To Whom it May Concern:
        I’m writing this letter just to say thanks. Recently I was in need of a great sum of money to move into a better neighborhood and bigger apt. No one could help, I had a deadline to meet before the apartment was given to another family, and I was running out of time.
       Just when I thought I might not met that deadline you pulled through for and gave me the rest of the money needed to move. For that, I thank you! I thank you from the bottom of my heart!
       I heard of all the good things you and the program does for people and I also know that you many not get enough recognition for them, but I say to you today that I recognize it, I appreciate it, and I thank you!

Most Gratefully,
(name witheld)

The letter was sent to Barrier Busters and opened by Mike Scholl who is the coordinating County staff member to the group, and to the overarching Community Collaborative of Washtenaw County (formerly the Human Services Community Collaborative),

The Barrier Buster Action Group is comprised of designated persons from each of 36 local service agencies who can help consumers who experience administrative barriers, accessibility barriers or help with some financial or other resources to resolve difficult, often urgent situations. Mary Beth Lampe of Community Support & Treatment Services (CSTS) is one of the co-chairs of the group.

The Barrier Busters are averaging about 300 requests per year, most dealing with housing issues like the letter above, most dealing with eviction prevention or the loss of utilities.

“I think Barrier Busters is there in this community to be able to catch people before they fall out of the system completely. It could be a single mother who’s barely scraping by and then something happens, says  Scholl. “Perhaps her own mother gets sick and she must take care of her. The young mother’s job isn’t the type that will give her time off, so she doesn’t get paid or perhaps even gets fired. Then the bills pile up, the rent doesn’t get paid and, even after the crisis with her mother is over, this woman finds herself and her children in danger of losing a place to live.”

Before Barrier Busters and its Emergency Unmet Needs Fund, people with emergency needs had to go to multiple agencies, providing the same information to pull together enough funding to help in a crisis. That time-wasting and inefficient method could often result in eviction, leaving consumers – most often families with children - with even more barriers to housing and a chance for a stable living situation.

Mike Scholl has seen the group grow in effectiveness and impact: “This collaboration has made such a difference. Eliminating obvious inefficiencies throughout the system, having a centralized intake for these emergency situations promotes sustainable housing and prevents further emergency need in our community.”