History

The Coalition of Homeless and Housing Organizations was conceived in 1990 by non-profit service providers who served the homeless and low income citizens of the District of Columbia.  These providers had a common goal to advocate for the unmet needs of homeless and vulnerable populations.

The initial meetings were held at the former office of the InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington.  The convener at that time was the Rev. Clark Lobenstine.  For a number of years, meetings were held at the Downtown BID and then at the Federal City Shelter. Since 2007, meetings have been held at N Street Village.

Since 1990, COHHO continued to be an effective voice for the homeless and underserved in the city. Since January 2015, COHHO has put its time and energies into the District’s Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH) processes. For information about the ICH, see www.ich.dc.gov. COHHO may choose to resume COHHO meetings based on need and interest. We continue to “meet” via email listserv.

For a more thorough account of the work of COHHO and its partners, read Dr. Christine Marie Elwell’s “From Political Protest to Bureaucratic Service: The Transformation of Homeless Advocacy in the Nation’s Capital and the Eclipse of Political Discourse.”