Because Living on a Prayer Alone Doesn't Pay the Bills

Published July 09, 2009 @ 08:03AM PT

Jon Bon Jovi is going where few stars have gone before: affordable, supportive housing. The star is teaming up with Philadelphia-based non-profits to buld SRO housing to help formerly homeless men and women make the transition from the streets into housing.

Here's the scoop from the Philadelphia Enquirer:

Rock legend and homeless advocate Jon Bon Jovi is participating in a venture to build an eight-story facility to provide affordable single-unit housing for 79 men and women who want to transition from homelessness to independence.

The new building will be environmentally friendly, including a "green" roof, highly insulated walls, and a rainwater collection system. And seventy-five percent of the demolition materials will be recycled.

And, from dreamy rocker himself: "I understand to address homelessness and poverty we must come together and look for meaningful solutions. Improving the lives of Philadelphia's most vulnerable citizens improves the lives of all of its citizens."

It's funny, for all of the philanthropically-minded celebrities out there, we don't often see stars adopting "homelessness" as their pet issue. That is, unless they're standing in line at a soup kitchen. That's not to say that meal service isn't important (it is). But soup alone will not address the root cause(s) of homelessness, hunger, and poverty.

It's no wonder that housing and homelessness aren't favored by Hollywood publicists. It's a domestic issue with few photo ops and beneficiaries who are stigmatized by unfair and misguided stereotypes.

But leave it to Bon Jovi to make homelessness sexy.

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Comments (8)

Way to go, Mr. Bon Jovi. A great lesson for "celebrities". Based on the financials from the Philadelphia Soul Foundation, it doesn't look like they have a ton of money to put towards such a big project (and maybe there's other personal money from Bon Jovi going to this). What it looks like he did is leverage his own fame and a little bit of his money to bring more people to the table, *and* give this project and the issue some national exposure that it likely wouldn't have received had he not been involved. Seems like a lot of famous people don't do this nearly as well, especially on a fundamental thing as housing.

Posted by Steve Albertson on 07/09/2009 @ 10:19AM PT
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Way to go Jon! As you probably know there are at least 4 categories of homeless in America. There are the people who want to be homeless (basically gypsies who want to be homeless - they do not need our help), the addicts (if they can rehab, they should get help if they want it), the mentally ill (it's sad that there isn't much real help available for these people), and then the people who became homeless through bad economic situations. This last group is people who could become productive members of society fairly quickly if the right places and programs were available. I am glad you are helping some of these people, and hope that more celebrities and the government will do much more very soon. It is also very important to keep people from becoming homeless in the first place. It is far cheaper to keep people from becoming homeless, than it is to try to help them get back. It is extremely difficult to find a job if you don't have a permanent place to live. In any case, what you are doing is a great thing, and I hope more clebrities and government will take similar actions soon.

Posted by Jim Huether on 07/09/2009 @ 11:09AM PT
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Ooo-eee, Jim. That's a pretty tight categorization there...and probably needs a little flexibility because homelessness doesn't come in such "neat" packages.

I do agree a lot more can be done to prevent homelessness. And I'm happy to see celebs jumping on this issue's bandwagon.

At risk of sounding self-promoting, let me recommend a reader-friendly look at homelessness: Crossing the Line: Taking Steps to End Homelessness, http://www.hearus.us/understanding-homelessness/books/crossing-the-line.html

Posted by HEAR US on 07/09/2009 @ 11:31AM PT
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Yes, it's a tight categorization, but I didn't have room to write a book. However my categorization has come from years of observing homelessness in Santa Cruz County. I strongly believe there are people who want to be homeless, and those that don't. Most people in Santa Cruz who don't want to be homeless, got there either because of economic breakdown, mental illness, or addiction to something. Mental illness usually doesn't go away, but needs to be treated. Addiction is a very hard problem to deal with, requires specialists, and often results in failure. However if we can prevent people who do not fall into those categories from becoming homeless in the first place, and help the ones who do to get back on their feet, those are things that can be done with significant success.

BTW, I looked at your website and it seems like a very good place for people to get more in-depth information about homelessness. Keep up the good work.

Posted by Jim Huether on 07/09/2009 @ 11:58AM PT
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Jon and his Philadelphia Soul Foundation have been building homes for homeless people since 2006. They have built quite a few. Jon has been involved in many other charitable endeavors throughout his career. He also uses his status to bring a lot of attention to the issues.

Posted by Teresa Bridges on 07/09/2009 @ 06:42PM PT
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I love hearing about people taking actual steps to make things better.

Posted by Jacquelyn Morano on 07/09/2009 @ 09:40PM PT
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Very nice move, Mr. Bon Jovi! We love seeing celebs step out to make a difference. We are looking forward to hearing the results of this project!

Posted by Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida on 07/13/2009 @ 10:33AM PT
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AWESOME THAT'S WHAT MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND CARING LOVING DOING

Posted by Amen Sigala on 07/15/2009 @ 01:20PM PT
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Author

Shannon has worked in homeless shelters and service organizations in San Francisco, the Triangle region of North Carolina, and currently in the greater Boston area. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.