​We see them all over town, living in tents, or just curled up in a sheltered place in a sleeping bag or tarp. They may seem faceless, or even dangerous, but they are our neighbors and fellow citizens. We call them the homeless, the unhoused, or the unsheltered. They are defined by what they lack – a secure permanent residence with a roof, four walls, heating, and the other features that make up what we call a home. Most are facing personal challenges, which may be related to personal finances, substance abuse, or mental health.

​Maybe, like me, you’ve wondered about these folks. Are we trying to help them, find them housing, address the problems that led them to live outside? 

The causes of homelessness have been discussed widely, and I won’t take a deep dive into that issue here. In a nutshell, it’s a combination of a lack of affordable housing, a weak safety net for people in economic crisis, and widespread problems with “self-medication” and mental illness. To learn how homelessness plays out in Clallam County, check out Danny Steiger’s blog. Danny is President & CEO of Lumber Traders (which operates Hartnagels, Angeles Millwork, and Angeles Rental), and Board President of Habitat for Humanity of Clallam County. He created a blog called “Clallam County Solutions,” where you can find his articles, “The Realities of Homelessness in Port Angeles: A Community in Context,” “The People Who Show Up: Clallam County’s Safety Net in Action,” and “The Challenges Within the System.” 

Homelessness is a complex issue. I’m limiting myself here to a couple questions: What are we doing to solve this problem, and how can each of us help?

The Clallam County Health and Human Services Department (HHS) plays a key role in funding and coordinating responses to homelessness. I checked in with Jenny Oppelt, Deputy Director of HHS, to learn more. 

A focal point for county action is their 2025–2030 Homeless Housing Plan. This plan supports requests for grant funding and sets priorities for the County. I asked Jenny how the plan is implemented. “By turning its five objectives into concrete action steps, timelines, and partner responsibilities,” she responded. She described a variety of strategies, and explained that “implementation occurs through the Homelessness Task Force (HTF), partner cities and other government organizations, Tribes, community providers, and county departments.” She explained that progress is monitored through data from the State's Homeless Management Information System, as well as from “community reports, and regular assessments of shelter, outreach, and housing systems.” (Read Jenny’s detailed response.)

Funding for implementing the County Plan is critical. The State provides almost a half a million dollars, and they have also authorized the County to direct local document recording fees toward “Affordable Housing and Homeless Housing and Assistance.” The HTF oversees and advises on the allocation of funding. 

Jenny listed the County’s priorities for action:

• Strengthening the crisis response system – supporting one-stop access, shelters, safe parking, and tiny shelter villages.
• Supporting the workforce – retaining and training the staff who provide frontline homeless services.
• Preventing homelessness – investing in rent stabilization, eviction prevention, workforce training, and employment partnerships.
• Prioritizing assistance for those with the highest barriers – expanding respite care, medical discharge planning, and coordination with behavioral health and hospitals.
• Increasing stable housing options – working with landlords, creating an accessible county housing information hub, and advancing housing for seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, youth, and others with complex needs.

County Commissioner Mike French provided some perspective. “We have a wide variety of service providers that do excellent work,” he told me, “but they can't be successful if there isn't a unit available for an individual or family who is experiencing homelessness.” He explains that the County has been deploying funding “to help local affordable housing developers grab large state and federal grants, which is adding a considerable number of units to our local affordable housing inventory.”

Membership on the HTF is striking. It includes representatives from the County, three major cities, four Tribes, and eighteen other community interest areas and groups spread across a wide range of local concerns. 

A central player in addressing homelessness is Serenity House, a leading nonprofit housing organization in Clallam County. Many of you may only be familiar with their Thrift Store in Sequim, but that’s just a key funding source for a variety of Serenity House projects, including a 24/7 Adult Shelter, eviction prevention, housing assistance, and crisis response. They also conduct the Point In Time census, which documents those living unsheltered or in emergency shelters or transitional housing. 

I talked to Matt Wilson, Business Development Manager for Serenity House, who explained that Serenity House is focused on “getting roofs over people’s heads.” Matt discussed his experience with his organization. “I grew up in the area, but I didn’t know what Serenity House really does. After six months working at Serenity House, I was just beginning to see the scope of all they do. We’re not just the thrift store, not just the adult shelter. We have three permanently supported housing sites. Our team works with tenants facing imminent eviction and their landlords to pair them with programs that can save their housing. We try to find solutions.”

The County’s 2025 Homelessness Annual Report lists eight different organizations getting funding for a dozen programs: Serenity House, The Answer for Youth (TAFY), Mariposa House, Olympic Community Action Program, Boys & Girls Club of the Olympic Peninsula, North Olympic Regional Veteran’s Housing Network, and Health Families of Clallam County. Services cover shelters, emergency and transitional housing, and mental health support. 

The length of this article does not allow me to do justice to every group. I hope to provide a flavor for what’s going on. Some groups have a housing focus, some work on the mental health angle. Peninsula Behavioral Health, for example, works with the homeless on mental health and substance abuse issues. They manage a 26-unit “Permanent Supportive Housing Community,” and will complete another 36-unit development later this year. Their website explains that these communities “offer a blend of privacy and on-site support, helping residents develop daily living skills, manage mental health and wellness, connect with community resources, and successfully transition to more independent housing.”

As you drive down 1st Street in Port Angeles, just before you reach Race Street, you have probably noticed the Sprouting Hope Greenhouse, which is also the home for The Answer for Youth (TAFY). Susan Hillgren, TAFY’s Director, was blunt and to the point. “Our goal is to keep them alive while we hope they get into treatment.” 

Susan described her organization. “We work with the teen-age population – the under-18 population needs help.” She explained how many youth drop out of high school, but then find no support. “They won’t make a change for themselves before they feel they’re worthy.” 

She talked about the challenges of addressing homelessness. “Rules and regulations have reduced housing. We could do safe parking lots.” (These are parking lots that are safe for people to stay and live, which is one strategy to improve living conditions for the unsheltered. An example is the Safe Parking Program created by the Trinity Methodist Church in Sequim.) She mentioned she'd like to see porta-potties and garbage cans for the homeless. She continued, “some of the unhoused are alcohol addicts, some are meth heads or have mental health issues, but some are clean and sober. There are generational issues – their parents and grandparents had problems, too.” She commented on the lack of education of the public. “This isn’t about how they are doing their drugs, the question is why they are doing drugs. Homelessness is not the enemy.” 

Susan added that “the County has a plan so they can get funding.” She told me, “the County is doing what they need to do, but a lot of money just goes to paying wages. We need quality help to make changes. My volunteers are there because they care. TAFY works because it works for today, we live in the moment. We are not stuck in the long-term ‘what-ifs.’” 

Critical to these efforts are actions taken by the State. I asked our State Senator Mike Chapman about what happened in the latest legislative session. He told me “we did a lot in the Housing space again this year!” His list of accomplishments includes: 

• The Operating Budget provides $200 million in housing and homelessness funding, including $123 million for the Housing Trust Fund.
• The Capital Budget provides $889 million to fund construction projects and infrastructure across Washington.
• Nine different bills that the legislature passed to help make it easier and cheaper to build shelters and affordable housing. Two bills passed by a near-unanimous vote, and seven passed with most or all votes from Democratic legislators.

(See the complete list with details.) 

​The County Plan describes homeless numbers in Clallam County. Total homeless individuals number 285, of which 175 are unsheltered (living in tents or vehicles for example) and the rest in shelters or transitional housing. From 2023 to 2024, the number of homeless people increased by 25%, while homeless over the age of 65 increased by 65%. Jenny explains that “health conditions cause expenses they can’t afford, since they are on a fixed income, or their spouse dies and they lose that income.” But this only hints at what is happening with homelessness. The Point In Time (PIT) census likely undercounts the unsheltered. And it doesn’t include all the people who have successfully moved into permanent housing and addressed their mental health and substance abuse problems. 

There isn’t one kind of “homeless person”. Every one of them has their unique set of issues – low income, no income, age, background, mental health, etc. The community network addressing homelessness is equally complex. Different groups tackle different aspects of the problem, such as the psychological and economic needs of people, crisis intervention, and creating affordable housing. It’s a jig-saw puzzle addressing a spectrum of needs. 

Jenny mentioned that there are often comments in meetings that are not accurate. “It's challenging when a person's opinion is presented as a fact.” She gave an example of the belief that everyone who is homeless is using drugs. “The PIT survey looks at drug use. The majority of people who are homeless are not using drugs. And more often when people become unhoused, they may start using drugs as a result.”

There are a wide range of views regarding the efforts to address homelessness in Clallam County. Some people feel that current efforts are failing, like County Commissioner Candidate Jake Seegers, whose website states, “Clallam County’s strategies to end homelessness are not working.” Some, like Susan, are critical of current efforts and believe that not enough is being done. And some, like Matt and Jenny, say that we are making progress, or that we are preventing things from being worse. But all would agree on one one point: we need to do more.

So what can you do to help? Clearly there’s a huge need for financial help and volunteer help at all of the nonprofit groups working on homelessness. Susan from TAFY said “find someone with an empty parking lot they’d be willing to donate.” Matt at Serenity House told me, “donate to the Thrift Store – these funds are extremely valuable, they don’t have strings attached like grants, which helps with emergency situations. Direct donations are good. If we can get the people donating to our monthly Advocate program in the same numbers as people we help, we could fill Serenity’s funding gaps. We support over 4,000 people, and our goal is 3,000 Advocates.” 

Jenny provided a list of ways community members can help:

• Supporting or volunteering with local service providers, shelters, and outreach programs.
• Learning about the root causes of homelessness—such as the severe shortage of affordable housing and rising rents in Clallam County—and sharing accurate information.
• Advocating for affordable housing development, supportive housing projects, and continued funding at the state and local levels.
• Encouraging landlords to participate in rental voucher and supportive housing programs.
• Supporting workforce development and training opportunities for individuals transitioning out of homelessness.

​Jenny summed up the situation well. “It takes a whole community to support what’s happening in this world. We all need to work together.”

I see that you have developed a strategic plan for homelessness. How do you implement that plan?
We implement the 2025–2030 Homeless Housing Plan by turning its five objectives into concrete action steps, timelines, and partner responsibilities. The plan is built around required state objectives and includes detailed strategies—for example, expanding one-stop resource access, strengthening workforce capacity, preventing homelessness episodes, prioritizing people with the highest barriers, and increasing stable housing options. Implementation occurs through the Homelessness Task Force (HTF), partner cities/other government organizations, Tribes, community providers, and county departments. Progress is monitored through HMIS data, community reports, and regular assessments of shelter, outreach, and housing systems. The plan is considered a living document and will be updated as needed to ensure homelessness becomes rare, brief, and non recurring. (Read the entire Plan.)

What other activities do you do to address homelessness (besides plan development)?
In addition to planning, the County and the HTF manage and coordinate a wide range of response activities. These include contracting with service providers; supporting outreach, respite, and behavioral health services; coordinating safe parking and shelter projects; developing tiny shelter village strategies; supporting rental stabilization and eviction prevention services; and expanding access to health services and coordinated case management.

Where do you get funding for homelessness activities?
Funding comes from a mix of state and local sources. The Clallam County Homelessness Task Force (HTF) oversees the allocation of a portion of local document recording fees that are designated for “Affordable Housing and Homeless Housing and Assistance.” These are defined by RCW 36.22.250. While the revenue of these funds fluctuates over time, they are anticipated to collect around $547,000 in 2026. The WA State Department of Commerce also receives a portion of local document recording fees and has recently sent some of these funds back to local communities to help support local homelessness services. Our department works with the HTF to allocate the additional state funds. For July 2025-June 2026, the additional funds from the state total $445,167.

Do you pass on funding for homelessness response and prevention, and who gets funding?
Yes. Most funding is passed through to community-based organizations that operate shelters, housing programs, outreach, behavioral health services, and homelessness prevention programs. Funding recommendations are developed with the HTF through a competitive Request for Proposal (RFP) process to ensure resources go to programs that meet community needs and demonstrate positive outcomes. The HTF then makes recommendations to the Board of Commissioners based on identified needs, system gaps, and performance data so funds can have the greatest impact. See recent funding awards.

What are the County’s top priority activities? What activities do the most good? 
Priority activities are aligned with the five core objectives of the plan. These include:

• Strengthening the crisis response system—expanding one-stop access, improving shelters, developing safe parking, and exploring tiny shelter villages.
• Supporting the workforce—retaining and training the staff who provide frontline homeless services.
• Preventing homelessness—investing in rent stabilization, eviction prevention, workforce training, and employment partnerships.
• Prioritizing assistance for those with the highest barriers—expanding respite care, medical discharge planning, and coordination with behavioral health and hospitals.
• Increasing stable housing options—working with landlords, creating an accessible county housing information hub, and advancing housing for seniors, veterans, people with disabilities, youth, and others with complex needs.

Prevention and diversion offer a particularly strong return on investment because they keep people housed before a crisis worsens. At the same time, maintaining and expanding shelter, permanent supportive housing, and behavioral health support opens pathways out of homelessness for those needing more intensive assistance.

What can people reading my article do to help with homelessness?
Community members can help by:

• Supporting or volunteering with local service providers, shelters, and outreach programs.
• Learning about the root causes of homelessness—such as the severe shortage of affordable housing and rising rents in Clallam County—and sharing accurate information.
• Advocating for affordable housing development, supportive housing projects, and continued funding at the state and local levels.
• Encouraging landlords to participate in rental vouchers and supportive housing programs.
• Supporting workforce development and training opportunities for individuals transitioning out of homelessness.

The plan invites all residents, leaders, and organizations to take part in this work; community engagement is essential to making homelessness rare and brief.

Housing Principles
Every Washingtonian needs a home, but for too many the opportunity to afford their mortgage or rent is out of reach. That’s why we’ve focused so much attention on increasing the supply of housing to drive down the costs for everyone. We must continue to cut red tape for builders, find new and creative ways to build housing, and champion ideas like rent stabilization to continue to make the cost of housing more affordable and predictable for all Washington families. 

Affordable housing and homelessness prevention in the budget
The budget builds upon the record-setting investment into affordable housing and homelessness prevention in the 2025-27 budget with an additional $200 million in housing and homelessness funding, including $123 million for the Housing Trust Fund, supporting affordable housing projects across Washington.

Supplemental Capital (SB 6003) includes affordable housing investments
The $889 million bipartisan capital budget funds construction projects and infrastructure across Washington and makes major investments in school construction, affordable housing, flood response and prevention, and more. It creates jobs and builds real, tangible benefits that people across the state can see, touch, and feel. 

Sir Winston Churchill among others stated, “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”

​The American democracy has been evolving since the settlement of the colonies on the east coast of what is now the United States. Only white males were involved in making decisions regarding colonial policy. Only white males with wealth signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the U.S. Constitution in 1787.

Mercy Warren (1728-1814) of Massachusetts was the first American historian. She wrote a history of the Adams Administration following his defeat by Thomas Jefferson in 1800. Mercy Warren was a close friend of Abigail Adams; wife of John Adams. President Adams became angry with Mercy Warren because, quite frankly, he apparently had problems handling challenges to his ego. 

Women are not referenced in the Constitution. The female vote was not granted in federal elections until 1920, although they were given the vote for some state elections prior to that time. Discrimination on any basis — gender, race, color, ethnic origin, disability — is based on ignorance, tradition, religion, self-centered ego, and opportunism. 

Discrimination relating to disability is based on ignorance and preconceived notions about the disability. I am blind and have had people tell me my other senses are more acute because of blindness. I am not aware of any evidence that supports this assertion. I have had people come up to me offering to pray for me to regain my vision. I do not consider these offers of prayer to be well intentioned. Technology has afforded blind persons many opportunities, but blindness is still an issue, and blind persons need to know the alternative techniques necessary to foster and foment the opportunity for independence and integration into society. Curb cuts and ramps, accessible doors, audible street signals are helpful to the disabled in general and for some blind people who need them because of lack of mobility training or age; however, these environmental accommodations are helpful to many other disabled persons.

Dr. Jacobus tenBroek, founder of the National Federation of the Blind in 1940, lost most of his vision at the age of seven and became totally blind at the age of 14. As a blind person, he earned five degrees, including a PhD from Harvard and a PhD from the University of California at Berkeley. He was a member and chairman of the Speech Department at UC Berkeley until his death in 1968. He was a legal scholar writing numerous articles and books about social welfare and raised awareness for the deprived citizens in society. In 1954, Thurgood Marshall, in the Brown v. Board of Education decision, cited Dr. tenBroek’s book, “The Antislavery Origins of the Fourteenth Amendment.” Dr. tenBroek was a leader of the Free Speech Movement in the 1960s. 

The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) in the last 85 years has grown into one of the most successful and powerful organizations for persons with disabilities. Since its inception, the NFB has promoted the use of braille instruction, pushing legislation to require the instruction of braille for students who are blind. In Washington and in other states, legislation passed forbidding the taking away of children from blind parents just because they were blind. The NFB took the lead, obtaining the right of the blind to serve on juries in Washington and other states. Washington was one of the earliest states to promote the integration of blind and disabled students in the public schools. 

The current administration in Washington, DC, is attempting to destroy the Federal Department of Education, which has had a diabolic impact on disabled persons, including the blind. The administration with its actions is adversely affecting educational opportunities and is a threat to the mainstreaming of students in public education. 
 
The president’s actions and attitude with respect to the disabled is an attempt to counteract much of the progress made by the disabled. The current occupant of the White House has repeatedly demonstrated his bias against people with disabilities:

— By claiming that someone with dyslexia could not be president because it would mean he was “dumb,” after California Governor Gavin Newsom revealed he had dyslexia.
— By asking that disabled veterans not be included in military parades because it did not look good. 
— By making fun of a disabled journalist. 
— By attacking DEI, which affects persons with disabilities. 
— By eliminating grants to braille and talking book libraries for the disabled.
— By taking action to defund the Special Olympics, only to withdraw that action after public backlash.

Dr. tenBroek, in a speech in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1952, stated, “Full membership in a democratic society … entitles the individual to liberty in thought and action, equality of treatment, opportunity to develop his potentialities, and security against the calamities of fortune over which he has no effective control. The withholding or withdrawal by society of any of these fundamental rights from an individual leaves him at best in a role of probationary membership, of second-class citizenship, and to that extent refutes the practice and violates the spirit of democracy.”

The blind, as well as other disabled persons, are in a struggle for full participation in American democracy. When only 50% of the citizens in our democracy chose to vote in the 2024 presidential election, we identified the most serious threat to the survival of our democracy — apathy and choosing not to participate in the democratic process. There is currently a rather disorganized movement led by the president to limit voting; to challenge voting procedures including the mail-in ballot despite the fact that the arguments against mail-in ballots are fabrications. These attempts to limit the vote could have a primary impact on the ability of people who are seniors and who are disabled to vote. To save the democracy for all citizens, knowledge, participation, and tolerance are imperative. 

​A new wave of reform is sweeping across the Democratic Party! It is bubbling up from the grassroots and bringing a class of Democratic candidates committed to shaking off the influence of the money pit in our elections and governance, and the dominance of the "professional political class" in our Party.

My intention:
​I stand for renewal and reform of the office of PCO as the representative office within our Party. The democratic purpose of this sole partisan elective office is to represent our neighbors (our constituents!) in Party matters. 

Historically, this vital democratic link in the Party of the people has been diminished, reduced to mere spokespersons for the Party and cheerleaders for leadership, however deep in the weeds they lead us. This office was not reformed into a publicly elected office in 1907 (over a century and a quarter ago) to be merely a Party operative or a functionary. That is not how I intend to serve my precinct as your representative Precinct Committee Officer. 

The purpose of this office is to empower democratic grassroots voters with the knowledge, guidance and assistance they need to impact our Party, the Party of the people, from within.

My invitation:
I challenge my fellow officers, volunteers, and supporters of the Democrats to consider being a candidate for Precinct Committee Officer – a vital democratic office. I hope you will view constituent services and empowerment of voters in Party matters as our fundamental duty. We earn the votes for our candidates by representing our constituents effectively in the Party of the People.