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The Consortium has active members from many different sectors across Memphis and Shelby County including housing and service providers, local government, churches and faith-based organizations, mental health organizations, affordable housing developers, educational systems, medical providers, and advocates. The Consortium meets quarterly, and has several open committees and working groups that meet regularly and focus on specific populations or services provided by member agencies. 

The Consortium serves as the TN-501: Memphis/Shelby County Continuum of Care (CoC), designated by HUD as the group organized to carry out the responsibilities prescribed in the HEARTH Act for a defined geographic area.

The mission of the Consortium is to develop, sustain and coordinate a comprehensive Continuum of Care for citizens of the City of Memphis and Shelby County who experience homelessness in order to establish pathways to self-sufficiency and ultimately to eliminate homelessness.

Consortium Responsibilities:

designating and operating an HMIS (Homeless Management Information System) 

planning for, designating, and operating the Continuum of Care 

designing and implementing the process associated with applying for CoC Program funds

Creating and carrying out the 901 Home, Together: Strategic Plan to End Homelessness

2023 – 2024 Consortium Members

• 29:11 Project
• Agape Child & Family Services
• Alliance Healthcare Services
• Alpha Omega Veterans Services, Inc.
• Baptist Memorial Healthcare
• Barron Heights Transitional Center
• Behavioral Health Initiatives
• Black Clergy Collaborative of Memphis
• Catholic Charities of West Tennessee
• Cavalry Episcopal Church
• Christ Community Health Services
• Church Health
• City of Memphis
• CMI Healthcare Services
• Communities in Schools Memphis
• Door of Hope
• Dorothy Day House of Hospitality, Inc.
• Green & Healthy Homes Initiative
• Family Safety Center
• Friends for All
• FTP Nonprofit
• Greater New Salem Church
• Hospitality Hub
• Hope House Memphis
• Lisieux Community
• Love Doesn’t Hurt
• Operation Better Days Inc.
• OUTMemphis
• Manna House
• Meritan
• Merge Memphis
• Metamorphosis Project
• Methodist Le Bonheur Community Outreach
• Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association (MIFA)
• Pathfinders Inc.
• Promise Development Corp.
• RESPECT The Haven CDC
• Restoration Time
• Restore Corps
• Room in the Inn- Memphis
• Send Relief – Memphis
• Shelby County Division of Human Services
• Shelby County Community Services
• Shelby County Office of Reentry
• St. John’s Community Services, Oasis Program
• The Women’s Advocacy Center
• Thistle & Bee
• Vet Host
• Volunteers of America Mid-States
• The Women’s Advocacy Center

Individuals:

• Linda Fessenden-Butts RN, BSN, CHTP
• Marian Bacon
• Reneshia Pye
• Dr. Annice Overall, LCSW, DSW

2023 – 2024 Term

OFFICERS

Chair:
Kimberly Mitchell
City of Memphis

Immediate Past Chair:
Cornelius Sanders, Promise Development Corporation

Vice-Chair:
Phillis Lewis
Love Doesn’t Hurt

MEMBERS

At-Large Members (Elected by the Consortium)

Mary Hamlett
VP of Family Programs, MIFA

Porsha Goodman
Executive Director, Door of Hope

Designated Liaisons (Appointed)

City of Memphis Government Liaison
Kimberly Mitchell
Administrator, Housing & Community Dev.
Appointed by Mayor of the City of Memphis

Shelby County Government Liaison
Dorcas Young Griffin
Director, Division of Community Services
Appointed by the Mayor of Shelby County

Shelby County Schools Homeless Liaison
Dr. Karen Ball
District Official
Appointed by Shelby County Schools

Homeless Organizing for Power and Equality (H.O.P.E.) Liaison
Tamara Hendrix
Appointed by H.O.P.E.

Shelby County Health Department Liaison
Kharl-Ray Massey
Healthcare for the Homeless Manager
Appointed by Shelby County Health Department

Memphis Housing Authority Liaison
Vernua Hanrahan
Special Projects Coordinator
Appointed by MHA Director

Memphis VA Medical Center Liaison
Jacquelyn Taylor-Mays
Section Chief, Homeless Programs
Appointed by Memphis VAMC

Department of Children’s Services Liaison
Merlene Hyman
Regional Administrator
Appointed by DCS, Shelby County Regional Office 

Juvenile Court Liaison
Jessie Dryden
Director of Research and Data Visualization
Appointed by Shelby County Juvenile Court

Appointed Committee Chairs (Appointed by Chair)

CoC Planning Committee Chairs
Katrill Braden, Case Management Incorporated
Darren Bell, Alliance Healthcare Services

Outreach Committee Chair
Tori Jackson
Catholic Charities of West Tennessee

HMIS Committee Chair
Shalonda Adams-Young
Door of Hope

Healthcare Committee Chairs
Shirley Bondon, Black Clergy Collaborative
Janice Taylor, Baptist Mobile Outreach

Youth Committee Chair
Joshua Hall
OUTMemphis

Youth Action Board (YAB) Chair
Stellan Knowles

Affordable Housing Committee Chair
vacant

Families Committee Chair
Toni Johnson, Catholic Charities of West Tennessee

Veterans Committee Chair: Jeffrey Craig, Memphis VA Hospital

Representatives (Elected by Consortium)

Consumer Representative
Marian Bacon

For-Profit Representative
vacant

Youth Representative
Vacant

Philanthropy Representative
Vacant

Legal Representative
Matthew Schwimmer, Memphis Area Legal Services

Domestic Violence Representative
Martha Jackson
Family Safety Center

Multi-Cultural Affairs Representative
Queen Keskessa
The City of Memphis Office of Community Affairs

LGBTQ Representative
Phillis Lewis
Love Doesn’t Hurt

Designated by Bylaws

Lead Agency Executive Director
D. Cheré Bradshaw
Executive Director
Community Alliance for the Homeless

Lead Agency Liaison (non-voting)
(designated by Lead Agency ED)
Julie Meiman
CoC Planning Director

Affordable Housing Committee

The mission of the Affordable Housing Committee is to connect flexible landlords with programs and clients to help increase housing opportunities that are positive and have the capacity for clients to succeed in the long term. 

Chair: Vernua Hanrahan, Memphis Housing Authority

Continuum of Care (CoC) Planning Committee

The mission of the CoC Planning Committee is to support the planning and development of the CoC to provide effective programming and service coordination for persons experiencing homelessness. This committee will work in collaboration with the CoC Lead Agency to develop all aspects of the Collaborative Application for the CoC Competition NOFO and assist with training and updates to the community.

CoC Planning Committee Co-Chairs: Katrill Braden, CMI
Darren Bell, Alliance Healthcare

Families Committee

The mission of the Families Committee is to advocate for resources and services for families who are facing housing instability or homelessness. This committee will develop strategies for engaging with and identifying housing options and supportive services for families throughout the Continuum of Care.

Families Committee Chair: Toni Johnson, CCWTN

Healthcare Committee

The mission of the Healthcare Committee is to advocate for and develop strategies for increasing healthcare access for persons experiencing homelessness, including ways to increase healthcare resources and services.  

Healthcare Committee Co-Chairs: Shirley Bondon, BCCM
Janice Taylor, Baptist Operation Outreach

HMIS Committee 

The mission of the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) committee is to lead effective data management to ensure data standards and practices are met and help to ensure that community data is accurate and up to date. 

Chair: Shalonda Adams-Young, Door of Hope

Outreach Committee

The mission of the Outreach Committee is to bring together housing providers and outreach workers for the purpose of case conferencing, resource sharing, and advocating for resources and services for single adults experiencing homelessness.

Chair: Tori Jackson, Catholic Charities of West Tennessee

Veterans Committee 

The mission of the Veterans Committee is to advocate for veteran services and resources, collaborate to share resources available to veterans, and to operate an effective Veteran By-Name list to help veterans experiencing homelessness find housing. 

Veterans Committee Chair: Jacquelyn Taylor-Mays, Memphis VA Medical Center

Youth Action Board

The Youth Action Board is a coalition of youth committed to elevating youth voice, centering lived experience, expanding youth resources, and fighting to end youth homelessness in Memphis and Shelby County. The mission of the Youth Action Board (YAB) is to advocate for youth specific services, resources, and housing programs for youth and young adults who are experiencing housing instability or homelessness. **Click on the Youth Action Board title to visit the webpage that discusses YAB work more in-depth.**

Youth Action Board: Stellan Knowles

Youth Committee

The mission of the Youth Committee is to advocate for resources and services for unaccompanied youth ages 18-24 who are facing housing instability or homelessness. This committee will work to coordinate strategies for engaging with unaccompanied youth, identifying housing and shelter options for youth, and advocate for youth within the CoC.

Youth Chair: Joshua Hall, OUTMemphis

A page laying out CAFTH Charter and Bylaws can be found here.

Information about all CoC Planning Meetings and Records can be found here.

To learn more about acronyms and definitions, click here.

Due to the expiration of the 2011 Mayors’ Action Plan in 2020, Community Alliance for the Homeless (CAFTH) was tasked with drafting a new strategic plan to continue the success seen since 2011 and ultimately end homelessness in Memphis/Shelby County. 

The 901 Home, Together Strategic Plan follows the structure of the Home, Together: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness released by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) in 2018. The Home, Together Federal plan emphasizes evidence-based and proven strategies to end homelessness; the federal plan has been tailored to fit the local context and needs in Memphis/Shelby County. 

Overarching Goals:

1. Ensure Homelessness is a Rare Experience
2. Ensure Homelessness is a Brief Experience
3. Ensure Homelessness is a One-Time Experience
4. Sustain an End to Homelessness