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Hattie used to look down on homeless people. But then she lost her housing, lived in tent camps, met a wide variety of people, and changed her views. She now believes that tiny-house villages are essential to help people overcome the trauma of becoming homeless. The sense of shared struggle gives people confidence and a feeling of being valued by their peers.

Hattie Rhodes, 38, lives in a tiny-house village in south Seattle. She works a full-time, minimum wage job at a major retailer of household goods.

Eric Davis is a co-founder and the Resident Manager of Camp Second Chance, an independent authorized homeless encampment in south Seattle. He shares with us reflections about how the camp works, about the people who live there, and how his personal faith moves him to help everyone who crosses his path.

Tiny-House Villages help homeless people regain autonomy, confidence, and relationships by providing kindness, connection, and emotional support. Andrew Constantino tells us that the value of the villages is not in how many people they move into permanent housing, but in the community they create.

Andrew, 43, lives in a tiny-house village in south Seattle. He is an informal but well-recognized leader in Seattle’s homeless-encampment community.

Andrew doesn’t hate NIMBYs. He actually thinks they have a lot of valid points. (“NIMBY” stands for: “Not In My Back Yard,” and usually refers to middle-class homeowners, thought to be hostile to the homeless.) Andrew even has sympathy for the police. “Do you think the cops want to spend their days hassling people living in poverty on the streets?” No, it’s demoralizing!

Andrew, 43, lives in a tiny-house village in south Seattle. He is an informal but well-recognized leader in Seattle’s homeless-encampment community.