Community collaboration crucial in addressing homelessness in Abilene

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – Young professionals gathered at the Community Foundation of Abilene for an “Abi Chat” during the Abilene Young Professionals luncheon. Networking took a purposeful turn to address homelessness through collaboration with the West Texas Homeless Network.

The West Texas Homeless Network (WTHN) is a coalition of organizations dedicated to advocating for action that realigns systems and resources to end homelessness in Abilene, rather than merely managing it. The WTHN is neither a non-profit nor a for-profit organization; instead, it focuses on helping communities prevent and eliminate homelessness through collaboration and strategic planning.

The Executive Director of Abilene Hope Haven shared why events like this are important in keeping the conversation with the public and continuing to address the needs of the Big Country Homeless community.

“We have a great network of people. We always are going to need to fill different gaps, depending on what’s going on in the climate of our community. But we have a wealth of providers in the network that are really good at doing a holistic approach to those experiencing homelessness,” Horton shared.

Horton says the Abilene community’s wealth of resources and willingness to work together are its strengths. Whether a person needs help with mental health, food insecurity, substance abuse, or any number of issues that homeless neighbors face, the network is ready and willing to step in.