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Keeping Families Housed, Strengthening Community: Imelda’s Story
Through partnership, advocacy, and compassion, United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona and Poder Casas Móviles are working together to prevent eviction, empower families, and build lasting housing stability across our region.
Standing Together to Keep Families Housed
When Imelda talks about her work, one thing is clear—it’s about more than housing. It’s about dignity, stability, and making sure families don’t have to face their hardest moments alone.
As a housing advocate with Poder Casas Móviles in Tucson, Imelda provides legal guidance and support to residents—many of whom are navigating complex housing situations or facing the threat of eviction. Certified by the court, she and her colleagues walk alongside individuals and families during some of the most stressful and uncertain times in their lives.
“Eviction doesn’t come alone,” Imelda explains. “It’s often the last drop after many other challenges. That’s why we look at the whole person—not just the housing issue.”
Through education about housing rights, one-on-one guidance, and connections to community resources, Imelda helps families better understand their options and advocate for themselves. Whether reviewing contracts, accompanying someone to court, or simply listening, her work is grounded in trust and empowerment.
That’s where United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona comes in.
A Shared Mission for Housing Stability
United Way’s Housing Stability & Homelessness initiatives are designed to ensure that individuals and families across Southern Arizona have access to safe, stable housing—and the support they need to stay there. This work spans immediate crisis response, direct services, and long-term systems change, all with the goal of preventing and reducing homelessness in our community.
Through programs like the Emergency Relief Fund, United Way provides critical rental and utility assistance to families at risk of eviction. For many, this support is the difference between staying housed and losing everything. At the same time, initiatives like the Family Eviction Prevention Program help families with children remain in their homes, ensuring stability in both housing and education.
But United Way knows that no single organization can do this work alone.
Partnership in Action
Poder Casas Móviles is a vital partner in this effort, particularly for mobile home residents—an often overlooked population facing unique housing challenges. As the only organization in Tucson specifically focused on supporting this community, Poder Casas Móviles fills a critical gap by providing culturally responsive, bilingual support and legal guidance.
Together, United Way and Poder Casas Móviles share a common goal: keeping families in their homes and preventing eviction whenever possible.
“United Way has supported us tremendously,” Imelda says. “We receive collaboration, resources, and support that allow us to better serve families. We wouldn’t be able to do this work without that partnership.”
That partnership goes beyond financial support. United Way also helps strengthen the broader network of housing providers and advocates through initiatives like the Eviction Prevention Case Managers group, where organizations come together to share resources, strategies, and solutions. This collaborative approach ensures that families receive more coordinated, comprehensive support.
Building Trust, Empowering Families
One of the biggest challenges Imelda sees in her work is a lack of trust—especially among families who may feel overlooked or unsure where to turn.
“There’s fear,” she says. “People don’t always know their rights, and often they don’t have legal representation. We want them to know they can trust us—that we’re here to support them.”
To build that trust, Imelda and her team go directly into communities—knocking on doors, hosting workshops, and meeting people where they are. They offer education in both English and Spanish, ensuring that language is never a barrier to understanding or accessing help.
And the impact is real.
Imelda recalls working with a family facing eviction due to unfair enforcement of housing rules. By reviewing the situation, providing guidance, and advocating alongside them, her team helped the family stay in their home.
Moments like that are what drive her work.
“It’s not just about giving information,” she says. “It’s about helping people understand their rights and feel empowered to take action. When families are supported and able to stay in their homes, it creates stability for everything else.”
Stronger Together
At its core, this work is about connection—between organizations, between neighbors, and between people who care deeply about their community.
For Imelda, that’s what “Live United” truly means.
“There is strength in unity,” she says. “When we come together, when we support each other, we can build healthier communities where families can thrive.”
Through partnerships like the one between United Way and Poder Casas Móviles, that vision is becoming a reality—one family, one home, and one community at a time.
Learn More about Poder Casas Moviles
Poder Casas Móviles (Mobile Home Power) is a group of mobile home park residents and our allies fighting for our rights to fair, healthy and affordable housing.
Poder Casas Móviles give free housing and eviction legal advice, organizes Know Your Rights trainings for mobile home and manufactured home residents, gives emergency housing and utility grants for mobile home park residents behind on rent payments (when funding is available), and organizes to change policies that impact the lives of mobile home and manufactured housing residents. Click here to learn more.
