Pathlight HOME Information

Our Housing First philosophy focuses on providing homeless individuals a safe, dignified and permanent place to live, then surrounding them with a caring and compassionate team to address chronic mental illness, addiction, and challenges arising from disability and employment barriers. Celebrating 25 years in 2017, we continue to be inspired by our founder, Reverend Fred Maxwell, whose vision was to solve homelessness through housing and job opportunities. Rev. Maxwell instinctively believed in "Housing-First," long before it was adopted by communities around North America as the critical innovation needed to truly end homelessness. His dream inspired our first and current President, Helaine Blum, as they worked together to create the first organization in Florida to pioneer the Housing First model. Since Rev. Maxwell's passing in 2005, Pathlight HOME has become Central Florida's largest provider of permanent supportive housing for homeless men and women, especially those who are chronically homeless. Today, over 600 residents receive safe and dignified housing as they interact with a compassionate team providing support services. Our capacity to serve very-low income and chronically homeless individuals is critical civic infrastructure and the loss of these units from the existing housing continuum of care would be catastrophic for our community. Thankfully, due to sustainable asset management, accompanied with professional supportive services, Pathlight HOME is prepared to extend the life of its existing units for the foreseeable future. Additionally, we plan to continue leveraging our population-specific expertise, successful track record of public funding (Federal, State, County, and City), and strong financial position to produce additional affordable units, including permanent supportive housing for those who are chronically homeless. The mission of Pathlight HOME is to change the lives of homeless and low-income individuals by providing affordable housing and economic opportunities.