From the Desk of Paul Dragon, 10/9/26
At CVOEO, we believe in collaboration and transparency. That’s why every week Executive Director Paul Dragon shares a roundup of updates and initiatives to keep everyone, from our 300+ team members to the broader community we serve, informed and connected. Here’s what’s new this week!
Foundations Family Shelter Celebrates its One-year anniversary
Foundations Family Shelter held its community gathering and press event last week, with about 50 people in attendance for tours of the shelter and speeches by guest Anita, the Mayor, and other community partners. Thanks to all those who made the event such a success! We also welcomed two new staff on board.
CVOEO’s Housing and Family Support Annual Report
The Housing and Family Support Program was initiated two years ago with an unsolicited five-million-dollar award to CVOEO from the Day One Fund. This funding was directed toward families experiencing homelessness. The annual report below by Stephanie Davison our Quality Improvement Director demonstrates the success of this program. Congratulations to our HFS team!
In FY25, CVOEO’s four HFS Housing Advocates served 147 families (400 individuals), housed 58 families, and helped 46 families maintain their housing for 90 days or longer. These were households with children who were experiencing homelessness, most living in motels. Of the 400 individuals served, 202 were adults and 197 children, 101 of whom were between the ages of 0 and 6.
Part of the program is to refer households to education and skill-building classes related to renting and finances. Sixty-four (64) percent of the households that were referred to these classes and who enrolled received a Preferred Renter’s Certificate.
An interesting finding is that it takes more staff hours to help a household maintain housing (102) than it does to obtain housing (81). Changes over time show that people enrolled in the program moved from “in-crisis” to “stable”, “safe” or even “thriving” along different life domains including housing, transportation, and healthcare. On average Housing Advocates spent about 32 hours per household (over time), helping them find and maintain housing, get connected to benefits, and supporting them throughout. See the full report here:
CVOEO Housing & Family Support Program
Office of Racial Equity and the Energy Action Network
This week, Pacifique attended the annual summit of the Energy Action Network and shared highlights from their newly released report on energy affordability, emissions, and Vermont's energy future. One message stood out: Vermonters continue to face some of the highest household energy costs in the country, making affordability a critical issue for many of the individuals and families we serve. The report also highlighted the important role that Community Action Agencies play in helping communities navigate these challenges.
As Pacifique notes, “this is a reminder that CVOEO's work extends far beyond any single program. Whether we're helping family access utility assistance, improving home energy efficiency, supporting New Americans through ORECI, connecting someone to housing, or helping a household achieve greater financial stability, we are addressing the real-world impacts of affordability every day. It's encouraging to see Community Action Agencies recognized for their impact. Thank you to everyone across CVOEO whose work helps Vermonters reduce costs, improve stability, and build brighter futures. Together, we continue to be part of the solution to some of our state's most pressing challenges.”
Summer Food Aid is Cut
Learn more here: https://vtdigger.org/2026/10/06/vermont-summer-food-aid-for-families-expires-this-weekend/
Fuel Crisis for Individuals and Families
The Energy Action Network estimates that the extra cost paid by Vermonters in 2026 due to post-war fossil fuel price increases is on pace to be between $389 - $442 million by the end of the year. If split across all households in Vermont, this would translate to $1,360 - $1,550 in added costs per household for gasoline, diesel, and heating oil over the ten months of March through December
As winter nears, LIHEAP concerns grow:
timesargus.com https://rutlandheraldcms.com/tncms/asset/editorial/35e03f58-2223-486b-ab30-f0cfd3761ca9/ https://www.timesargus.com/news/local/as-winter-nears-liheap-concerns-grow/article_ebe33bcb-951f-549d-9a37-7ff02a4398c0.html
Head Start Education and Advocacy in Washington D.C.
Last week, Champlain Valley Head Start joined over 600 members of the Head Start community across the country in attending the National Head Start Association Fall Leadership Institute in Washington D.C. We met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to advocate for the importance of Head Start, the necessity to maintain high-quality services, supporting our work force, and why the strong, sustained investment is important for children and families.
CVOEO Updated Winter Shelter Plans
This winter, CVOEO will once again partner with the City of Burlington to operate the Miller Center at 130 Gosse Court in Burlington as the region's extreme cold weather shelter, continuing a successful partnership that provides a safe place for community members during periods of dangerously cold weather. The shelter will open on nights that meet the City's criteria for activating the extreme cold weather shelter program. At the same time, CVOEO is actively working to open a seasonal shelter in Franklin County.
The decision to operate the Miller Center comes after many months of searching for a location for a year-round, 100-bed shelter. Despite beginning that search in the spring and evaluating numerous potential sites alongside our partner, the Champlain Housing Trust, we were unable to secure a suitable location in time for this winter. With winter approaching, our immediate focus remains on ensuring that people have a safe place to go during periods of extreme cold, just as we have done in years past.
While the year-round, 100-bed shelter will not move forward this winter, we remain dedicated to protecting vulnerable Vermonters during extreme weather and advancing long-term solutions that promote dignity, compassion, public health, public safety, and shared community responsibility. Over the past six years, we have helped establish eight shelters across Chittenden and Franklin Counties, demonstrating our longstanding commitment to meeting this critical need.
CVOEO will continue working with our community partners to pursue a permanent, year-round integrated services campus that is trauma-informed and provides coordinated support to help people stabilize, improve health outcomes, and move toward permanent housing. We remain committed to this vision and will not stop working until everyone has access to safe shelter and the support they need to thrive.