Jewels Helping Hands

🌈 We are a little over one week away from the Spokane Pride Festival, and Jewels Helping Hands will have a booth!

Come by to learn more about:
✨ The Aurora Center, our 24/7 shelter for 2SLGBTQIA+ adults age 25 and older experiencing homelessness
✨ The Housing Navigation Center, where we welcome over 100 guests every day with meals, showers, laundry, and connection to housing, employment, and medical services
✨ Ways to support our work through donations or by volunteering your time

We also have a limited number of Jewels Helping Hands Pride hats available for purchase before next weekend at $15 each! Message our page directly if you’d like to grab one.

Grab your gear and come show up to support! 💗

Gary did not become homeless all at once.

First, he got a divorce.

Paying for an apartment by himself was expensive, but Gary managed to squeak by each month.

Until his car broke down and he could not afford to fix it.

Unable to get to work reliably, he got fired.

Without a job, Gary got evicted.

Afraid to stay at a shelter, Gary tried to find places outside to sleep at night. It was summer, so he wouldn’t freeze, at least.

One night Gary got jumped by a couple of guys. In the melee, he got hit in the head with a baseball bat. Lying unconscious, his attackers rifled through his pockets and found nothing worth taking.

Gary woke up in a hospital bed with blurry vision, the worst headache of his life and a few stitches.

Gary also had something that made all of his prior problems look small: a traumatic brain injury.

That injury changed what Gary could do. A hit to the frontal lobe can make memory, judgment, impulse control and social filters much harder. Gary started saying things he never would have said before (“disinhibition”) because he didn’t know they were offensive. He also struggled remembering anything but the simplest instructions.

Those two things made steady work impossible.

Gary has not been able to hold down a job for more than a few days since his injury.

Gary will never get back on his feet again without intensive support… EVER.

Homelessness has Patterns
Homelessness has many patterns that shape it.

One is what I’ll call the “Domino Effect.”

The basic idea is simple: One bad thing does not guarantee the next bad thing, but it does increase the odds.

Most people who get a divorce will not end up homeless, but it increases the risk.

Studies have shown that it is one of the leading drivers of homelessness.

Most people who become homeless will not take a baseball bat to the head, but it makes it more likely.

When someone becomes homeless the risk of violence against them is increased by a factor of 9,000. (No, you’re not reading that wrong).

Not surprisingly, 53% of individuals who have been homeless for over a year have a traumatic brain injury. (No, you’re not reading that wrong either.)

The Domino Effect takes people who could have been helped cheaply and turns their lives into something much more harder, much more expensive, to repair.

A few hundred dollars would have fixed Gary’s car.

Now he will either be homeless or need a fully subsidized apartment for the rest of his life.

So, what do we do?

There a few lessons in here:
1) Small problems ignored early, cause big problems later.

One-by-one, the people living on your streets are becoming permanently unemployable if your community doesn’t have adequate shelter and services.

2) Once a person reaches a certain point, there is no coming back.

Someone with a bad enough brain injury is unemployable. Calling them lazy and threatening to take away their subsidized housing if they don’t get a job doesn’t change that.

3) Homelessness is not as hopeless as it seems.

We need to stop treating homelessness like a random collection of bad choices.

It has patterns… and patterns can be interrupted.

The “Science of Homelessness” is a new endeavor, but in a few decades we have already learned a lot, and we learn more every day.

Have a great week!

Peace,
Ryan

🌸 Our Spring 2026 Newsletter is here!
Catch up on the latest from Jewels Helping Hands, including a message from our Executive Director on our brand-new laundry services at the Housing Navigation Center, updates from our Scattered Site Shelters, and details on our booth at Spokane Pride this June.

👉 Read it here:

Jewels Helping Hands May 2026 Update There is something most of us take for granted. The simple comfort of a clean shirt, clean socks, and clothes that smell like home instead of the night you just survived.

Check out what we’re doing at Healing Hearts Integrated Medical Respite.

Housing, Health & Hope | Health Matters | KSPS PBS High housing costs, low vacancy rates, and increasing financial strain affect residents’ physical and mental health, often pushing people—especially seniors—...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Jewels Helping Hands and Providence Announce New Partnership to Expand Medical Support at Scattered Site Shelters

Spokane, WA — effective 3/30/26

Jewels Helping Hands (JHH) is proud to announce a new partnership with Providence to expand on-site medical services at JHH’s scattered site shelters, strengthening the continuum of care for some of Spokane’s most vulnerable community members.

Beginning this month, Providence will provide dedicated medical staff to all JHH shelter locations. Each site will have a full-time medical assistant assigned, supported by a Providence nurse practitioner who will regularly round at all sites. This collaborative model is designed to improve access to essential healthcare/behavioral services for unsheltered individuals and those transitioning through shelter programs.

“We are pleased to be supporting Jewels Helping Hands in this important work for our community,” said Robert Lippman, manager of the Providence Community Clinic. “This is a shared vision coming to life between community partners to better fulfill the Providence mission to serve all. This stands for our value of excellence to ensure this population is getting high-quality care”.

Through this partnership, residents at JHH shelters will now have on-site access to a range of medical services, including:

Wound care
Medication management
Point-of-care testing for common illnesses such as flu and COVID
Blood pressure checks
Support navigating and connecting to long-term primary care
The new clinical presence at the shelters strengthens efforts to reduce emergency room dependence, improve health stability, and connect individuals to ongoing medical and social services. This addition to scattered sites is meant to provide improved housing outcomes and placements by utilizing a holistic approach to sheltering.

“This partnership directly reflects what happens when community organizations come together with shared purpose,” said Julie Garcia, Executive Director/Founder of Jewels Helping Hands. “Providence’s willingness to meet people where they are will help our guests receive the compassionate, consistent care they deserve.”

"This is powerful example of what partnership can achieve. I am grateful to Jewels Helping Hands and Providence for their commitment to expanding access to critical medical care and reaching even more folks being served throughout our scattered site model," - Mayor Lisa Brown.

Jewels Helping Hands continues to lead innovative, person-centered programs that support individuals experiencing homelessness in Spokane. The partnership with Providence marks a significant step forward in building a more holistic care system that prioritizes dignity, accessibility, and long-term health outcomes.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Julie Garcia
Executive Director/Founder
[email protected]

We are currently in urgent need of clothing donations to support individuals across our scattered site shelters.

Our biggest needs right now include:
• Men’s t-shirts
• Sweatshirts
• Sweatpants
• Underwear (all sizes)
• Jeans (most needed sizes: 30–38)

Our women’s shelter is also in need of:
• Leggings
• Sweatpants
• Casual shirts (no dress clothes)

Donations can be dropped off at:
3923 N Cedar

All items will be distributed directly to those we serve across our sites.

JHH contact info:

HNC or housing navigation center: 509-507-4624

Intake lines:

cedar:

509-723-6201

Morning star:

509-638-4493

Healing hearts:

509-368-1509

Knox:

509-824-2312

Aurora:

509-710-9643(new center)

Volunteer/Donations:

+1 (509) 992-2239 or [email protected]

Inclement weather beds: 509-723-6201

A Letter from our Executive Director

Dear Friends and Supporters,

As we come to the end of 2025, I want to pause and personally thank you for standing with us this year. Jewels Helping Hands exists because of people like you, and this year reminded me repeatedly how powerful community can be when we show up for one another.

Together, we navigated a year filled with both challenges and meaningful progress. With your support, we operated four scattered-site shelters that offered more than a safe place to sleep. These centers became places of dignity, connection, and stability for individuals working to rebuild their lives.

Through our scattered-site programs this year:



• 52 individuals moved into permanent housing

• 10 secured housing vouchers and used them successfully

• 14 transitioned into transitional housing

• 132 were reunited with family and returned home permanently

• 29 entered detox or rehabilitation programs

• 7 received long-term psychiatric treatment

• 25 moved into Safe Haven housing

We also experienced loss, with two guests passing away. Their lives matter, and their stories continue to remind us why this work is urgent and deeply human.

Over the course of the year, we supported 751 guests through our scattered-site shelters, with 649 total exits. As of today, 102 individuals remain actively enrolled in Jewels Helping Hands services as they continue working toward stability and independence.

One of our most significant milestones this year was opening the Housing Navigation Center in October.

In just the first three months, the impact has been extraordinary:

• 905 unique individuals enrolled in CMIS

• 297 accessed shelter or inclement weather beds

• 30 entered detox or treatment programs

• 10 received bus tickets for transportation

• 32 requested SPD pickups and 19 SPD drop-offs

• 8,120 visits through our doors

• Over 6,000 sack lunches served

• More than 2,520 showers were provided



And in 2026, we’re excited to expand services at the HNC to include laundry access, another simple but essential step toward dignity and stability.

The Housing Navigation Center represents a new way forward—meeting people where they are and walking alongside them as they work toward long-term solutions. Its success is rooted in collaboration. We truly are better together, and we are grateful for the many partners who help make this work possible.



A few moments from this year that made us especially proud:



• 131,040 meals were served with the help of our donors and community

• 160 families received holiday meals through partnerships with local organizations

• Our mobile shower program provided 44,560 free showers before the unit was donated to another organization to continue this vital service

• Over 4,500 basic needs bags were assembled and distributed through outreach and community support

• We partnered with 74 organizations across Spokane and Spokane County to serve our neighbors experiencing homelessness.

Looking ahead to 2026, we are continuing to grow thoughtfully and intentionally:



• In January, our inclement weather beds came online, offering overnight shelter to 15 women during extreme weather

• Later in January, we will open the Aurora Center, a new scattered-site program serving the 2SLGBTQIA+ community

• In 2026, we will also partner with Compassionate Addiction Treatment in the opening of a tiny home community.

None of this work happens alone. It happens because donors give generously, volunteers show up consistently, partners collaborate openly, and advocates continue to speak up. Your trust and belief in this mission mean more than words can say.

Thank you for being part of this community and for walking alongside us.

As we move into 2026, we remain committed to expanding access, strengthening partnerships, and continuing to meet people with compassion, respect, and hope to create a community where everyone has a place to call home.



With deep gratitude,

Julie Garcia

Executive Director

Jewels Helping Hands

The cold weather has officially arrived in Spokane. With overnight temperatures dropping into the low teens, our friends experiencing homelessness are facing dangerous conditions outside.

To help prevent frostbite and keep people as safe as possible, we urgently need cold-weather supplies. Right now, the most needed items are Mylar emergency blankets, sleeping bags, blankets, and hand and body warmers.

We would gladly accept new or gently used blankets, which can be dropped off anytime at 3923 N Cedar.

These items go directly into outreach bags and are distributed by our teams and community partners to people who are outside in these freezing temperatures. Every single item makes a difference when it’s this cold.

If you’re able to help, you can donate through our Amazon wishlist or financial links below. Your support allows us to respond quickly and meet urgent needs.

Thank you for showing up for our community and thank you for making a difference!

Amazon Wishlist
http://tiny.cc/w4ov001

Venmo
https://account.venmo.com/u/jewelshelpinghands

PayPal
http://paypal.com/paypalme/jewelshh