James D. Noteware Chair
CEO, Noteware Advisors; former Director of Housing & Community Development, City of Houston
Local leadership for a shared Houston problem.
Hope to Home Houston is a nonprofit initiative founded by people who believe the city can expand shelter, coordinate care, and create more paths out of homelessness.
Our mission
Deliver the places and the operating system Houston needs.
H2HH exists to finance, acquire, develop, and operate a network of facilities that moves people from homelessness toward lasting stability.
We are adapting a proven community-campus approach to Houston’s scale, geography, provider network, housing system, and civic culture. The goal is not to duplicate good work already underway. It is to give that work more capacity and a shared place to connect.
Experience, passion & drive
Leadership
A Houston team with the skills to acquire and repurpose the site and build the public-system alignment.
Board of Directors
Robert L. Heston, Jr.
President & CEO, Legal Access Companies; Adjunct Professor, South Texas College of Law
David “Duke” Millard
Attorney; former federal prosecutor
Dean Strombom, FAIA
Retired strategy leader & principal, Gensler
J.W. “Jay” Wall III
Senior Vice President, Moody Rambin
Operational Leadership
Jason Wright
Executive Director
Advisory Board
Jeff Paine Advisory Board Chair
Wealth Management Advisor, Goldman Sachs
Wendy Bainbridge
Retired Houston Police Department Assistant Chief; City Administrator, City of Hedwig Village
James W. O’Neill, AIA
Principal, OnWorks Design
Denise Oncken
Retired Assistant District Attorney, Harris County
How we work
Five principles guide the design.
Dignity at entry
Make it easier to accept help. Use trauma-informed care, clear safety expectations, choice, and respect.
Housing-focused, not housing-only
Permanent housing remains the destination. Health, recovery, income, identity, and human connection often make that destination reachable.
Partners over silos
Give independent organizations a shared place, common protocols, and a practical reason to work side by side.
Reuse before ground-up construction
Convert suitable vacant commercial buildings when that approach can add capacity faster and at lower cost.
Measure exits and retention
Count the people who reach stable destinations and remain there, not only beds, meals, visits, or occupied nights.
The first delivery
Gateway and Hub. Built as one system.
The current H2HH concept targets 1,100 beds: 400 low-barrier Gateway beds and 700 Transformation Hub beds, with shared intake, data, partner services, and housing pathways.
Organize
Build the operating organization, partner framework, campaign, property strategy, and data plan.
Convert
Acquire and adapt commercial property for safe shelter, care, services, staff, partners, and daily operations.
Operate
Open capacity in phases, learn from real use, measure outcomes, and expand the network where need is greatest.