This program helps unhoused people get employment in the Valley. It just got a $125,000 grant

Local nonprofit Thunderbirds Charities recently awarded a $125,000 grant to a local program that helps people experiencing homelessness find employment and independence.

St. Joseph the Worker’s CEO Carrie Masters said their focus is on people with barriers to employment ranging anywhere from a criminal record to struggles with confidence after leaving an abusive situation.

“Those kind of things can keep people trapped in the cycle of homelessness and poverty,” she said.

With the spike in homelessness after the pandemic and rising cost of living, the first step is helping people earn enough to live on.

“You cannot survive in the state of Arizona on minimum wage,” said Masters. “As a matter of fact, in the studies that we have done, you cannot survive in Arizona, making under $25 an hour. And so I think that we have to start looking at that as a whole and putting in the work to ensure that we actually are doing what it takes to get these individuals off the streets.”

Beyond work, the Employment Without Barriers program connects people with transportation, training and even transitional housing once they secure a job.

“Once they get the job, we will provide whatever it is that they need to be successful at the job,” Masters said. “So of course, transportation, uniform. It could be a fingerprinting card, food handlers card, it could be tools.”

Even after someone graduates, Masters said they’re encouraged to return.

“If we get you that first job, why don’t you come back in 60 days and let’s see if we can get you a better job?” she said. “And maybe you get that better job, and now you want a career. Come on back and we’ll get you into a career job.”

Carrie Masters

Her passion for seeing people through their journey, said Masters, comes from a personal place.

“I grew up here in the Valley, homeless,” Masters said. “Both of my parents were addicted to methamphetamines. And so for the first 14 years of my life, we lived in abandoned homes and cars.”

While her parents’ own barriers to getting back on their feet were front and center, she said so was the community’s help.

“We stayed in the UMOM shelter and really relied on local nonprofits and individuals,” she recalled. “It was food, sometimes. Sometimes it was shelter.”

Masters described feeling like she was living in a bubble; unseen and unheard.

The difference-maker for her was when someone was willing to take a chance on her.

“They took an interest in me as a human being, they gave me opportunity, they listened,” Masters said. “And so all of a sudden, here I am, and I'm being instilled with hope. They were empowering me to take control of my life.”

Through St. Joseph the Worker, she said the goal is to do that for people experiencing homelessness across the Valley – and eventually, Tucson.

“The community out there really does need the services that we provide,” said Masters.

Additionally, Masters said they’re looking into eventually purchasing “our own multifamily development, something really small, maybe 14 or 15 units,” which would allow them to more easily provide transitional housing.

But until then, she said, taking time to get to know and guide clients that need their help now takes priority.

"It is extremely important that our employment specialists and our housing specialists give the dedicated time to these people to really just hear them out, listen to their story, and ensure that we're instilling them with hope and confidence,” said Masters. “One size does not fit all. And so it's ensuring that we're looking at the human being for who they are and not putting them in a basket with everybody else. Everybody's journey is different.”

But change won’t happen overnight, or without community and employers’ support.

"We are actively looking for additional trades and employers willing to offer a similar program to our clients."

Grants like this most recent one, she said, will help continue moving people away from reliance on outside support, as wages struggle to keep pace with rising costs and inflation.