Today we’d like to introduce you to Thao Costis.
Thao, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I am a Vietnamese immigrant who benefitted greatly from the support system that is provided by the public and private sectors of Houston and the nation. Our family lived in Section 8 subsidized housing from the time I was in first grade through my senior year in high school. My widower father supported us with his limited earnings as a clerk for the social security office. My two older brothers graduated from Rice with engineering degrees and bought a house for my dad and I to live in. After graduating from UT-Austin with an accounting degree, I concluded that I wanted to be in a profession that helps people as we’ve been helped over the years.
Many individuals had stepped up throughout my youth and made our life better. I’d been given experiences (Girl Scouts, going to Astroworld…) that my family couldn’t afford that allowed me to fit in. I was fully aware of our need for food stamps and living in apartments that were not as nice as my friends’ situations and aspired for more. For the past 25 years working in this field of helping people who are homeless exit their plight and build a better life, I’ve been able to help others aspire and achieve more.
Has it been a smooth road?
It’s not been a smooth road. Struggles have included building an organization (SEARCH Homeless Services) from a grassroots organization, small business to match the needs and evolve with the needs. Sustaining financial support to do our job well of helping people move from the streets into jobs and safe, stable housing has always been a struggle. Keeping focused on our core mission and competencies has also been a challenge. Like many human service agencies, we seek to help people and sometimes we try to do too much. We’ve learned the hard way that we can’t be everything to everybody. We now focus on being the agency of choice within the community when it comes to providing quality care and support for people who are homeless to exit their plight, improve their health, and ultimately achieve independence.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
SEARCH Homeless Services is a 28-year-old not-for-profit business with a mission of providing hope, creating opportunity, and transforming lives. We are known for our skilled case management staff who are effective at engaging some of our most challenging citizens to make change in their lives. We are most proud of our collaborative and innovative work with our clients and community partners to make significant change possible. What sets us apart from others is how we approach our work with individuals who experience homelessness. While they are in a position of great need, we believe that they are the experts of their lives and must be incorporated in the sustainable solution to change. While we may be here to support them in this trying period of their lives, we must help them build resilience and learn to address the complexities of their lives for the future.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Houston is a great city for our business. Our entrepreneurial spirit and philanthropic practices combine to make Houston very supportive of finding better ways to tackle problems and supporting it personally and professionally. I would absolutely recommend others initiate great ideas and concepts here in Houston. I encourage people with ideas to do their homework first to determine what’s already existing in Houston or lessons to be learned from other cities. I would encourage people who have great ideas for not-for-profit initiatives to find synergies with others who may already have thought about what you think is a great idea and work jointly. Houston has improved in this area, particularly among homeless service sector, but we can always improve.
Contact Info:
- Address: SEARCH Homeless Services
2015 Congress Houston, TX 77002 - Website: www.searchhomeless.org
- Phone: 713-739-7752
- Email: info@searchhomeless.org
- Instagram: #searchhomelesservices
- Facebook: @searchhomelessservices
- Twitter: @SEARCHHomeless
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