Project Homeless Connect took place on Tuesday, January 30th for the 13th year in a row at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex. This event was able to reach out to over 100 individuals who are experiencing housing insecurity throughout the Peninsula and helped them find information on how to get a fresh start, as well as some extra support systems.
There were at least 30 vendors present at this year’s event, and they included free haircuts, immunizations, and recovery help, just to name a few.
According to Greg Meyer, the Executive Director of the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank, approximately 140 people attended the event, which was nearly 50 more than attended last year’s event.
For breakfast, the food bank brought breakfast burritos and for lunch, it was sloppy joes. Meyer says that this was a collaborative effort since five other people and organizations helped donate food for this event.
There was even enough food that individuals were able to have some packaged up and set back with them.
“It’s such a great event because, you know, transportation, in rural areas is so hard. So to have all those services, that one spot where people could go, and sometimes people just don’t understand what you do or all the programs you have. So it’s great for us too, to be able to meet with folks face to face. And you know, maybe there are things they don’t realize [certain things] that are available,” said Meyer.
Something that tends to be a problem with this event is ensuring that people have a way of getting to and from the event. But this year, Alaska Cab and CARTS teamed up and provided transportation to the Sports Complex, free of charge for anyone attending.
“You know, between Alaska Cab and CARTS having free transportation… I have no idea what those numbers were, but just based on seeing how many times their vehicles went in and out, it was well utilized, which helps break down those barriers of getting there,” said Meyer.
Love Inc. of the Kenai Peninsula, which offers homelessness prevention and placement services, was also present at Tuesday’s event. According to Housing Case Manager Alison Bushmell, this event was able to reach several individuals that they were not able to reach last year.
“I think being able to have all of the resources in one spot so that they can connect with them ask questions on like, how that intake process works because a lot of our clients don’t have reliable transportation, and so the fact that they could at least make that final introduction with these resources and get connected, and kind of know the starting point on what they should,” said Bushmell.
Overall, both described the event as a success and hope to see help even more individuals next year.