Meeting Notes: Bridge Coalition Meeting on June 24th
Opening Comments (Sarah):
- Sarah filled in for Jim as the facilitator,
- Formal Introductions were done,
- A broad overview of NorthStar Advocates Mission and purpose was discussed,
- Focusing on return to community: safe housing, relationships, and supporting young adults facing unaccompanied homelessness interests and passions.
The Bridge Scope and Vision (v):
- High rate of return to homelessness for young people exiting inpatient care,
- Cross-system information sharing and training,
- Developing Return To Community Plan,
- Developing opportunities for systems reform.
Topic Focus: Diversion and Prevention Presentation
Presenter: Julius Henrichsen, YYA Diversion Portfolio Specialist, Building Changes
Presentation Title: HPDF and YDIP Projects in Washington State
Overview of Diversion
Julius Henrichsen provided an in-depth presentation on Diversion as a youth-centered, strengths-based approach that supports young people in resolving housing crises quickly and safely outside of the formal homelessness response system. The model shifts focus away from system-based placements and instead leverages the young person’s own existing resources and networks.
At its core, Diversion involves an:
- Exploratory, strengths-based conversation to brainstorm practical solutions for young people to resolve their housing instability or homelessness.
- Focus on helping youth overcome immediate barriers to accessing safe and stable housing.
- Process of generating creative ideas and identifying realistic housing options based on the young person’s own resources (family, friends, jobs, community ties) — not the homeless response system.
- The goal is rapid housing resolution, typically within about 30 days.
- When necessary, one-time financial assistance may be used to help a young person secure housing.
This model also:
- Centers justice in service delivery
- Honors the inherent strengths and resilience of the young person
- Explores a range of possibilities for housing and stability
- Encourages creative problem-solving across agencies
Centralized Diversion Model
Julius emphasized the importance of a Centralized Diversion Model, where an entire community takes ownership of diversion work rather than isolating it within one program. The model is designed to be flexible, collaborative, and prevention-focused.
Key Features:
- Community-based model (not just a program within a community)
- Operates with a “no wrong door” approach — any provider can act as a housing support specialist
- Provides support before a young person enters the system
- Encourages cross-sector collaboration
Key partners include:
- HPDF/YDIP administrators
- McKinney-Vento liaisons (school-based supports)
- Community college staff
- Employment and job-readiness programs
- Homeless youth service providers
- LGBTQ+ youth organizations
- BIPOC-serving agencies
- Mental and behavioral health providers
Homelessness Prevention & Diversion Fund (HPDF)
This fund is designed for youth ages 12–24 who:
- Currently reside in a participating HPDF community
- Are unaccompanied or at imminent risk of becoming unaccompanied
- Are experiencing a housing crisis, including:
- Literally homeless
- Staying in a shelter
- Couch-surfing or doubled-up
- Unsafe or fleeing domestic violence/trafficking
- At imminent risk of homelessness under AWHWA guidelines
- Have a plan to be housed outside of the homeless system within ~30 days
Note: Youth currently staying in or entering a homeless housing program are not eligible for HPDF.
Youth Diversion Infrastructure Project (YDIP)
YDIP focuses on young people under 25 who are exiting a system of care, such as:
- Child welfare/foster care
- Juvenile justice or adult detention
- Behavioral health systems, including:
- Inpatient and outpatient care
- Psychiatric hospitals
- Emergency room visits for behavioral health crises
- Substance use rehabilitation
- Programs funded by the Office of Homeless Youth, including:
- HOPE Centers
- Crisis Resolution Centers
- Transitional Living Programs (ages 16–17)
- System of Care grantees
- Housing Stability for Youth in Courts
To be eligible, youth must:
- Live in a participating YDIP community
- Be unaccompanied or at risk of becoming unaccompanied
- Be couchsurfing, doubled-up, unsheltered, or staying in a shelter
- Be at imminent risk of losing housing
- Be experiencing unsafe or life-threatening situations related to violence
- Have a realistic housing plan for resolving their situation within 30 days, outside of the homelessness system
Closing Remarks
Julius concluded by encouraging agencies to adopt diversion models in ways that reflect their unique community ecosystems — reinforcing that everyone can be a housing support specialist. He invited attendees to reach out for further guidance on implementing these models with fidelity and offered to help get induvials trained in these models.
Contact: Julius.Henrichsen@buildingchanges.org
Topic Focus: A Parent’s Attempt to Navigate WA Systems
Presenter: Katie Joanne, Advocate and Founder of Jaden’s Community Support Fund
Katie Joanne opened the meeting with a powerful and emotionally resonant presentation titled “A Parent’s Attempt to Navigate WA Systems,” where she shared the heartbreaking journey of losing her 19-year-old son, Jaden, to fentanyl poisoning. Her presentation was both a tribute to his life and a comprehensive, deeply informed critique of the systems that failed him — and countless other young people. She invited the Coalition to consider not only her lived experience as a mother, but the broader implications for system design, family inclusion, and behavioral health reform.
Opening Video: Honoring Jaden’s Legacy
Katie began her presentation with a moving tribute video from an event held at the Seattle Recovery School in honor of her son. The event celebrated the creation of the Jaden Joanne Fund, which she launched to support young people in recovery and the providers who serve them. The fund is a way for Katie to transform her grief into action — by raising financial support to address service gaps, elevate peer-led programs, and ensure youth in crisis don’t get left behind. The video underscored the real-life stakes of the Coalition’s work and grounded the meeting in the purpose behind system change: saving lives. The video can be view here: https://www.whereweconverge.com/video/v/jadens-legacy-a-community-unites-to-support-youth-in-recovery
Jaden’s Story and the Systems He Encountered
Katie’s presentation chronicled her years-long effort to navigate a complex web of services, systems, and legal restrictions on behalf of her son — starting in elementary school and continuing through to his death as a young adult. She shared a chronological list of over 30 service touchpoints, including, but not limited to:
- Early interventions: CCS, Rainier Scholars, private therapists
- School-based supports: IEP for twice-exceptional diagnosis, behavioral support teams
- Inpatient and outpatient behavioral health: Ryther, Children’s Hospital, Healing Lodge, Evoke Wilderness, Sundown M Ranch
- Legal systems: Juvenile Court, probation, assigned attorneys
- Treatment and recovery: Recovery High School, AA community
- Advocacy work: Children’s Mental Health Work Group, Changes Parent Support Network
Despite this extensive system involvement, no single provider or agency took coordinated responsibility for his care. Transitions were often abrupt, siloed, or ineffective — leading to frequent relapses, disconnection from support systems, and increasing instability.
Medical Consent Law: A Devastating Barrier
One of the most painful and pivotal themes of Katie’s story was Washington State’s medical consent law, which allows youth aged 13 and older to refuse treatment for mental health or substance use without parental involvement. Katie emphasized how this law left her:
- Powerless to admit her son to treatment when he was in clear crisis
- Cut off from communication with providers despite being his legal guardian
- Excluded from safety planning and aftercare coordination
- Watching helplessly as her son deteriorated while systems claimed their hands were tied
She pointed out the tragic contradiction: families are held responsible for their child’s well-being, yet stripped of their rights to meaningfully intervene.
Systemic Barriers That Contributed to His Death
Katie illuminated the compounding failures across systems that led to her son’s preventable death, which ultimately occurred after he was inappropriately discharged from an inpatient behavioral health facility — one he had voluntarily entered as a step toward recovery.
- Inconsistent access to detox and treatment beds, particularly when readiness for treatment was brief and urgent.
- Fragmented care coordination, with no shared records or wraparound approach.
- Lack of warm handoffs between inpatient providers and community-based housing or recovery programs.
- Aging out of youth services without sufficient transitional planning.
- Trauma-inducing encounters with law enforcement and emergency departments.
- No centralized system ownership — leaving families like hers isolated and exhausted.
Socioeconomic and Structural Equity Considerations
Katie acknowledged that her family held significant privilege and resources, including private insurance, education, and system knowledge — and yet, they still could not access the help their son needed. She asked the Coalition to reflect on what this means for families with fewer resources, especially BIPOC families, rural families, or those navigating systems with language and cultural barriers. She also stressed that good programs are often short-lived or impossible to access consistently, making continuity of care difficult even for those who find entry points.
Closing Reflections and Impact
Katie’s presentation was more than a story — it was a strategic, informed call to action for systems to do better. Katie ended her presentation by honoring Jaden — his creativity, sensitivity, and brilliant spirit. Her words struck a deep chord with attendees, many of whom were visibly emotional. Her story reminded the group that every policy has a personal impact, and that behind every decision point is someone’s child, someone’s future, and someone’s grief. Katie ended her presentation by saying… “When I see youth on the streets, I don’t see a problem. I see someone’s child.”
SHB 1929 Westside Bridge Housing- Friends of Youth Update
Presenter: Modou Nyang, Senior Director of Homeless Youth Services, Friends of Youth
Location: Kirkland, WA (King County)
- Program Structure: Friends of Youth will operate their Bridge Housing program out of two homes in Kirkland, delivering a wraparound, individualized model rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.
- Capacity & Phasing: Each home will house up to five youth, for a total of 10 placements. They’re launching in phases:
- Bridge Pointe Housing (Unit 1): On track to open mid-July, with unit preparation nearly complete.
- Unit 2: Currently undergoing zoning review and expected to open in the following months.
- Staffing & Supports:
- An aggressive hiring plan is underway, including roles for youth specialists, peer support counselors, case managers, and housing managers.
- Support model emphasizes individualized case management, therapeutic community spaces, and shared-decision making.
- Home Environment & Safety:
- Homes are being furnished thoughtfully with mattresses, pillows, and common-area furniture to cultivate a home-like, therapeutic atmosphere.
- Program setup includes ensuring safety, compliance, quality assurance, and trauma-informed design before the first move-ins.
SHB 1929 Eastside Bridge Housing- Excelsior Wellness Updates
Presenter: Lauren Zunker, VP of Operations, Excelsior Wellness
Location: Spokane, WA (Spokane County)
Lauren shared progress on Excelsior Wellness’s Bridge Housing site in Spokane County. The team is actively finalizing internal policies and procedures and preparing those documents for review by the Health Care Authority and NorthStar Advocates to ensure program fidelity and alignment with the state model.
Key updates included:
- Staffing and hiring efforts are underway to build out a team that can support young adults transitioning from behavioral health facilities.
- Site preparation continues, with attention to licensing, therapeutic space design, and service integration.
- Lauren also mentioned a potential opportunity to acquire a home located on Excelsior’s campus, which could be used as the program’s physical Bridge Housing site. This possibility is still under exploration, with updates to come.
Community Updates:
- No updates.
Closing Comments:
- Sarah closed the meeting and thanked everyone for their support and active participation in this work.
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