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In 1972, Native American Connections began as Indian Rehabilitation (IR), a grassroots self-help support program for Native American men who were homeless and struggling with alcoholism. Joseph Hayes, a recovering alcoholic, joined with his friends Lewis Blackwater and Jack Dewney, and started a drop-in-center and held 12 Step meetings held on the streets of Phoenix. By 1978, services expanded and IR established a permanent location in downtown Phoenix, and also entered into a behavioral health contract with the state of Arizona making IR only the fourth agency to be licensed by the state.
NAC's first CEO, Dede Yazzie Devine, joined IR in 1979 and quickly realized the need for substance abuse treatment and recovery support went beyond residential treatment for men. Under her direction:
Today, 1,500 men, women, and children benefit from Native American Connections wide array of behavioral health services. We continue to expand our efforts to assist people in recovery by partnering with People of Color Network, the new Regional Behavioral Health Authority - Mercy Maricopa Integrated Care, and Tribal Behavioral Health Authorities from across Arizona.
Our interest in providing housing was a natural progression from the agencies’ history of providing residential and transitional living for individuals in recovery. After successfully completing treatment, additional support and care was needed in order to make sure individuals and parents with children could reach greater levels of stability and self-sufficiency. Finding safe and affordable housing often proved to be very difficult.
In 1999, Indian Rehabilitation became Native American Connections. The new name maintained our commitment to serving Native Americans while representing the wide array of services now being provided. By the end of 2008, NAC owned and managed 232 units of housing all located in central Phoenix. Despite the economic downturn, NAC took advantage of tax credit housing programs and committed to developing new communities with transit oriented and sustainable design.
With the opening of Urban Living 2 in early 2014, Native American Connections now owns and manages 459 units of housing at 10 housing communities in central Phoenix.
Native American Connections has remained committed to preserving our cultural heritage and increasing opportunities for Native Americans. In 2005, Native American Connections joined with Phoenix Indian Center and Native Health to establish the Native American Community Service Center. This gave community members access to healthcare, behavioral health services, job assistance, housing services and cultural activities all in one location.
In 2015, Native American Connections will complete renovation of the historic Band Building at Steele Indian School Park. The Phoenix Indian School Legacy Project will be a cultural gathering place where the community can experience Native Foods, learn about the history of Phoenix Indian School, engage in arts, culture and music and learn about Tribal Tourism opportunities.
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A "chronically homeless" individual is defined to mean a homeless individual with a disability who lives either in a place not meant for human habitation, a safe haven, or in an emergency shelter or in an institutional care facility if the individual has been living in the facility for fewer than ninety (90) days and had been living in a place not meant for human habitation, a safe haven or in an emergency shelter immediately before entering the institutional care facility. In order to meet the ‘‘chronically homeless’’ definition, the individual also must have been living as described above continuously for at least twelve (12) months or on at least four (4) separate occasions in the last three (3) years, where the combined occasions total a length of time of at least twelve (12) months. Each period separating the occasions must include at least seven (7) nights of living in a situation other than a place not meant for human habitation, in an emergency shelter or in a safe haven.
Federal nondiscrimination laws define a person with a disability to include any (1) individual with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; (2) individual with a record of such impairment; or (3) individual who is regarded as having such an impairment. In general, a physical or mental impairment includes, but is not limited to, examples of conditions such as orthopedic, visual, speech and hearing impairments, cerebral palsy, autism, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), developmental disabilities, mental illness, drug addiction, and alcoholism.