N.J. woman who opened LGBTQ youth shelter is now building permanent supportive housing – NJ.com

Elaine Helms opened a homeless shelter for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth after she was injured in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks while working for the Port Authority.

“During my recovery, I had to seriously pray and think about what my life’s purpose was and I often wondered why I made it and so many others didn’t,” said Helms, who created the RAIN Foundation in 2013 and opened a shelter in East Orange that houses up to 12 LGBT youth.

But Helms wanted to do more.

The RAIN Foundation’s work is now expanding to permanent, affordable supportive housing in Newark for people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and may have a disability. It was a project Helms started talking to city officials about five years ago, she said.

“She is one woman who does not take no for an answer,” said Tamara Fleming, who is married to Helms and sits on the RAIN Foundation’s board.

Helms and city officials on Tuesday broke ground on a vacant plot of land at the corner of Roseville and Sussex avenues for 11 units of permanent, supportive housing. Each resident will receive services from the RAIN Foundation and other partners to help with their health and financial needs.

“Other people make choices to discriminate, to make situations difficult, to make it unbearable to live and find opportunities to house yourself whether you’re homeless or not,” said Mayor Ras Baraka.

Studies find that between 20% and 45% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ even though they only account for about 7% of the youth population. LGBT adults have at least 15% higher odds of being poor than cisgender straight adults after controlling for other factors that affect risk poverty, like language or education.

Helms, with her work at the RAIN Foundation, has seen family members drop off their kids at her shelter once they come out. It’s been happening more during the pandemic, as children have been at home and their sexuality or gender identities become more apparent to family members, Helms said.

And once people leave the shelter, their housing issues don’t always end.

“Once the landlord (sees) they’re same-sex or they’re trans, then I get a phone call — or my staff will get a phone call — like, the landlord is bothering them,” said Helms. “They may cut off their heat. They might not fix things in the home. They do things that make them want to leave.”

The project is a bit of a homecoming for Helms, whose parents lived in the building next door to where the project will be. Helms’ mom was pregnant with her when she lived in the home.

The city is providing the land — valued at $400,000 — for a nominal amount, and has committed $1.3 million to the project, officials said. Additional funding is expected to come from the federal Continuum of Care program, the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York, BCB Bank and the Essex County HOME program.

The RAIN Foundation will serve as the developer for the project. Kitchen & Associates, a New Jersey-based company, is the architect and Monarch Housing Associates is the financial consultant for the project.

“To me, home means that it’s someplace where you find comfort,” said Monarch Housing CEO Taiisa Kelly. “Someplace where you have safety and security, where you can laugh, you can cry, you can be yourself. Someplace where you can grow and dream.

“That’s what this building is going to be when we’re back here for the ribbon-cutting.”

That ribbon-cutting is slated for 2022.

Local journalism needs your support. Subscribe at nj.com/supporter.

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com.