PORTLAND, Ore. — A local teen created an app to help connect people experiencing homelessness in Portland with services they need.
Claire Cao started developing Shelter Bridge last spring and launched the app in August. It offers users a way to find shelter beds, meals and other resources including legal aid and help with mental health. The app also features a chat bot that answers basic questions and connects users with maps to service locations.
Cao, a senior at Jesuit High School, said she recognized the need for such an app while volunteering at Blanchet House.
“I kind of realized that it's so hard for people to find these resources and maybe that's one of the reasons why people continue to struggle,” said Cao.
Funding around homeless services and housing in Multnomah County is now in the hundreds of millions of dollars, but the app didn’t cost taxpayers a penny.
“We've been asking for an app like this for a number of years now,” said Scott Kerman, executive director of Blanchet House. He said he’s thrilled and a little astonished that the solution came from Cao for free, through a high school service project.
“Claire and the team she’s working with deserve all the credit in the world because they're doing something that frankly nobody else has really stepped up to do,” said Kerman. “To have the kind of technology that we use every day with hotels and other kinds of reservations help people get into safe, supportive and dignified shelter would be a game changer for our community.”
Cao said local shelters can register with the app now, with the hope of eventually providing users with real time shelter bed availability.
“There's so many different social services out there,” Cao said. “It's definitely going to be a challenge to connect us all, but I think it'll be possible.”
Multnomah County District Attorney-elect, Nathan Vasquez, learned about Shelter Bridge last summer while Cao was an intern at the D.A.’s office. Cao said she asked Vasquez for advice on how to improve the app. Vasquez said he was so impressed with it, he asked Cao to demonstrate how to use the app for attorneys in the office. Vasquez said he's also shared Shelter Bridge with first responders and county commissioners and urged them to download and use it.
“The response has been, ‘Oh my gosh this is amazing. We've been looking for this and wanting this,’” said Vasquez. “And when I tell people this was developed by a high school student, they're a little taken aback and blown away… there's so much potential here.”
Cao recognized that homelessness is not just an issue in Portland. For that reason, she’s working with other youth advocates around the country to expand the app's reach. So far, Shelter Bridge is in Seattle, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles.
“My hope really is to make sure that it gets out into the community and leaves a lasting impact,” said Cao.