Kar Woo
Artists Helping the Homeless
When Saint Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City asked Kar Woo to create a program to reduce the need and cost of care for area homeless, he said “Sure.” Ask an artist to create something…
Woo, an immigrant from Hong Kong who worked with area homeless near his gallery, was sure he could save area emergency providers $1 million the next year by filling a gap in the local safety net with transportation. He did, and by listening to the challenges of riders and safety net agencies, identified and filled other gaps. Today, Woo’s organization, dubbed “the safety net for the safety net,” helps 2,000 people from all segments of Kansas City’s homeless population annually, filling gaps to facilitate the path off the street.
Woo has a B.S. in Psychology with graduate studies in Counselling at Kansas University before creating and operating a business for nearly 30 years.
Woo, an immigrant from Hong Kong who worked with area homeless near his gallery, was sure he could save area emergency providers $1 million the next year by filling a gap in the local safety net with transportation. He did, and by listening to the challenges of riders and safety net agencies, identified and filled other gaps. Today, Woo’s organization, dubbed “the safety net for the safety net,” helps 2,000 people from all segments of Kansas City’s homeless population annually, filling gaps to facilitate the path off the street.
Woo has a B.S. in Psychology with graduate studies in Counselling at Kansas University before creating and operating a business for nearly 30 years.