulations on that. Obvious, by the way, but sometimes the crown isn't always about recognition. It's about representation. Right. It gives you the.It's a platform for advocacy, I think, and, you know, it allows you to be able to utilize that role, I think.As Mrs. Mrs. Arizona, do you think that it's helped elevate your mission and your message about homelessness and the importance of helping to resolve this issue?

Yeah, I absolutely do. I absolutely do. And I feel like, you know, homelessness is not a sexy topic. Nobody likes to really talk about it.It kind of gets swept underneath the rug. It's not a headline stopper in the news, but it really is a topic that affects communities. And so it's something that I feel very strongly about.And then I've kind of incorporated into the pageant.And I've noticed that by opening up these conversations with individuals, it's making individuals become more aware of homelessness in their communities and wanting to be supported, supportive of either movements, funding, you know, laws, whatever it might be. They're more proactive in their communities when it comes to responding to homelessness.So I do feel like I've been able to make an impact, at least in the Phoenix area, hopefully on a national level.

Well, I. I would think so. I mean, you know, the message is clear. And the message is that, you know, anybody that's homeless, there's. They're human beings.I go back to that earlier. You know, it. It's. Even when I was a police officer, you know, it. It was interesting because you see. You see people at their worst.You see the best people at their worst. And you. You see that grit. You. You walk it, You. You live it. Every day.You have conversations with people that are in circumstances like losing their home, losing their car, losing everything.They have domestic violence situations where they had to immediately get moved from that environment in a safe manner, who had no idea how they were going to restart their lives, no idea how they were going to get where they need to go and what they need to do.And I prided myself in knowing that every contact that I had, no matter what it was, that it was, everyone is a human Being and that you have to treat people with humanity and compassion and understanding and walk a mile in their shoes, so to speak.You know, I'm grateful I got a thank you card from a felon, a couple of felons who said thank you for treating me like a person instead of just a felon.So, you know, we as human beings in a community, we have to remember that is that it could be, you know, we all have mothers, we have fathers, we have grandparents, we have kids, we have brothers, we have sisters, we have husbands, wives, stepbrothers, stepsisters. You know, at any time, that could happen to any one of them.

Absolutely. And it could be. It could be anybody related to us at any moment time. Homelessness is not biased. It can affect anyone at any time.It's something that, like I said, it's just not talked about. It kind of swept under the rug and.And people just kind of figure that it's the city's problem or the government's problem and someone else will take care of it when it really isn't an issue where if we all come together, we can absolutely come up with solutions.

I agree with that. What you hope to achieve on the national stage, like, how do you. How do you use pageantry as that platform for change?I mean, I know you say you talk about it, you give. It gives you an opportunity, but does it give you. Does it give you a better opportunity to be able to do that, do you think, on a national level?

I absolutely do. I absolutely do. I think it's bringing a voice to a topic that, you know, people just don't want to talk about right now.And it's bringing more awareness in which that. That to me is. Is huge.And I think it kind of makes me a little bit unique in the fact that I'm not going into a pageant system talking about cancer or, you know, kind of the typical platforms. I am bringing aw to an issue that is applicable to every community in every nation. We see it across the world.And so it's something that we need to work together as communities to really resolve and come up with solutions.

I agree with that. And we all want to leave a legacy, but I think it's important to know that it isn't just about what we leave behind.It's about what we build into other people. You know, I think that your mission in life is to help others have the. Build the self esteem, build the confidence, build the opportunity, build the.The enabling to know that they. You empower them. I think you have systematic change you help to create the opportunity for people to move forward in a. In a very, a very good way.So what advice would you have? Someone that's currently facing like a housing insecurity or homelessness?

You know, I would say just not to give up. Don't lose hope, don't lose face. It is. There are resources and solutions that are out there. It is not the ends of the world.And so I would definitely say, you know, either reach out to our organization and we can get you tapped into local resources or reach out to your local housing authority or city officials to see what resources are available, because there are solutions out there and sometimes you just have to get a little creative in finding those solutions. But, you know, I would definitely say don't lose hope or faith. There is a solution. There are people who care.There are organizations who want to see you and your family do better. And so it's something just never, never lose lose sight of the end goal.

And I am assuming that you help both single individuals as well as families, not just, not just every. But you help anybody that's in this.

Situation, anybody who needs, anybody who needs the help, we're happy to help them.

What systematic changes do you believe are most urgent in solving homelessness?I know we talked earlier mentioned the fact that there are some communities that are outlawing homelessness, which I again adamantly going to be an injustice.

Yeah, yeah. You know, I would say right now the biggest issue besides city laws being changed and, and that obviously is a hindrance.You know, it's the lack of funding. We're.We're losing so much funding to help us support building some of these projects that need to be built or even revitalizing some projects that need to be revitalized. And because of that lack of funding, we're struggling.And then being able to build and release more units, which then helps, you know, hinders us from getting people off the street. So I would definitely say, you know, that the funding is tricky.A lot of developers have had to get creative in their funding sacking and programs just because, you know, in order to make deals go through, we've got to come up with alternative funding solutions now. And it. Sometimes that's just what we have to do. Right. If we need the housing, we're going to come up with as many solutions as we can as best we can.

Well, I agree, and I think that systematically, I think the communities themselves really need to take a hard look at helping to support this effort in placing people.They're part of your community, whether you Want them to be or not, they're a part of your community or they're from your community, they lived here, they were they originally part of your community. And all of a sudden the point, it's like, you know, you don't.If you're your brother, your sister, your son, your daughter, your grandparents, your mom, your dad, if they get thrown out on the street, what do you do? You open your door.

Exactly, exactly.

You know, here you are, I've got a place for you to live, a place for you to stay. So I think communities overall, I think need to take a better proactive.From my own opinion, I think that they need to take a proactive approach on helping to solve this problem because they are part of this community. They are human beings that function here and they need help. That's what, you know, that's what we should do. Take care of each other.That Govitt, that's like an old guy right back.

Love it, love it. Yeah. If at the end of the day it's about dignity and respect and that's what we're here to ensure that we provide because we.That's what everybody did there.

Exactly. Dignity and respect. I like that. What's next for you? How can we find you? What do you provide and how can our audience support you?

Yes, so the audience can find us.On housing consultants of america.com we basically do everything from supporting individuals, finding housing to ensuring ongoing compliance or Section 8 or public housing property. So if there are is a property out there that's looking for some services, we certainly can jump on board.And then we also provide training to the staff members so they know how to pre screen applicants, ensure qualification, screening is done properly, etc. So we provide a plethora of training and happy to provide additional resources or training materials to anyone who reaches out.

And I'll make sure that all that is in the show notes so that people have an easy way to find you. They just let the click and it'll take you right to the webpage and you know, you'll find some answers, find some help.

There you go.

Love, it has been a wonderful conversation. I really appreciate you bringing awareness to a problem that needs awareness.But this is one more thing before you go, before we go, do you have any words of wisdom you could share?

Yeah, I would say my words of wisdom are our communities need our support and it is worth it for us to invest in our communities. So whether that's volunteering your time, whether that's, you know, even just picking up the phone call and voicing your opinion.Your communities need your voice. They need your support in order to become better, whether we're talking about homelessness or any other issues. So I would just say use your void.The better your community. That would be my words of wisdom.

Those are brilliant words of wisdom voice. We all have one. We should use it. Use it, use it.

Yes, we should.

So, Jenna, thank you very much for coming. Being part of one more thing before you go say I really appreciate you and what you bring to the world.

Thank you. I appreciate it. Been a pleasure.

Jenna reminds us that housing isn't just a structure, it's a lifeline. That resilience isn't just surviving, it's rebuilding, leading and lifting others.And that advocacy rooted in lived experiences can reshape entire systems. We, her and I, are examples of this. If this conversation moves you, please share it. It inspires you. Act on it and use your voice.And if you're somebody's ever felt unseen, unheard or unworthy, know that your story matters. So until next time, stay curious, stay compassionate, and remember, the most powerful solutions often begin with the most personal story.Thank you for tuning in. And one more thing before you go. Have a great week.

Thanks for listening to this episode of One more thing before you go.Check out our website@beforeyougopodcast.com youm can find us as well as subscribe to the program and rate us on your favorite podcast listening platform.