Our Goal Is Simple, End Human Suffering!
DASH which stands for “Documenting Austin’s Streets and Homeless” was founded by Jamie Hammonds to document the homeless situation in Austin Texas. Jamie was homeless himself in Austin over 10 years ago so he has a unique view of what being homeless is like. Documenting this situation quickly grew into a passion to help these folks regain their self sufficiency again. Jamie spends countless hours every week in the camps with the people, talking and understanding what it is keeping them on the streets.
The homeless population in Austin has exploded in recent years, and at this point it is not sustainable. Our goal is to work with the men, women and children to find solutions to help them become self sufficient productive members of society once again. We help to identify the root cause of homelessness whether it be substance abuse, alcoholism or general financial mismanagement. Once the issue is identified we help the person find services that meet their needs.
We spend 80 to 90 percent of our time in the homeless camps with the people. One of the biggest complaints we hear is that a person has no idea where to go or who to talk to in order to get themselves into the services they need. We are different, we work in the camps where these people are. This allows us to identify the issue and help them get into the right program. While these folks are waiting on services we provide blankets, food, gift cards and such to help them survive until they can do it on their own.
A by product of being in these camps around the city is we know where they are at, which is why we have created a map to show clearly where the encampments are, how many people live in them and if there is any danger if someone from the public may venture into the area. This is an extremely valuable tool as it will also allow communication directly with folks in homelessness in times of emergency or bad weather.
If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to our CEO/Executive Director with the information below.
Jamie Hammonds
jamie@dashatx.net