Invocation: Jim Damian
President Ken and Jim Damian started out the meeting with a recap of their trip to the Rotary "President-Elect Retreat". They brought along their trusty Sergeant-At-Arms, Jon Sampson, who turned out to be the "Hero of the Day" by managing all of the IT work that goes into a Live/Zoom meeting. Ken pointed out that not only are we the largest club in the district, but we are also the most gifted.
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Good News & Announcements
Dave Whelden announced he has put together five Team Captains for the Annual Bell Ringing fundraiser.
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Today was Ken's Anniversary, so he asked me to run this photo in lieu of a gift for his wife.
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Program
Andrae Gonzales introduced today's guest, Larry Haynes, CEO of
The Mercy House.
Larry has been hired by the city to manage a project near and dear to Andrae's heart. It is a low barrier homeless shelter located on Brundage Lane in the old Calcot facility. They are calling it "The Brundage Lane Navigation Center".
The facility will provide 150 beds as well as wrap-around services for homeless adults. Those services are intended to break the cycle of homelessness in our community through on-site medical and mental healthcare, as well as job training and educational opportunities in order to lead homeless adults on a path to permanent housing.
What "low-barrier" means is that they are allowed to live there with their partner, and or pet. There are rules of course, but the conditions to be able to live there are minimal. They even have a place to store their most personal possessions.
This will not be a "walk-in" facility. Beds are available by reservations. Usually, the referrals will come from law enforcement officers. The residents will be bused in and then bused out daily. Larry didn't know where the daily drop off locations would be but said most likely they would be close to agencies that help the homeless.
The Mercy House website says they provide housing and comprehensive supportive services for a variety of homeless populations which includes families, adult men and women, mothers and their children, persons living with HIV/AIDS, individuals overcoming substance addictions, and some who are physically and mentally disabled.
To see photos and do a "walkthrough" of the Navigation Center, visit their website.
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