Hope in the battle against homelessness, By Neal Peirce, November 8, 2009, Denver Post: “Veterans of America’s recent wars left homeless; abused women and their children seeking nightly shelter; out-of-sight medical system costs; rising tides of bankruptcies. What do they have to do with each other - and America’s current health care debate? A lot, it turns out. By failing to guarantee a roof over every American’s head, we’ve failed the test - as Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan puts it - of ‘a civilized society.’ On a typical night, 650,000 Americans have no place to call home. We created this crisis ourselves, by the states emptying out their mental hospitals and cities demolishing thousands of low-income rental units. The result was a huge gap in affordable shelter. Plus, by failing to restrain medical system costs or guarantee care for all Americans, we’ve forced thousands of families to go into bankruptcy. Today, alarming numbers are being forced to take to the streets where their health is even more endangered by extremes of pelting rain or stone-cold nights, unsanitary conditions and sometimes violence. Yet as grim as all this sounds, it’s possible to see strong glimmers of light…”

Out-of-home foster care reform kicks off, By JoAnne Young, November 9, 2009, Lincoln Journal Star: “Child welfare’s view of the world is shifting. The providers of foster care - and other services for families and children who need help in so many areas of their lives - are undergoing a complete culture change. They are learning to think in new ways. The work has been hard, really hard, with plenty of challenges. Recently, one of the six private agencies with which the state contracted to provide foster care and family services, pulled out - deciding not to sign the contract. In the final days, the Alliance for Children and Family Services, one of two contractors in the central service area, said it just wasn’t financially feasible…”