An Interview with Ann Wu, MD, MPH, Housing Families Board Chair

Tell us about how you originally got involved with Housing Families.

I first learned about Housing Families in 2015. My kids, Alex and Allison, sold origami cards at our local farmer’s market and wanted to donate the earnings to kids in their community. They emailed Housing Families and were invited to a tour of what is now the EnrichEd program. They were then invited to make origami cards for parent and caregiver clients to give to their children over the holidays and then to teach origami to the children. From there, my kids’ involvement in Housing Families grew, and I was invited to join the board as a pediatrician.

As Board Chair, what will you be most focused on in 2025?

Our goals for 2025 are to continue to partner with Laura Rosi, our CEO, and Housing Families staff to support the developing needs of those experiencing housing insecurity. There have been multiple policy changes at the State-level recently and we will need to continue to adjust our services in order to provide the best service to those we serve. One of the goals of our strategic plan is to serve as a leading voice in housing advocacy to shape policy and drive community engagement. As the Chair of the Medical Advisory Committee, I will continue to work closely with Housing Families staff to identify policies that will have positive impact on our clients. In the past, we’ve backed bills that support the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program and other bills that provide housing stability within the state.

As a physician and researcher, what do you think is the most important thing to know about the link between health and housing?

I think many people don’t realize the many links between health and housing. Even though most people understand that health is a necessity, many do not understand that housing is central to the ability to have good health.

I’m a pediatrician and my research has focused in pediatric asthma. I’ve seen first-hand through my patients and through my research that housing insecurity profoundly impacts asthma. Infants born during a period of unstable housing have higher rates of asthma diagnoses, and children with asthma with unstable housing are more than 30x likely to be hospitalized. Children in emergency housing are twice as likely to go to the emergency department for asthma. A recent study found that moving families from low poverty areas to high poverty areas resulted in improved outcomes for pediatric asthma. Thus, eliminating housing insecurity is critical to ensuring health.

What are 2 of your favorite Housing Families memories?

My favorite memories are around the client holiday parties which are now the client appreciation events, including a Paint Night I helped organize for clients. These are really fun times when clients, staff, and volunteers gather together.

I’ve also love the Legislative Breakfasts where legislators, leaders in the community, and anyone interested in these issues gather to hear about a special topic. The client stories are always a main highlight for me because they show why we are doing what we do. And of course, we always have an expert speaker and they have included physicians with expertise in housing insecurity, social determinants of health, mental illness, and more. For me, the Legislative Breakfast has been a perfect melding of many worlds because solutions to housing insecurity will take teamwork from multiple aspects.

How has the organization grown over the (10 years) you have been volunteering with us and serving on the Board?

I’m incredibly proud of how much Housing Families has grown.

  • Housing Families was originally an organization of around <40 staff members and is now over 120.
  • When my kids and I first toured Housing Families, there were 50 family shelter units. Now, Housing Families manages over 320 units that were added to help with the current housing crisis.
  • The G.R.E.A.T. Youth Family Program is now renamed EnrichEd and it is part of the CareCollective which is the new name for the Clinical/Mental Health team.
  • Advocacy is now a more formal part of Housing Families. We have Katie Charcalis, a Policy Advocate, and Renee Cammarata Hamilton, Director of Policy and Strategic Partnerships leading our advocacy efforts.
  • We have clearly tied health & housing outcomes as the theme of our Legislative Breakfast.

You are an exemplar for nurturing philanthropic values within your family. Will you talk a little bit about the Wu family’s impact?

I would say that the reverse of this question is true. Housing Families has had an immense impact on my family and is a central part of our life. My kids were 8 and 10 years of age when they first started working with Housing Families. They emailed multiple homelessness agencies that service children, and Housing Families was the only one that responded. I believe this demonstrates the mission and culture at Housing Families where children are always supported. The staff at Housing Families wanted to support my children in their goals, and this has made service a central part of both of my children’s lives.

Both Alex and Allison became tutors in the EnrichEd program once they were old enough. Then, Housing Families staff, especially Molly Abrahamson, collaborated with Allison to develop the Youth Service Engagement Program (YSEP) which has supported over 60 youth in 30 different middle and high schools in service projects that raised >$20,000. Inspired by EnrichEd, Alex directs a program where >100 students from Harvard support public school students in science projects. I’m also proud that working together has continued for my kids as Allison is the treasurer for this program.

Outside of work and Board service, what brings you joy?

I love to travel! I am always planning my next trip. Just this year I was fortunate to visit Taipei, Taiwan to see my 102-year-old grandfather, see the northern lights in Tromso, Norway as part of a mother-daughter trip with Allison, ride a hot air balloon in Cappadocia, Turkey with my mother, fish in Santorini with my family, and watch the Olympics as a Taiwanese and American fan in Paris. Being able to travel with family and experience new things brings me the most joy. I love the perspective of fishing in the middle of the ocean, hiking in the mountains, or floating in the sky and realizing that my problems are pretty small.

You’ve traveled to some amazing places. What is the coolest place you’ve ever traveled to?

If I take this question literally, the coolest place I’ve ever been is sleeping in an ice hotel in Tromso, Norway. We slept on ice beds in an igloo.

The most amazing place I’ve ever been is in the ocean along the Great Barrier Reef. While snorkeling there recently, two mama whales along with their babies swam up next to us. They were very curious—took a look at us and left. They were so close that it took a lot of energy to avoid touching them.