Under a highway overpass on a city street, a car passes. Construction equipment clatters, and in the distance, a line of tents is shaded by trees.
ON SCREEN TEXT: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
As soft music plays, a red tent sits next to a pile of bags and trash. The grass grows tall around another crop of tents. A man, Clint, speaks in voiceover.
CLINT: It's not easy. It's not.
Clint sits on a couch, hands folded, and speaks to the camera. He wears an American flag cap and sports a goatee.
CLINT: I was homeless for a while, about 20 or 30 pounds lighter. Food was a constant struggle.
Coolers prop up jugs of water, and the red tent is covered with a tarp.
CLINT: I mean, that's all you do in life is survive. I mean, at this point in life, that's all I do right now is survive. I got all kinds of health issues. I take seven or eight different medications every day.
An assortment of pill bottles fills a tabletop. In a still image, Clint smiles and faces the camera. The screen darkens and words appear.
ON SCREEN TEXT: Clint lived on the streets for
a year. Without a stable home,
he wasn't able to take care
of his health issues.
CLINT: When you're out there, you can't keep paperwork. There's no paperwork to keep. You know, they ask you for stuff. It's like, "Are you kidding me? I got everything I own in a backpack, man. Like, where am I gonna put it?" No, I never thought I'd be here, feeling like, you know, an animal living outside.
In the encampment, a few flowers bend in the breeze. At another intersection, a truck turns the corner. Rocky speaks in voiceover.
ROCKY MARCOUX: Affordable housing is a big issue in Milwaukee as it is across the country.
Looking down a street, a tangle of telephone poles and wires lines a row of houses. The screen darkens and words appear.
ON SCREEN TEXT: City leaders are partnering with
UnitedHealthcare to create more
affordable housing in Milwaukee County
which has the highest poverty rate
in Wisconsin.
As bright music plays, a long, contemporary building is revealed. Light reflects off the white and orange exterior.
ROCKY MARCOUX: I mean, the design of the building is beautiful. It fits the street.
A nameplate marks the building.
ON SCREEN TEXT: SEVEN04
PLACE
MAN: Thank everyone for coming out.
At a podium in front of gold and white balloons, a woman, Ellen Sexton, speaks.
ELLEN SEXTON: We know so much of what impacts people health is actually outside the doctor's office.
As Michael Carlson speaks in voiceover, Clint fills a kettle in his kitchen and sets it to boil.
MICHAEL CARLSON: If we can just make sure everyone's got a roof over their head, a safe, decent, comfortable place to stay, that we can prevent all these issues that come when we have neighbors that don't have access to those things.
Now, Michael is at the podium.
ON SCREEN TEXT: Michael Carlson
Impact Seven - VP Real Estate Development
Clint motions to his kitchen appliances.
CLINT: The microwave's awesome. Refrig--nice and big.
Ellen speaks in a lobby. A slow pan shows each floor of the building.
ON SCREEN TEXT: Ellen Sexton
UnitedHealthcare - CEO UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Wisconsin
ELLEN SEXTON: Since 2011, UnitedHealthcare has invested over $400 million across the country for 80 different affordable housing projects.
Clint stands, then sits in his living room. Soaps, candles, and jars sit on his kitchen counter.
ON SCREEN TEXT: Clint
Resident
CLINT: It's just a nice area. It's nice. I really do like it here. It's definitely improved. I can go to the doctor regularly now. I can do the things I need to do. It's definitely better.
In front of the building, a group of folks in suits hold a giant red ribbon, and one of them cuts it with oversized scissors. They cheer. Among them is Rocky, who then speaks one-on-one to the camera.
ON SCREEN TEXT: Rocky Marcoux
Department of City Development - Commissioner
ROCKY MARCOUX: By providing support services, it allows the folks that not only get housed here, but they can continue to be housed because they have the support network in place that keeps them here.
In his bathroom, Clint pulls aside the shower curtain and points, then draws it shut. Rocky speaks in voiceover.
ROCKY MARCOUX: And that's vitally important because if they don't have those services, those wraparound services, then they'll end up back, likely, on the street as homeless.
A tall, white bucket stands on Clint's floor.
CLINT: That bucket right there is the same bucket that we used at Tent City. That was my chair. I keep it as a reminder just to not want to go back, not end up there again.
Still shots appear of Clint's fresh fruit, oven, and sink.
CLINT: Having my own place, I mean, you know, being--feeling like a person again. Stability is the biggest thing that it's brought to my life, especially with the health stuff. This is awesome.
The building exterior fades to white, and the blue UnitedHealthcare logo appears. Then, the screen fades to black.