June- A Stronger Summer: Why Housing Stability Helps KC’s Kids Thrive

June arrives with the smell of barbecue, the excitement of summer sports, and families flocking to KC’s parks and splash pads. But for families experiencing homelessness, summer brings different worries: extreme heat, unsafe sleeping conditions, and childcare challenges. 

Summer should be a season of possibility—not survival. 

Children experiencing homelessness face profound challenges: 

☀️ Higher rates of heat-related illness 

☀️ Interrupted summer learning 

☀️ Unsafe environments for play 

☀️ Limited access to healthy meals 

☀️ Emotional stress from constant instability 

But when families are safely housed, everything changes. 

At reStart, this summer becomes a season of hope for even more kids with the opening of our new Family Lodge.  This summer, we will be tripling our capacity to serve 45 families at a given moment, upwards of 180 families each year. This expansion project will help kids in KC achieve the stability they so desperately need, and you can help!

• Do you have a connection to youth programs, camps, internships, and enrichment opportunities that help prepare them for adulthood? 

• Do you have a connection for parents to help gain stability, which reduces the stress that spills into children’s lives? 

• Can you help families secure school supplies, clothes, lunch boxes or summer meals? 

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Right now, in our city, children are living in cars, tents, storage units, and even moving trucks.  This reality is hard to believe, but I can promise you it is happening; families try to stay hidden while trying to get themselves rehoused. 

Often, families may stay in a hotel for a few nights, or when they can; however, that option will soon not be possible as World Cup guests descend upon our city and the prices for hotel rooms soar. There are ripple effects from large events that can have grave impacts on children in our community.

Do you believe all KC Kids need a home? 

Each day, my heart hurts for these children and families as we do not have answers for them. Last year, we turned away 718 families because we had no capacity to place them in interim housing. They deserve better, and the Kansas City I know would never, not for one day, stand for a child living in these conditions.   

This summer, as you see children laughing at fountains or riding bikes down your block, I invite you to imagine a Kansas City where all children have the safety and stability they deserve. I also invite you to help us get every child in Kansas City housed safely and stably.

Will you join us for a tour, volunteer, or donate to help make this the strongest summer yet?

A stronger summer—and a stronger Kansas City—starts with a home for everyone.