PORT TOWNSEND — “If people only knew their stories . . .”
George Thomas knows.
Thomas oversees the emergency and transitional housing program for OlyCAP — Olympic Community Action Programs, which manages the Peninsula Daily News’ Peninsula Home Fund.
OlyCAP, the No. 1 emergency care agency on the North Olympic Peninsula, operates seven small cottages in Port Townsend, sheltering a variety of families that all have important stories — stories about homelessness.
Unfortunately, most of those stories can’t be told publicly.
“Most of our residents are just like you and me, but for a combination of reasons they have found themselves homeless,” says Thomas.
“Many of our residents have come to us out of domestic violence situations.
“It is critical that we maintain confidentiality and even secrecy in some cases.
“One of our folks came to us out of that kind of situation, a mother with a 9-year-old child.
“She had a number of medical issues that prevented her from working.
“We provided her with a warm, comfortable cottage, and some funding out of the Home Fund for gas money so that she could see her doctor.
“She is now out of the shelter and into a stable, supported apartment.
“She and her daughter are on their way to putting their lives back together.”
The Peninsula Home Fund is often used to supplement other supports when there just isn’t enough money in a program to cover what a family needs in order to become stable.
Sometimes the Home Fund actually leverages more funding from other resources.
“It can happen so easily.” says Thomas.
“One of our residents this year found himself with custody of his two young boys (ages 2 and 4) and all of a sudden out of a job.
“His mother was willing to provide childcare, but there wasn’t enough room in her home for more than a short stay.
“He was admitted to cottages and on the same day got a job.
“He worked and saved and only had to stay in the cottages for two months; he got on his feet and is now in a rental.
“The kids are fine and he is working hard to support himself and them.”
Thomas said the Home Fund was used “to help him with a deposit so he could get into his own place.
“It’s surprising to me that about a third of the homeless people I deal with actually have jobs.
“Between a combination of domestic violence, multiple medical issues or a history involving chemical dependency, they have found themselves on the street with nowhere to turn.”
And that’s when the Peninsula Home Fund comes into play — paying for a needed prescription, gas money, clothes for children or a deposit to get into an apartment.
Jefferson and Clallam
From Thanksgiving through Dec. 31, the Peninsula Home Fund — a safety net for residents in Jefferson and Clallam counties when there is nowhere else to turn — is seeking contributions for its annual holiday season fund-raising campaign.
The Peninsula Home Fund is a unique, nonprofit program.
* No money is deducted for administration or other overhead.
* All contributions are fully IRS tax-deductible.
* Your personal information is kept confidential.
The Peninsula Daily News does not rent, sell, give or otherwise share your address or other information with anyone, or make any other use of it.
* Money is used to give families and individuals “a hand up, not a handout” to get through an emergency situation.
* All instances of help are designed to get an individual or family through the crisis — and back on the path to self-sufficiency.
* Every penny, every dollar, contributed to the Peninsula Home Fund goes to making life better for children, teens, families and the elderly across the North Olympic Peninsula — from Port Townsend to Forks, from Quilcene and Brinnon to LaPush.
All the money collected goes — without any deductions — to families in Jefferson and Clallam counties for hot meals for seniors, warm winter coats for kids, home repairs for the low income, needed prescription drugs, dental work, safe, drug-free temporary housing, eyeglasses — the list goes on and on.
* Peninsula Home Fund case managers work with each individual or family to develop a plan to become financially stable — and avoid a recurrence of the emergency that prompted aid from the fund.
* Individuals, couples, businesses and school groups set a new record for contributions in 2003 — $77,608.
All of that money is expected to be spent by Dec. 31.
* The average “hand up” is $100. Home Fund contributions are also used in conjunction with money from churches, service clubs and other donors, enabling OlyCAP to stretch the value of the contribution.
* To apply for a grant from the fund, phone OlyCAP at 360-452-4726 (Clallam County) or 360-385-2571 (Jefferson County).
* If you have any questions about the fund, contact John Brewer, Peninsula Daily News editor and publisher, at 360-417-3500.
Please click on the button at left, print out the coupon, and complete it with your donation to the PDN Home Fund.
How to donate
A gift of any size is welcome.
Peninsula Home Fund has never been a campaign of heavy hitters.
If you can contribute only a few dollars, please don’t hesitate because you think it won’t make a difference.
Every gift makes a difference, regardless of its size.
As in past years, the PDN is publishing stories every Wednesday and Sunday through the end of December on how the Peninsula Home Fund operates.
Sunday’s story also lists the latest contributors.