March 10, 2009

EDAR (Everyone Deserves A Roof), Inc. - What is it, see enclosed

Please pass this along to every shelter or mission you may know of. There is a need for this type of shelter in the homeless population. Be sure to see the video HERE. A simple but amazing invention. PS: The bike is not part of it, that belongs to the owner and is leaning up against the EDAR.

3-10-2009 National:

EDAR'S Solution
EDAR (Everyone Deserves A Roof) provides shelter to the homeless in an innovative cost and usage effective way. The EDAR unit is a purpose-specific, special four-wheeled enclosed device, very roughly reminding one of a covered shopping cart.

During the day, the EDAR unit is used to pursue the necessities of life. Personal belongings are secured by the use of locks. The front and back of the cart have storage baskets with removable canvas pouches. The unit is waterproof and provides protection for what it contains. EDAR's wheels are better than a supermarket cart's, being slightly larger and easier to steer in a consistent fashion. There are two brake and locking mechanisms which ensure the unit will not move on its own.

At night, the EDAR unit easily hinges out and down to Night Mode in less than 30 seconds, becoming a sleeping unit. Unfolding the unit allows it to lock in place as the flat metal base extends. The metal and wood base has a mattress and military-grade canvas cover, providing a robust tent-like shelter. The unit is flame-retardant, waterproof, windproof and helps protect from the elements. There are translucent windows that provides light and a view of the surrounding area. By re-folding the unit, the EDAR quickly returns to Day Mode.

Strategy
EDAR's are given free of charge as resources allow, to homeless people directly and through our shelter partners. We track the progress of the EDAR units through our shelter partners and by asking the users to call a toll-free number to let us know how each EDAR is working for them and exactly how and where they are using the EDAR.

Cities own many pieces of scrap land which go to waste. Similar to the Dome Village in downtown Los Angeles, a local authority provides unused land, so that EDAR can be used as the ready-made basis of a small community, ideally five to ten EDAR units. This has positive pro-social and mental health attributes for the homeless: toilet facilities, showers, a payphone with answering service as well as soup kitchen drop-off, clothing and social services are all facilitated on-site. EDAR is currently looking for land in the Southern California area.

EDAR (Everyone Deserves A Roof), Inc.
1015 Gayley Ave. Suite 357 | Los Angeles, CA 90024
Phone: 310 208 1000 x109 | Fax 323 315 5188
info@edar.org

1 comment:

onomoney said...

EDAR this is hands down the coolest ting I have ever seen.
I have high hopes of not needing one, but for thoes that do, way cooler than a box.

Brad West ~ onomoney