For over 9 years now, Linda Brown and her husband David organized a nightly drop-in shelter where homeless people in Springfield could eat, shower, do laundry, use a computer, and socialize during bingo games and karaoke—but they wanted to do more. So, they transformed an abandoned mobile home property into a village of tiny homes that provides permanent housing to the chronically disabled homeless.
They raised $4.75 million and opened Eden Village in 2018, erecting 31 tiny homes that are now occupied by people like Jonathan Fisher. Jonathan Fisher who was battling substance abuse, and had lived on the streets for two years when he met Linda Brown, who changed his life.
“In the worst moments of my life, Linda gave me guidance, care, and made me feel like I was still worth something,” Fisher says. He says that Brown took the time to learn about how he became homeless, and then encouraged him as he rebuilt his life. She even offered him a job.
Now sober, Fisher works full-time for Brown, doing construction and maintenance on the 31 homes, and helping others experiencing struggles similar to what he went through.
The driving philosophy behind Eden Village is the same that fuels the Housing First movement: The root causes of a person’s homelessness cannot be thoroughly addressed until his or her immediate housing needs are met.
“I watched as my homeless friends walked off into the darkness to a hidden, wet, cold camp while we went home to a warm bed,” Linda told the National Association of Realtors, who honored her with their Good Neighbor Award in 2020. “I had to do something,”
That was the moment that formed her vision for the tiny-home village that serves as a place where the chronically disabled homeless “can live with dignity and self-worth.”
After drawing sponsorship money from Coldwell Banker, the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors, local banks, churches, and area residents, by February 2019, all 31 tiny homes, which cost about $42,000 each, were occupied.
“It takes someone who wants to do something, and then believes they can. I’ve watched Linda Brown live that out,” says Nate Schleuter, who helped launch a tiny-home village for the homeless in Austin, Texas, but now is the chief visionary officer for Eden Village.
“It’s exciting to watch the homeless who thought they’d live the rest of their life on the street now have a home.”
Brown’s 13 years of real estate expertise has been essential to the development of the tiny-home community, where she learned of a listing for an abandoned 4.2-acre mobile park on Springfield’s east side, which was suitable for tiny-home trailers as it didn’t require rezoning and had the necessary infrastructure and utilities already in place. The 400-square-foot individual homes are fully furnished, including dishes and bedding, and are rolled in on wheels attached to their steel frames, qualifying them as recreational vehicles. Residents can remain in their home as long as they wish, provided they remain a good neighbor in the community. The village includes a 4,000-square-foot community center where residents can hold cookouts, do laundry, and access a medical office staffed with student nurse volunteers and mental health professionals. Eden Village also features the site of a marriage ceremony for two residents.
Fisher says Brown’s devotion helped him emerge from the grip of homelessness. “She helped me to build a better life,” Fisher says. “Even when I was struggling with homelessness and sobriety, she showed me I was valuable and that my potential shouldn’t be wasted. She made me feel like I belonged somewhere.”