Homelessness is a problem that spans the boundaries of local governments. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation designed the Sound Families program to be a regional approach to address the needs of homeless families in three large urban counties in Washington: Pierce, King and Snohomish. This wide boundary reflects the foundation’s original vision to achieve regional results to homelessness in the Puget Sound area. Through the Sound Families governance structure, for the first time executive staff from all three counties create strategies to address homelessness that cut across these boundaries.

The impact of this regional strategic planning may have broad application. Sound Families is pioneering aspects of public-private partnerships that can be duplicated throughout the state of Washington, and perhaps even in other parts of the country.