Nashville Homeless Power Project
Nashville, Tennessee
"Each day we support each other to speak for ourselves and transform homelessness in our community, we are thankful that Self Development of People has demonstrated a commitment to our work."
– John Zirker, Nashville Homeless Power Project president, formerly homeless man
The Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People’s involvement in homeless issues runs the gamut of the United States, from the south, to the northeast, to the Midwest and to the western part of the country. These groups are playing a leadership role in bringing to the forefront issues that impact on persons that are homeless.
In 2007 Self-Development of People partnered with the Nashville Homeless Power Project (NHPP) by awarding the group a $20,000 grant to assist it with leadership development, staffing and infrastructure costs. NHPP initially started in the basement of the Downtown Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee in 2002 as an extension of the Church’s Homeless ministry. In a city of 6000 homeless people, Nashville Homeless Power Project today has several hundred members with a 15 person leadership team comprised of homeless and formerly homeless people. According to NHPP one of the group’s objectives is to increase the amount of funding for low-income housing in Nashville. In 2007 Nashville Homeless Power Project played a leading role in the city deciding to increase its housing budget to over $800, 000 to build low-income housing. That same year because of Nashville Homeless Power Project efforts, four candidates for Mayor agreed to spend an entire night on the streets. The group hopes this can serve as a model for the National Coalition for the Homeless.
