Project Homeless Connect Comes to Watsonville

Project Homeless Connect hosted its first ever event in Watsonville this Wednesday with 43 agency providers offering a variety of medical, dental, legal, housing and DMV services for people experiencing homelessness in South County. In her welcoming remarks, Mayor Karina Cervantez highlighted the importance of "connecting" with our friends and neighbors in reduced circumstances.

In addition to mental and behavioral health services, flu shots were provided by Walgreens at no cost. The Homeless Persons Health Project offering physical health screenings and a full table of behavioral health professionals offered counseling services. A gourmet spaghetti dinner was provided by Santa Cruz Bible Church and Second Harvest provided oral and personal hygiene items. New to PHC at this event was assistance with immigration law questions which was provided by Doug Keegan and his staff from the Santa Cruz County Immigration Project. Also at the Legal Table were the Santa Cruz County Superior Court for referrals and California Rural Legal Assistance for advice of landlord/tenant issues.

Although the event was less well attended than the May event in Santa Cruz, the organizers believe that the presence in Watsonville of a program to address the needs of people experiencing homelessness in that community will help change the conversation about how we treat homeless residents of the South County.

There are those who say that two days a year of the kind of support provided by Project Homeless Connect is simply inadequate to the need and I would not disagree with that feeling. But I do believe that PHC, however often it happens, provides an invaluable opportunity for the community at large to meet and talk with a people who are by turns both invisible and ignored. At least for these two days their needs, both spiritual and physical, are spoken to and recognized.