Diane D. Nilan

Diane Nilan has more than 4 decades of experience running shelters; advocating for improved state and federal policies; filming/producing award-winning documentaries, including My Own Four Walls; on the edge: Family Homelessness in America; writing her reader-friendly book on homelessness, Crossing the Line: Taking Steps to End Homelessness; co-authoring Changing the Paradigm: Family Homelessness in America; and addressing audiences from Columbia University to Congress.

At age 55, Diane Nilan sold her home and possessions, and started HEAR US Inc., a unique one-woman national nonprofit organization. She purchased a small camper (her personal funds) then set out in 2005 to travel across the country on a pioneering venture to interview families experiencing homelessness.

Living full-time in her camper, she criss-crossed over 500,000 miles of mostly backroads, spending time with scores of invisible families, youth and those who serve them, filming and producing award-winning documentaries.

Her latest books include: Dismazed and Driven - My Look at Family Homelessness in America (Charles Bruce Foundation. 2020), reflecting her 15 years on the road, part memoir, part social narrative; and The Three Melissas - The Practical Guide to Surviving Family Homelessness (Charles Bruce Foundation. 2024) written with Diana Bowman, capturing the stories and tips about homelessness from 3 women named Melissa that Diane met in her travels.