D. Sean Rowley
Cherokee Phoenix
TAHLEQUAH – Within the Cherokee Nation, there are likely thousands of people homeless, a living condition linked to reduced life expectancy.
They may not be “on the street.” They may be borrowing couch space on a rotating basis among friends or family. Some may be living in their vehicles. Others may have access to sheltered spaces requiring less time sleeping outdoors.
But whatever the “cutoff” of defining the homeless, there is a correlation between life expectancy and time unsheltered: The more severe the situation, the shorter the lifespan, according to national experts and statistics.
The homeless or unsheltered include children and teens, veterans and people who have endured or escaped abuse. They are disproportionately minorities. They are disproportionately Native.
“There’s no other way to say it: almost all are going to have health issues,” said Sam Bradshaw, president of the board of directors for the Tahlequah Men’s Shelter. “That’s just part of the consequences of being houseless.”
The reasons a person, single mother or family might find themselves without a place to live are myriad. Some of extremely deep-seated. Mental health disorders, addiction, untreated injuries, and chronic illness often accompany the unsheltered on their journeys.
The Numbers
The latest Point-in-Time Count from January 2024 shows 5,497 Oklahomans experiencing homelessness – a 17.6 percent increase from a year before. Nearly half – 2,216 – are completely unsheltered, while 3,251 find temporary refuge in shelters or transitional housing. Oklahoma’s homelessness numbers are neither utterly dismal nor impressive. The state ranks 25th nationwide in per capita homelessness. But the rise in numbers is disturbing and suggests a worsening of the situation. There are a lot of cities and towns reporting more houseless residents.
In Bartlesville, 240 people are without homes. Edmond reported 14. In Oklahoma City, more than 22,000 unsheltered sought services in 2024, putting strain on nonprofits and officials. There are reports of emergency rooms being overwhelmed, and jails acting as de facto housing.
Natalie Shelton, director of the Tahlequah Men’s Shelter, reported that in the city, 88 people were counted sleeping outdoors on a single winter night that featured an ice storm that likely resulted in many people missed. The count doesn’t include those “couch-surfing” or living in cars – who might not be considered homeless.
The data also make other circumstances clear. At least 1,200 homeless Oklahomans are African American, and 634 are Indigenous.
In the Cherokee Nation Reservation, drugs are compounding the problem. According to CN Tribal Council data, 65 percent of Tahlequah’s unhoused population are Cherokee Nation citizens, and 100 percent – all – are affected by opioids, directly or indirectly.
“These are individuals who have fallen on hard times,” Councilor Candessa Tehee said. “And we have the ability to step in … not only life-saving, but life-changing.”
Cultural and community responses
Since taking office in 2019, Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Deputy Chief Bryan Warner have prioritized housing. Their administration’s Housing, Jobs and Sustainable Communities Act –initially a $30 million plan – has grown to a $120 million investment, much of it directed at building new homes.
However, the problem seems to be growing swiftly. A recent CN study revealed a $1.75 billion housing deficit over the next decade, requiring more than 8,800 housing units.
Hoskin wants an “all-hands-on-deck approach.”
In April 2024, the Tribal Council approved negotiations for a $7 million crisis shelter project on the site of the Phoenix Park ballfields in Tahlequah. The 20,000-square-foot shelter will serve men, women and families – 80 percent of whom are expected to be Cherokee Nation citizens. The facility will connect guests with behavioral health care, housing navigation and job services – all in one place.
“This is not about substituting a motel room with a shelter,” Hoskin said. “We want a holistic approach.”
In addition to the planned shelter, the Cherokee Nation spent more than $1 million in 2023 providing motel vouchers and case management. While such efforts are critical stopgaps, Hoskin said they are not long-term solutions.
Challenges: it’s complex
Making homelessness such a persistent issue in the CN and Oklahoma is not simply the lack of housing, but the often multi-layered and systemic obstacles that often repel all attempts at resolution.
Health issues are an obvious impediment. Among the unhoused, the average age of death is 56 for men, 52 for women, roughly 17 less years than for the U.S. population overall, according to the National Institutes of Health. At the Men’s Shelter, 85 percent of clients suffer from substance use and mental health issues. Bradford said many also live with chronic conditions including hepatitis C, seizure disorders, untreated injuries and trauma.
Bradford said clients are paired with case managers to help them deal with health issues.
“We also have peer recovery support specialists that meet one-on-one with our clients,” he said. “We do basically a bio-psychosocial assessment. ‘So, what’s going on with you?’ And then we make referrals to the appropriate places. We work closely with Cherokee Nation Behavioral Health and the health care system, make referrals to them. So, if someone comes in and they have hepatitis C and they want treatment, then we can refer them to the infectious disease clinic. With Cherokee Nation citizens and other Native Americans, we can make referrals to Cherokee Nation Behavioral Health. But we work closely with other social service agencies.”
Sometimes unsheltered people refuse health assistance, but Bradford said acceptance is nearly universal at the Men’s Shelter.
“I would say all of them are open to getting better,” he said. “I mean, most people would like to get better, right?”
Access to treatment and medical care remains difficult for many.
“What we really need are long-term solutions,” Bradshaw said. “Mental health courts, sustained recovery programs and deep counseling. Housing without healing won’t work.”
Affordable housing is another gap. Even when clients find some stability and start earning paychecks, the lack of accessible apartments can interrupt or even derail progress.
“You can have $2,000 in the bank, all your legal issues handled, and nowhere to go,” Shelton said. “We’re not going to just put someone out because their time’s up.”
The definitions of being homeless can seem indistinct, but a program to help homeless people will likely have clear boundaries. Federal HUD guidelines exclude people who sleep in cars or on couches from counts.
Bradshaw said Tahlequah schools reported more than 200 homeless children last year, most of whom were not in shelters, and shelters themselves face challenges.
“We’ve tried everything,” Bradshaw said. “What works is structure – 24-hour staffing, strict rules and individualized plans. That takes funding.”
Funding is always an issue. Despite its collaboration with the CN and city of Tahlequah, the Men’s Shelter operates on tight budgets and donations are critical. Bradshaw and Shelton each want to see the shelter expanded, but its finances make that a distant goal.
Still, Shelton and Bradshaw tell of successes. Some clients stay a few weeks, regain their equilibrium, and re-enter the workforce. Others stay months, working through layers of trauma and legal entanglements.
Committing resources
Providing shelter may not solve health issues for the unhoused, but data suggest it makes a big impact. National-level research indicates that supportive housing reduces emergency room visits by 80 percent, days in custody or detention by 130 percent, raises employment opportunities and improves job outcomes.
Hoskin hopes the new crisis shelter can be a model to emulate elsewhere in the reservation.
“We’ll look where else we can do this – on a partnership basis or a direct basis,” he said.
Only two shelters exist within the Cherokee Nation reservation – one in Tulsa, another in Bartlesville. The need will likely keep the CN crisis center busy.
“Our pledge is that if we build this crisis center, we will operate it responsibly and with the best interests of the community in mind,” Deputy Chief Warner said.
Senate Bill 484
A recent bill that could have complicated the delivery of resources and services to the unsheltered outside major metropolitan areas recently met its demise in the Oklahoma Legislature.
In February, Senate Bill 484 was introduced in the Oklahoma Senate and passed by a vote of 26-20. Introduced by Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, and Sen. Kevin West, R-Moore, the bill would have forbidden the allocation of municipal funds or resources toward homeless programs or services, including land buys or leases for shelters. A carveout was provided for cities with more than 300,000 people, meaning Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
There was turbulence in the House of Representatives, where its version of the bill greatly adjusted the language to restrict siting of homeless shelters within 3,000 feet of any school, with exiting shelters getting grandfather exceptions. Had the measure passed the House, a conference committee would have been necessary to merge the versions
Instead, the bill was effectively killed in April when it received a “no pass” vote in the House County and Municipal Government Committee.
This story was first published by the Cherokee Phoenix
This story has been supported by the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rigorous and compelling reporting about responses to social problems. For more information, visit solutionsjournalism.org.