Express talk nch call lag3/22/2023 Michael put in place a speaker's bureau that has become a mainstay of NCH programming. He saw it crippled by the downturn and the loss of prestige and influence. Stoops worked for NCH when it was a large vibrant organization with 20 staff and he helped to unionize that staff. He testified before Congress, always yielding time to others who had slept on the hard sidewalks of America's streets. It was a temporary interim appointment for the summer that lasted for years. Michael took on the executive director position at NCH when I was a board member. That is the hardest thing to try to get across in an elevator speech, but Michael never lost his thirst for righteousness. It was not money to buy food, housing, a shelter bed or clothing he was asking for a donation for social change. Stoops met with funders and in his soft spoken style asked them to open their checkbooks to help in a non-traditional manner. He stepped up to write grants, send in payroll, complete the 990 tax return and manage a VISTA program because he had to in order to keep the organization functioning. Michael loved bringing people together and working to raise the voice of those who slept outside with his quiet but powerful voice. ![]() He rarely wore a sport coat and was often confused for the homeless individuals that City Councilmembers and Congressional staff walk over on their way into their offices. He understood that each person had their talents and a place in our society. He knew what it meant to be swept off the streets, and he cared about the intrinsic value of every human being. He had experienced homelessness and hunger and slept at the CCNV shelter in DC in the past. Stoops was a community organizer with a keen ear for listening to homeless people. He helped organize the Housing Now march in DC, provided input on the McKinney Vento national funding of shelters, and helped found the National Coalition for the Homeless. Stoops loved sitting in the office and helping to distribute the donated food on Sunday afternoon to the forgotten and downtrodden. ![]() Stoops grew up in Indiana and moved to Portland, managing a shelter in the 1970s. Michael Stoops passed away on May Day 2017 after a two year struggle following a stroke. Sitting down and looking for a solution with a group of persecuted homeless people was the way he wanted to spend his afternoons. He never asked for the spotlight but accepted it to save the National Coalition for the Homeless. Michael was a quiet man who was a peacemaker. ![]() We were engaged in a series of lawsuits that began before I was a member of the Coalition, so I needed a tutorial. The first thing I did when I became the Director of NEOCH in 1995 was call Michael Stoops at the National Coalition for the Homeless and talked to him about civil rights for those who did not use the shelters.
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