Georgie

Hi, I am Georgie Smith.

I am the founder and President of the nonprofit A Sense of Home which strives to prevent homelessness by creating homes for displaced persons. The cycle of homelessness begins after an individual or family abruptly loses their home. By providing furniture and homegoods with the support of our volunteers, A Sense of Home provides the necessary foundation needed for a family or an individual to rebuild their lives and improve outcomes for themselves and those around them.

ASOH began when a young person aging out of foster care noticed a video on my blog. How I responded spawned a wonderful movement of love in action. What I thought was just a one-off random act of kindness became an opportunity for the community to come together to implement a sustainable solution and improve the lives of the most disenfranchised whilst also improving society as a whole. 50% of the homeless population were once in foster care.

What I observed is that furniture is homeless prevention. And yet, paradoxically furniture is discarded at such significant rates that it is the greatest household item filling landfills. Excess is such a burden to businesses that other businesses exist to discard of it. I also discovered that the number one anti-depressant is volunteering. So I blended all of these elements into a model that empowers volunteers to harness excess in furniture and home goods to create homes for former foster youth in only 90 minutes!! 1000 homes laters and many awards, I began to look at scaling the model across the country.

And then the LA fires struck. I swiftly moved to set up a new Disaster Relief program at ASOH. We knew too well that the 150,000 persons displaced by the fires would lead to the ballooning of LA’s homeless crisis. If trends continue, 1.2 billion people globally could be displaced due to disasters by 2050. Over 3 million Americans are displaced by natural disasters in a single year.

Simply sharing what we have too much of creates sustainable tenancy for others. When we lift one, we lift all. When we gather with strangers and/or friends to share our gifts, joy, and pain, we bear witness to our inextricable human connection as one.

Thank you for stopping by to get to know our work. Please sign up to volunteer donate furniture or funds here.

Georgie Smith

The Power of Home

Our most basic needs for survival and our most complex needs are all satisfied thanks to the place we call, home. We spend over two thirds of our lifetime at home and the average person spends the largest percentage of their income on home. 80% of our physical and mental health is determined by our home. Home is such an omnipresent force in each of our lives that we often do not appreciate it until it is taken from us.

Home is what makes us human. Homo sapiens literally evolved thanks to home. When we are not home we are somewhere temporary and are planning our return to home. We too can ensure our community members who become displaced can return to their feeling of home, when we share what we have too much of and come together to volunteer. This practical, uplifting solution also provides much needed belonging and healing. Simply sharing what we have too much of creates sustainable tenancy for others. When we lift one, we lift all. When we gather with strangers and/or friends to share our gifts, joy, and pain, we bear witness to our inextricable human connection as one.