If you see Brooke Stueve around, be sure to give her a high five for a job well done!
Brooke joined FCC on 10/03/2022 as a Community Health Worker (CHW) in HUB, Winona.
Since becoming employed with the HUB, Brooke has had the pleasure of helping 5 participants find and secure housing!
According to Brooke, “Once I started my training, I knew housing was going to be challenging; so I came up with a plan to get a head start for my clients. I called any apartments and private landlords I knew/could find and asked them all the questions I thought my participants would need to know. Who takes section 8, who allows pets, who requires background checks, etc.? Then I drove around Winona to find any other apartments that I could find listed online and contacted the landlords directly to gather the same information. This helped me point my participants in a direction that would best set them up for success.
I have had great success with a private landlord who was able to help my participant get out of her domestic abuse living situation and into their own safe space within 48 hours.
Another participant, a young student, was living at a homeless shelter. SE tech (A college he enrolled in and was accepted into while in the HUB) assisted my participant with connecting with “college friendly” landlords, and after 2 calls he found his home and moved in within the month!
I also always keep my eyes out for housing listed on public forums or social media and directly contact that landlord to gather more information about them. How many properties they own, their ideal tenant, and the requirements to apply for their listings? I believe taking the time to consistently update my housing list with who has vacancies at the moment also helps make prospecting simpler and faster for my clients when making their housing calls.”
Our Winona HUB clients are so lucky to have Brooke!