How a mini pig is leading homelessness intervention efforts in DC – NBC4 Washington

In Washington, D.C., a town where lawmakers are often fighting about pork spending, a five-pound pig named Synergy is helping out humans who are in crisis.

“Not many things in this life at this point made me feel good, but she makes me feel amazing,” said Steven, one of the people Synergy has helped.

Synergy is a Juliana mini pig working alongside Amy Angell at the h3 Project. Their team travels across D.C. to help end homelessness and human trafficking.

“When I walk up to an individual with her and I see her there. They’re surprised,” Angell said. “[…] People are so caught off guard. But you just see all those barriers just come down as they want to engage.

“You don’t see a pig on a regular basis,” said Xavier, another one of the people Synergy has helped. “You see a dog or cat, you might see a rat or mouse. You don’t see a pig.”

Synergy and Angell are not doing this alone.

“I have an amazing team. I am so fortunate with my team,” Angell said. “They’re incredibly diverse. The majority have lived experience, which is incredibly important to me.”

When it comes to the impact of the h3 project, she explained, “just as an example, and last year, 2025, we had over 500 vital documents ordered, which is Social Security cards, IDs, birth certificates, all necessary for housing, resulting in 93 housing matches. We had 217 opioid overdose reversals, and we reunited 118 individuals with support systems.”

“Amy, one thing about her that a lot of people don’t have is she has an honest heart,” Xavier said. “Her and her agency have been doing a lot, but a lot of people don’t see the people out here we can use the help.”

Angell said she believes there is no one solution to homelessness.

“There’s a lot of solutions, ” she said. “I am always trying to think, what outside the box method could we employ to maybe get to that person? So a pig. A lot of individuals around here have never seen one, let alone touch one.”

Xavier said just the idea that knowing Synergy will be around makes him feel a little bit better.

“The wonderful thing about a pig is they don’t judge you. They love you equally,” Angell said. “Everyday, there’s at least one person that tells me that this was the highlight of their day, and that’s amazing.”