“Without an ID, they were stuck…”

In November of 1987, the Rev. Gerald Roseberry spent a month living among the homeless in downtown Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. He chose to do this so he could understand the plight of the homeless and identify how his church could best assist the homeless community.
 
While assuming the identity of someone experiencing homelessness, Rev. Roseberry noted that the lack of personal identification documents was a serious impediment, preventing the homeless from accessing services to aid them in regaining their self-sufficiency.
 
As a result of his month of self-imposed homelessness Reverend Gerald Roseberry founded the Ecumenical Chaplaincy for the Homeless in 1988.
Rev. Gerald Roseberry

What began as a small outreach effort in 1988, has evolved into an established office on the Keys for Change campus in downtown Phoenix and partnership programs across the Valley. In September of 2014, The Chaplaincy officially changed its name to the Homeless ID Project. 

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