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Homies

A group of friends alongside someone starting over

Homies connects a group of friends to someone who is or was without a home. What they share is time, attention and friendship, about an hour a week per person. Since 2026, Homies Foundation has been part of Stichting Room for Change.

How it works

Three steps, and the rest is friendship

  1. 01

    You form a group

    Friends, family or colleagues who want to mean something together. Experience in social work is not needed; you come as yourself.

  2. 02

    We make the match

    Room for Change introduces the group to someone who is or was without a home and who is open to this kind of contact.

  3. 03

    You share your time

    Spread across the group it comes down to roughly an hour a week each. Coffee, a walk, help with a form, or simply being there.

Where it began

A conversation on the street, and a group of friends who stayed

Homies started in 2020 with Steven Borghouts, who photographs homeless people and got talking to a man living on the street. He called in his own circle of friends, and eleven days later they had shelter, food and money arranged together.

What lasted was the part that came after. The group kept showing up: for a coffee, for a birthday, for the appointments nobody wants to go to alone. That is the whole idea behind Homies, and it is what every group does today.

Why friendship counts

A key in your hand is not the same as people around you

Years on the street or in shelters cost people the network the rest of us take for granted. Housing alone does not give that back: you can be lonely behind your own front door. A group of friends fills exactly that gap, and does it without a referral, a waiting list or a closing date.

An hour a week per person, spread across the whole group
No end date a group stays for as long as it clicks
Together the group carries it, so nobody stands alone
Two programmes

A room, and a circle of people around it

Room for Change runs two programmes that strengthen each other. The hotel programme gives someone a room and the calm to recover. Homies gives someone people who stay, during that time and long after it.

Room for Change

Hotels open rooms to people who are temporarily without a home, and care partners guide them towards durable housing.

Read more about this programme

Homies

A group of friends walks alongside someone who is or was without a home, for as long as it clicks.

You are reading this page
In their own words

Five stories, told on camera

Short films from the Homies archive, in Dutch. Each one has the full story behind it.

No home yourself?

Homies and Room for Change work through care partners in each city. Here is where you can go for help.

Find help
Information session

Want to know more first? Join an online session

Once a month we explain in an online session how Homies works: how a group gets started, how the match is made and what you can expect. For anyone who is curious, on your own or together with your friends, and there is room for all your questions.

Coming sessions

  • Monday 7 December, 14:00online

The sessions are in Dutch. Once you sign up, we send you the link.

FAQ

Questions about Homies

What is Homies, and how does it relate to Room for Change?

Homies is the second programme of Room for Change: a group of friends who stand alongside someone who is or was homeless, sharing time, attention and friendship. Homies Foundation became part of Stichting Room for Change in 2026. The hotel room gives someone the calm to recover; the group of friends gives them people who stay.

What is a Homies group?

A group of friends, family members or colleagues who team up with someone who is or was homeless. Room for Change makes the match. After that, you share your time: a coffee, a walk, help with a form, or simply being there. No background in social work needed; you come as yourself.

How much time does it take to be part of a group?

Spread across the group, it comes to about an hour a week per person. There is no end date: a group carries on for as long as it clicks.

Can a company or team form a group?

Yes. A group can be made up of friends, family or colleagues. Want to form one with your team? Tell us who you have in mind and we will work out together what fits.

Tell us about your group
All frequently asked questions
Homies

Want to form a group?

Tell us who you have in mind and we will look at what fits, at your pace.

Tell us about your group All the ways to get involved