Tempe Community Action Agency Awarded $78,320 Grant to Support Health and Housing Support for Homeless Seniors
(TEMPE, Ariz. – Sept. 17, 2025) – Mercy Care has awarded Tempe Community Action Agency (TCAA) a 2025 Mercy C.A.R.E.S. Community Reinvestment Grant in the amount of $78,320. The grant will fund TCAA’s “Health and Housing Support for Homeless Seniors” initiative, a targeted effort to improve outcomes for aging adults experiencing homelessness. By integrating healthcare access with shelter services, the program provides a comprehensive approach to addressing both health and housing needs. Designed to serve 30 senior individuals, the project aims to reduce emergency room visits, strengthen connections to medical care and public benefits, and support stable transitions from shelter to permanent housing.
“At TCAA, our mission is to make homelessness rare, brief, and nonrecurring—especially for vulnerable populations like unhoused seniors. This initiative reflects our commitment to addressing the complex intersection of aging, homelessness, and health,” said Phillip Scharf, CEO of TCAA.
According to Scharf, by connecting older adults to stable shelter, healthcare, mental health support, and essential benefits, TCAA aims to improve their quality of life and reduce preventable healthcare costs.
“Seniors are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population, and they deserve targeted, compassionate solutions that recognize their unique challenges and restore their dignity,” said Scharf.
Mercy Care, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary throughout 2025, partners with organizations across Arizona that advance health equity and address social risk factors to improve health outcomes. Through grant funding, sponsorships, volunteer efforts and board participation, Mercy Care has invested over $38 million in community reinvestment projects that help manage chronic conditions; support mental health and well-being; address housing security; and empower recovery from substance use.
“TCAA’s ‘Health and Housing Support for Homeless Seniors’ initiative reflects a holistic, person-centered approach to care,” said Trisha Stuart, director of community relations at Mercy Care. “By integrating healthcare, social services, and housing navigation, this model helps to ensure that vulnerable seniors receive the coordinated care they need to live healthier, more secure lives.”
Since 1966, TCAA has dedicated its resources to strengthening families and neighborhoods through initiatives that address the causes and effects of poverty. Eliminate poverty and advance equitable communities. Through our programs and initiatives, we strive to make a positive impact in the lives of those facing adversity in our community. On an annual basis, TCAA programs benefit more than 35,000 seniors, adults, and children who live in and around the City of Tempe. For more information about TCAA’s programs, resources and opportunities to donate, please visit tempeaction.org.
Mercy Care is a not-for-profit Medicaid managed care health plan, serving AHCCCS members in Arizona since 1985. Mercy Care is a local company sponsored by Dignity Health and Ascension Health. Mercy Care provides access to physical and behavioral health care services for Medicaid-eligible families, children, seniors, and individuals with developmental/cognitive disabilities. Learn more at www.MercyCareAZ.org.
