2026 Helen Martin and Trade Winds Scholarship
The Long Island Coalition for the Homeless is proud to support students on Long Island who have experienced homelessness by helping them pursue higher education, vocational training, and long-term stability through our Scholarship Program. In partnership with United Way of Long Island, this initiative provides financial assistance to students who are currently enrolled in, or preparing to enter, a college, university, or trade school program.
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Education can be a powerful pathway toward opportunity, independence, and lasting change. Through this program, the Coalition is committed to investing in the strength, resilience, and potential of young people in our community.
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​2026 applications are now CLOSED.
38th Annual Keys for the Homeless Conference
Theme: The State of Homelessness
Date: Thursday, Dec 10, 2026
Time: Legislative Breakfast: 8:00am-10:00am, Conference: 10:15am-5:00pm
Join us before the conference for our first-ever Legislative Breakfast!​
Location: Marriott Melville Long Island, 1350 Walt Whitman Rd, Melville, NY 11747.
2026 Conference Workshops
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Assumptions vs. Reality: Strengthening Person-Centered Case Management by Shifting the Current Narrative
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Beyond the Behavior: Seeing the Story, Supporting the Person
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Building Sustainable Pathways for Individuals with Complex Medical Needs
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Centering the Voice: Harnessing Lived Experience Across Community, Health Care, and Advocacy
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De-Escalation 101: Learning the Skills of De-Escalation
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Energy and Capacity to Live and Serve Well
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From Concept to Keys: Innovations in PSH Design, Development and Launch
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Implementation of the SOS CTI Program on Long Island
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Integrating Innovative Street Psychiatry into an Established Street Outreach System: The New York Story
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Making Your Impact Measurable: How to Track Outcomes & Communicate Meaningful Change to Funders
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My Crayon is Blue: How Labels Shape Homelessness, Services, and Recovery
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Narrative Storytelling as a Means of Building Community
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New York State of Homelessness
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Sustaining the People Behind the Purpose: Staff Retention, Well-Being, and Leadership in Nonprofit Settings
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Welcome to the Housing Maze….Can you make it home?
Previous Key Conferences
37th Annual Keys for the Homeless Conference
Beyond Barriers: Collaboration, Compassion and Community
Thursday, December 11, 2025
8:30am-4:30pm
Marriott Melville Long Island
Workshop Topics
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Hidden in Plain Sight: Changing the Narrative on Long Island
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​Transition Academy: Addressing Food and Housing Insecurity on Campus
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Getting to Yes: ADUs as an Affordable Housing Option
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From Crisis to Stability: Implementing the SOS Model for Street Homelessness
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Loneliness: The Greatest Threat to Mental Health We Hardly Ever Talk About
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Local Zoning and Political Will
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...and more!!
Keynote Speaker
Mark Horvath
Founder
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Helen Martin Scholarship Award Recipients
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Danae Carter
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Edgardo Rivera
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Juan Carlo Mora Afanador
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Rihanna Myrie
Leonard I. Saltzman Unsung Hero Award Recipient
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Dr. Richard Zito
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36th Annual Keys for the Homeless Conference
Shifting the Narratives: Doing What’s Right and What Works
Thursday, December 19, 2024
8:30am-4:30pm
Marriott Melville Long Island
Workshop Topics
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Best Practices in Person-Centered Housing Focused Case Management
Cultivating Resilience and Self-Compassion: Supporting Ourselves and Others in Uncertain Times
Challenges and considerations in diabetes care for people facing homelessness
Fighting for Immigrants’ Access to Shelter and Other Social Services
Combatting the Nation’s Migrant Housing Crisis on the Frontlines: Community Integrated Health Solutions to Migrant Homelessness
Preventing Burnout: Realistic Self-Care for the Helping Professional
Redefining Affordability: Changing the Narrative on Housing in the Suburbs.
...and more.
Keynote Speaker
Tracee Henneke
Director Of Relationships & Giving
Mobile Loaves & Fishes
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Helen Martin Scholarship Recipients
Angelina Lord, SJD, Estefany Diaz, Fatima Ba, Nelson Cabrera Guzman
Leonard I. Saltzman Unsung Hero Award Recipients
Nicholas Golding, Bobby Kellett, Lori Gonzalez Dunlap
Champion of Compassion Award
Peggy Boyd, LMSW
Vice President of Community Services and Advocacy, Family Service League
35th Annual Keys for the Homeless Conference
LESS TALKING, MORE LISTENING:
Centering People With Lived Experience to Solve Homelessness
Wednesday, October 18, 2023
8:30am-4pm
St. Joseph’s University
Workshop Topics
Persons with Lived Experience Plenary
Library Social Work: A Collaborative Community Approach to Expanding Services to Unsheltered Individuals
Financial Literacy: Building Competency for Vulnerable Populations
Serving the Migrant Population
Building Resilience: Turning ACEs into PACEs and the Study Hope
Balancing Compassion and Accountability in Supervision
Peer Work Force Development and the Importance of Peer Specialists
...and more
Keynote Speaker
Albert Townsend
Director Of Lived Experience & Innovation,
National Alliance to End Homelessness
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Helen Martin Scholarship Recipients
Vincent Grauso, Skylar Hayes, Kimberlie Gittens, Hunter Tashjian, Crystal Rye
Leonard I. Saltzman Unsung Hero Award Recipients
Judge Fern Fisher and Porsh
Lifetime Achievement Award
Thomas Ronayne
Director, Suffolk County Veteran Services