There was a reunion of sorts yesterday at the Institute for Human Services in Kalihi. More than 20 once-homeless people who now live on their own thanks to the IHS Supportive Housing Program returned to the shelter to thank the staff and offer inspiration to others who are now at the shelter.

"If not for God and IHS I don't know where I'd be today," said Faith Bonser, who has been been homeless off and on since 2000. Bonser, who has hepatitis C, recently moved out of IHS and signed a one-year lease for her Waikiki studio apartment.

People such as Bonser — who has a medical disability and was homeless for more than a year — are in the category of the chronically homeless, the hardest clients for IHS to place and the target of the Supportive Housing Program. Other clients have mental illnesses, substance use disorders and other challenges.

The Supportive Housing Program is not simply finding a place for homeless people to live, but provides ongoing, long-term support services through a case manager.

Keola Gerell owns three Chinatown properties with 120 furnished rooms. About 80 percent of the rooms are rented to former homeless people through the program, which screens the clients for him and makes sure all goes well.

"The case managers are great," Gerell said. "If there is a problem, I call the case manager and they talk to the client."

The case managers make sure the rent is paid on time, help clients adjust to living on their own and provide ongoing counseling services.

A study by Dennis Culhane of the University of Pennsylvania notes that 10 percent of the homeless at shelters in New York and Philadelphia are chronically homeless and use about half of all resources targeted for the homeless. In Hawai'i, there are an estimated 6,000 homeless people and about 20 percent are considered chronically homeless.

Traditional housing models are ineffective for this group and they may spend years in and out of shelters.

HomeStreet Bank yesterday presented IHS a $10,000 HomeStreet Housing award to support the program.

"Seeing someone who has been chronically homeless for years enter the Supportive Housing Program and start changing their lives, renews our faith in the work we do," said Lynn Maunakea, IHS executive director.

IHS, O'ahu's only emergency shelter for men, women and families with children has been running the program since 2003 and has placed 67 chronically homeless into their own units. More than 80 percent have stayed there for a year or more, Maunakea said.

"This is the most effective way for us to lower the number of people who are homeless on O'ahu," she said. "By focusing our efforts to develop permanent housing solutions for the most difficult to serve guests, emergency bed-space at our shelters will be freed up for others who need to access services."

Maunakea said many more people would use the program if funding and units were available.

"Now the challenge is to develop the affordable housing inventory," she said. "We have the solution to ending chronic homelessness, now we just need the housing."

Reach James Gonser at jgonser@honoluluadvertiser.com.