[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 172 (Thursday, November 19, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2822]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CELEBRATING 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF SEATTLE'S DOWNTOWN EMERGENCY SERVICE 
                                 CENTER

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JIM McDERMOTT

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 19, 2009

  Mr. McDERMOTT. Madam Speaker, today I rise to offer special 
recognition to Seattle's Downtown Emergency Service Center, DESC, on 
its thirtieth anniversary. For three decades, this non-profit 
organization has committed itself to serve the most vulnerable homeless 
populations of Seattle with shelter, services, advocacy, and housing.
  DESC began as a partnership among the City of Seattle, the Greater 
Seattle Council of Churches, and Washington Advocates for the Mentally 
Ill to address the shortage of shelter and services for a growing 
population of homeless persons in the Seattle area. On November 19, 
1979, with fourteen staff, DESC opened its doors to nearly 200 homeless 
adults as an overnight emergency shelter in the ballroom of the 
Morrison Hotel, in Seattle's historic Pioneer Square. A year later, 
DESC became a Mental Health Care licensed agency. Since its early 
years, DESC has been a leader in developing programs that provide a 
full continuum of care to address the root causes of homelessness.
  In 1985, DESC was selected as a pilot location for the national 
``Health Care for the Homeless'' program to integrate chemical 
dependency, mental health, and nursing with shelter services. In 1989, 
DESC enhanced its local outreach program by sending clinically trained 
staff to the streets to seek out and establish first contact with 
Seattle's most vulnerable homeless men and women. That novel practice 
has become the standard outreach strategy used in most major U.S. 
cities today.
  In addition, DESC began developing permanent supportive housing for 
the hardest-to-serve homeless men and women. In 1997, it opened the 
Lyon Building with 64 apartments for homeless adults affected by HIV/
AIDS, mental illness and/or addiction, implementing a ``Harm 
Reduction'' model. That same year, it also introduced the ``Housing 
First'' model to Seattle with the opening of the Kerner Scott House: 40 
apartments for formerly homeless, mentally ill, and/or addiction-
challenged adults. In 2005, DESC expanded its ``Housing First'' model 
with the opening of the 1811 Eastlake, a 75-unit building for late-
stage chronic inebriates, typically high users of public services.
  Over the years, DESC has received dozens of awards and widespread 
recognition for its innovative housing projects and intensive services. 
In 2004 and in 2005, it received the Metlife Award for Excellence in 
Affordable Housing, making it the only organization to win the award in 
two successive years. In 1999, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 
Development awarded its ``Best Practice Award'' to DESC for innovation 
in developing services that later became industry standards. Most 
recently, DESC won the 2007 Maxwell Award of Excellence for its 1811 
Eastlake project. A study published in the Journal of the American 
Medical Association in 2009 revealed that the 1811 Eastlake program has 
saved taxpayers $4 million dollars annually.
  Madam Speaker, for more than thirty years, DESC has served disabled 
and vulnerable homeless adults through a continuum of care model that 
not only helps people survive but breaks the vicious cycle of 
homelessness. Today, it has become one of the largest multiservice 
centers for homeless adults in the Pacific Northwest, employing more 
than 300 employees who provide permanent supportive housing, clinical 
and emergency services, and overnight shelter. DESC is an invaluable 
asset to our community, to the Seattle-King County Coalition to End 
Homelessness, and to our nationwide efforts to address homelessness. I 
extend my best wishes and commend DESC's Executive Director Bill 
Hobson, its Board of Directors, its staff, and its clients on ``30 
years of opening doors to end homelessness.'' I know DESC will continue 
to lead the way with thoughtful, innovative answers to our most 
challenging social issues.

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