Thank you to everyone who joined us for the 2026 CHIP Celebration!
We’re incredibly grateful to our guests, sponsors, partners, award recipients, and community members who made this year’s gathering so meaningful. Together, we celebrated the people and partnerships moving Indianapolis closer to home and recommitted to our shared vision of a community where everyone has a safe, stable, and affordable place to call home.
The CHIP Diamond Service Award is presented each year during the CHIP Celebration to an individual who has not only overcome their experience of homelessness but is giving back to individuals or the community in a meaningful way through their leadership, service and/or advocacy efforts.
Check out some of our past winners and watch to see the impacts they are making within the homelessness response system.
Restee Johnson is a Certified Peer Support Professional (CPSP), a Speak Up! Advocate with CSH, and a Committee Board Member of the HTR Fund Advisory Team. His work is deeply informed by his own lived experience navigating trauma, addiction, and more than 20 years of periodic homelessness.
For the past seven and a half years, Restee has called Permanent Supportive Housing home, providing the stability that has helped him rebuild his life and step fully into his purpose. Today, he uses his lived experience to help shape housing policy, strengthen community engagement, and advocate for system improvements that center and uplift the voices of people most directly impacted by homelessness.
Through his advocacy with CSH and leadership with the HTR Fund Advisory Team, Restee brings an invaluable perspective to conversations about housing and homelessness and demonstrates the power of lived expertise in creating meaningful systems change.
Brian Paul, is the Team Leader of the Homeless Resource Team at Adult & Child Health, where he has dedicated the past 22 years to serving individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Known for his compassionate leadership and unwavering commitment to community mental health, Brian plays a key role in connecting vulnerable populations to vital resources and support services.
Outside of his professional life, Brian is a proud father of six and grandfather of three. A lifelong Ohio State Buckeyes fan, he brings the same passion to his personal life as he does to his work. He recently celebrated a joyful milestone, marrying his partner during a memorable trip to Thailand. Brian’s enduring dedication to service and his impact on the lives of others make him a truly deserving recipient of this award.
Imani Y. Sankofa, an advocate with a deeply personal connection to homelessness, has dedicated herself to fighting for equity and sustainable solutions. In 2001, she shared her own journey as a single mother facing homelessness in an article for NUVO’s “The Blueprint To End Homelessness.” At that time, Imani was raising three school-age children while navigating the challenges of maintaining stability and pursuing higher education. Her firsthand experiences include grappling with the complexities of accessing assistance, lack of resources, transportation barriers, and the stigma associated with seeking support. With a decade of experience in the education system, Imani witnessed the profound impact of homelessness on students’ academic performance, mental well-being, and social development.
Asha Martin has persevered to overcome a wealth of challenges along her life’s journey that many others would have bowed down to. Asha has gone from homeless to homeowner. From high on drugs, to high on life. From chaotic to centered. From harmful to humble. From self only, to selfless. From street cred to college credits.
Asha has been in active, intentional recovery for over 5 years, and is striving to build a network of personal standing and community resources to help others. Due to Asha’s experiences, she has an approach to others that gives a safe and equitable space, allowing them to share and open themselves to options that they otherwise would not have considered. Asha is a certified Peer Support, (CSPR-PR, CAPRC II-GS/MH/FS, CHW/CRS), currently working at Horizon House as an Intensive Case Manager and is anticipated to receive her Bachelors in Addictions Counseling in May 2023, with plans to pursue her Ph.D.
For three decades, CHIP has worked alongside service providers, advocates, and neighbors to ensure every person in Indianapolis has a safe and stable place to call home. Our 30th Anniversary Legacy Video celebrates the people, partnerships, and progress that have shaped this journey and reminds us that only together we can house ALL neighbors and support them with compassionate care.
Watch the video to honor the past, reflect on the progress we’ve made, and join us in building the future of housing and hope.