PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, OCTOBER 1, 2021
$3.7 million award to aid local youth homelessness
By JOEY CAPPELLETTI
Of the Keizertimes
Increased services and resources for
youth experiencing homelessness are
coming to the Marion-Polk area after
a $3.7 million grant was awarded to
the Mid-Willamette Valley Homeless
Alliance earlier this month.
While the award was first announced
on Sept. 15, Mayor Cathy Clark, who is
also the Alliance Board Chair, shared
the good news during the Sept. 20
Keizer City Council meeting.
“This is going to be a fantastic oppor-
tunity for programs here to take it up to
another level of service and effectively
meet the needs of our youth and young
adults,” said Clark. “Congratulations to
the Homeless Alliance. This is an effort
that was because we are all working
together we were able to be one of the
two in Oregon that were awarded this
demonstration grant.”
The award came from the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban
Development’s Youth Homelessness
Demonstration
Program,
which
awarded $142 million nationally to end
and prevent youth homelessness. Lane
County was awarded $3.3 million to
fight youth homelessness as well.
“Seventy percent of our region’s
homeless adults reported being home-
less as a youth. Yet we have very lim-
ited resources for youth. There are no
youth shelters in Polk and rural Marion
counties, or host homes where families
can shelter youth in their homes,” said
Clark.
According to Oregon Department
of Education data from the 2019-2020
school year, nearly 2,000 students
attending publicly funded schools in
the Marion-Polk area were identified
as homeless. More than half of those
students came from the Salem-Keizer
School District.
Keizer City Councilor Laura Reid,
who is a McNary teacher who also sits
in on the Homeless Alliance meetings,
said the last two years have been espe-
cially difficult for students faced with
homelessness.
“It’s very difficult for homeless
kids because if they don’t have regu-
lar access to the internet and can’t see
online videos and homework, it’s very
tough,” said Reid. “Also, when you’re
focusing on basic survival needs such
as food and shelter it makes it hard to
think about much else.”
While Reid said more local
resources are needed for youth expe-
riencing homelessness, there is also a
need to connect them with the avail-
able resources.
“Homeless teens have very different
needs than adults. They need their own
kind of shelters and facilities, which we
are starting to build that up but defi-
nitely need more,” said Reid.
Currently, according to Mid-Valley
Resources, the only homeless service
in Keizer is the Simonka House, which
serves as an emergency shelter during
extreme weather situations.
You can learn more about the Mid-
Willamette Valley Homeless Alliance’s
mission at mwvhomelessalliance.org.
Keizer Police responds to rollover crash
On September 21st at approximately
5 p.m. the Keizer Police Department
responded to a motor vehicle crash in
the 200 block of Cummings Lane N.
Officers arrived and conducted an
investigation, which led to the arrest of
20-year-old Luke Peca.
It was determined that Mr. Peca was
driving east on Cummings Ln. N. when
he lost control, struck and sheared
off a power pole and then rolled his
vehicle into a parked car. A portion of
Cummings Ln was closed and power to
the area was out for approximately two-
and-a-half hours.
Mr. Peca was arrested and charged
with:
• One count of reckless driving =
$5,000
• One count of driving under the
influence of intoxicants = $5,000
• Three counts of reckless endanger-
ing = $15,000
• Three counts of criminal mischief
in the first degree = $30,000
• One count of assault in the fourth
degree = $5,000
• One count of driving while sus-
pended = $440
• One count of driving uninsured =
$265
Investigators believe that drugs,
alcohol and speed were contributing
factors to this incident.
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