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Mental health surge motivates Luke Samalya’s housing focus 

Luke Samalya credits his background in clinical mental health counseling for Danna Capital’s efforts to enhance affordable housing in Wisconsin. 

When working towards his Clinical Mental Health Counseling Master’s at Marquette University, Samalya’s primary focus was counseling emerging adults. He noted that his clients shared a common issue: “They were devoid of a sense of ‘home’ because they lacked access to safe and affordable housing.”  

The experiences influenced Samalya to pursue a career that provided tangible solutions for those struggling with mental health challenge. 

“I transitioned to learning more about providing affordable housing to the most underserved populations,” he said. “I was lucky to meet some important mentors, who shared information about the ACRE program and helped me land my first jobs in the development space.” 

Samalya received his first real estate agent position at Coach Realtors in 2014. As his career continues to evolve, his biggest goal is to bridge the gap between people experiencing mental health challenges and access to affordable housing. Manning offered a future news headline he’d like to see: “Historically Low-Levels of Unmanaged Chronic Mental Health Conditions as Housing Security Becomes More Universal.”