In our most recent articles we’ve shared our experience with building a new, supportive housing model for foster youth in Minnesota. But equally important are the stories behind that work. They remind us that while policies, partnerships, and housing models matter, their true value is measured in the opportunities they create for our young residents. Ty is one of those residents and with his permission we're honored to share his story.

As we moved from concept to daily operation, our vision for PERIS Hill encountered the realities of implementation. What had felt coherent and aligned on paper now had to function within a complex web of funding requirements, neighborhood dynamics, service delivery systems, property management norms, and human relationships. As soon as we opened doors, we unearthed a truth:  innovation is rarely linear. It requires continuous learning, adaptation, and humility. Now, five years into operation, we’re sharing our experience, not because we've found every answer, or would ever claim perfection, but because we believe the foster care, homelessness, and broader supportive housing fields can only grow stronger when we are all willing to share and discuss both our successes and our challenges.

Young people aging out of foster care face some of the highest risks of housing instability and homelessness in the United States. Across studies, between one-third and nearly half of youth who age out of foster care will experience homelessness by their mid-twenties, a rate many times higher than their peers. This instability is not episodic—it is patterned and persistent. Youth with out-of-home placement histories experience homelessness earlier, more frequently, and for longer durations than their peers. They also show disproportionate rates of involvement with the criminal legal system, early parenting, mental health challenges, and underemployment. Not as a result of individual failure, but clearly as a reflection of conditions (both systematic and situational) that make sustained stability extraordinarily difficult during their transition to adulthood.

PERIS Hill will soon celebrate its fifth anniversary. A celebration that will coincide with the release of a five-year case study that attempts to document how PERIS Hill was conceived, built, and refined in practice. Even in draft form, the case study already clearly identifies something that has become increasingly apparent over the last few years: what we have created in PERIS Hill is less a rigid formula, and more a living system. A model that at its core, relies on the presence of a number of foundational approaches for form, strength, flexibility and resilience. Simple, easily articulated approaches that, when taken together, form something innovative, coherent, and (importantly) replicable.

A three-year external case study of PERIS Hill just found that over 90% of our residents are in school or employed and creating housing stability. That’s an amazing achievement. Something we can truly be proud of. Yet, when it comes to being proud, there’s little that can compare to a real, heartfelt success story. And Jayden’s is no exception. So we thought we’d share it with you here.

Finland's Housing First model proves homelessness can be solved with aligned funding, onsite services, and strong political will. Can we follow Finland’s proven path?

John and Denise Graves built their kitchen-table start up into a 150-employee company and sold it for over $150 million. Shortly after the sale they launched the John and Denise Graves Foundation (also known as Graves Foundation) - determined to improve the lives of youth by supporting education, community building, housing, and youth development in and around Minneapolis. A few years later PERIS Hill became a reality and the PERIS Foundation was formed.