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The guest speaker at the Tigard Rotary Club’s March 14th meeting was Renee Brouse, Executive Director of the Good Neighbor Center (GNC) in Tigard. Renee said that she grew up in Indiana, the oldest of four children. When she was between ages 5 and 14, she experienced poverty first hand – her family received food stamps and utility assistance, and she received subsidized lunches at school. She started babysitting at 9-years old to help with the family finances. She said that, although they were poor, they were fortunate in one way…they always had shelter. They never worried about a roof over their heads, as her father and grandfather built the house they lived in. Although she was not homeless in her youth, her childhood experience of growing up in in poverty are part of what lead her to the line of work she is in now – helping those who are homeless.

Renee provided a slide show that illustrated the local situation. In Washington County, 60,000 people are living at or below the federal poverty level. Over 26,000 people are working full-time and making less than $25,000/year. One in 38 students have experienced homelessness in 2016-17. As many as 21,559 children are living in poverty, a 70% increase from 2000-2016. Housing is simply unaffordable to many – the average cost of a home in the county is now over $415,000. The average fair market rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $1134/month. To afford a two-bedroom apartment which costs, on average, $1325/month, a household must earn at least $49,680 a year. One out of every 44 renters pay more than 50% of their income on rent. Renee said that the poverty trend is upward, even with low unemployment. She emphasized that low incomes have a long-term impact on children, contributing to poor educational outcomes and lost opportunities in the future.

Renee explained that the Good Neighbor Center was started in 1999, and is dedicated to providing safe emergency housing and supportive, empowering services to families. She said that the center can accommodate up to 9 families, or about 45 people, at a time, with a maximum stay of about 6 weeks. The shelter serves 70 – 100 families a year. While guests are staying there, they are provided support for everything they need – education for the children, training for the adults, and access to resources available in the community. Renee said that sometimes the GNC staff is able to help families get into some type of transitional housing, such as the dozen apartments that are available for very low income families through a Washington County housing program.

According to Renee, the GNC is focused on three priorities: 1). Affordable housing, and the economic security that comes with a safe, stable and affordable home; 2). Workforce training, which can help low income persons acquire new skills in high-demand sectors that pay higher wages and offer good benefits; and 3). Early learning, to help economically disadvantaged children overcome barriers and achieve their full potential. Renee stressed that early learning was particularly vital. She said that research has shown that for every dollar invested in quality preschool, between $8 and $13 comes back by way of increased earnings, productivity, reductions in crime and health-related costs. She spoke about several other ways that affordable housing supports learning, boosts the local economy, and improves the health of the residents.

Renee ended her talk by stating that the GNC is volunteer driven, and totally funded by donations, foundations and grants. Volunteers serve meals, provide overnight hosting, and help with education of the children. If you would like to volunteer your time, donate goods or services, become an advocate, or make a financial contribution, please contact the GNC at (503) 443-6084, or go to their website – https://goodneighborcenter.org/.