Housing for many on island is already an issue but it's especially problematic for some of our most vulnerable.

Acting Executive Director for the Guam Housing and Urban Renewal Agency Elizabeth Napoli shared the reasons why some of Guam’s manamko' aren't able to remain housed. A common issue is that the elder may be on their own and in need of a caretaker.

"Oftentimes, they can’t afford caregiving services," she said. "There are providers out there that provide caregiving services, but it’s affording it that’s the issue and it really breaks my heart when I receive calls from those elderly that tell me, 'I can’t live here by myself, but I can’t afford to have a caregiver, what kind of help can I get?”'

When calls like this are received, GHURA contacts other agencies that specialize in caring for elderly people.

"I have to reach out to the Adult Protective Services or the Public Health services for the adults," Napoli said. "I have to reach out to any one of the other agencies that provide support services to see what can be done and oftentimes, the funding is the problem.

If they’re on fixed incomes and on top of that they have medical issues, they need caregiving, they need transportation services, etc, it becomes difficult for them and sometimes, they end up having to lose their housing because they can’t afford the rent anymore."

Family support also plays a big role for elderly with housing issues

"That’s how they end up coming to GHURA. Is because their families can no longer house them and they need to be housed somewhere. So yes, that is how we end up getting referrals and they’re usually referred by one of the other agencies or they call themselves and say, “I’m at risk of homelessness, how can you help me?” and then that’s when we get as much information as possible from them regarding their situation.

They just don’t have enough social workers, enough caregivers, people that can provide that one-on-one assistance to the vulnerable population like our elderly and our persons with disabilities."

Napoli added that GHURA has been meeting with other groups to tackle the situation of keeping the island’s elderly housed. These include Sen. Amanda Shelton’s Senior Citizens Housing Task Force and UOG’s recent Housing Symposium that was part of the University of Guam’s 13th Conference on Island Sustainability.