Joe Volk urges government attention for family homelessness

On April 16th, Community Advocates CEO Joe Volk testified before a Congressional briefing on homelessness convened by the Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness.  At the briefing, as well as in a follow-up interview by The Nation, Volk highlighted the need to address family homelessness.  "Families, for a decade, have been ignored," he said, as efforts focused instead on homeless individuals.  "It's a whole different dynamic for families," Volk explained.  Community Advocates operates shelters that serve both individuals and families.  Please click here to read the entire article.

Milwaukee should be very proud!

A big THANK YOU to everyone who helped us to reach our Match Day goal on March 14th!  Community Advocates' loyal donors contributed 92% more than last year. Our donors contributed over $46,000 - WOW!

Thank you to everyone at the Greater Milwaukee Foundation for creating such a meaningful and exciting way to raise funds and awareness for organizations like Community Advocates that provide a lifeline to so many needy people in our community.  Congratulations to all of the 21 nonprofits that also work so hard every day to fight poverty in Milwaukee.

PPI urges filling BadgerCare coverage gaps, linking it to cost savings and avoidance of employer tax hikes

The Community Advocates Public Policy Institute (PPI) is taking bold steps urging Governor Walker and the Wisconsin Legislature to take advantage of the Affordable Care Act and expand BadgerCare by filling its gaps in eligibility—and the media is noticing. PPI outlined its evidence in a letter to Governor Walker and the Legislature, explaining that BadgerCare expansion would result in at least 170,000 Wisconsinites gaining coverage, and would make fiscal sense for the state budget. In addition to other consequences, the Governor’s failure to fill the BadgerCare eligibility cap would expose Wisconsin’s large employers to a tax increase of more than $100 million statewide.

Grand opening event shows value of Autumn West

At December's grand opening, Community Advocates celebrated hope, home, and health with the residents of the new Autumn West Safe Haven building.  Autumn West provides housing and supportive services to individuals who are homeless and facing mental illness.

PPI Releases "Pathways to Ending Poverty" Report

Before a standing-room-only crowd, the Community Advocates Public Policy Institute introduced its Pathways to Ending Poverty Project results on September 10th. David Riemer, Senior Fellow at the Public Policy Institute, presented the project’s four proposed policies and related results. The Urban Institute, an independent policy analysis center, evaluated PPI's proposed new policies using economic modeling. The resulting "Reducing Poverty in Wisconsin" report by the Urban Institute confirms that implementing the four-part policy package developed by PPI would dramatically reduce poverty in Wisconsin by between 58% and 81%.