On April 8th, United Way of King County will be hosting its Community Resource Exchange at Qwest Field Plaza. This one day event provides direct service to King County’s homeless and their families. Previously, over 1,000 guests have received hot meals and had immediate access to housing referrals, health services, legal assistance, employment counseling, and public benefits.

With the local economy continuing to slide, these services are becoming more vital as more people require assistance. For example, currently there are 3-4 month wait lists at women’s transitional housing throughout the Seattle region, and these lists are 200-300 long, each person hoping for a chance at the one or two rooms slated to be vacant.

Community involvement for this event is highly encouraged. There are two ways people can contribute to the event: by organizing a supply drive and/or volunteering at the event.

People can host supply drives at their schools, churches, service organizations or community groups. United Way’s goal is to create 1,500 care packages with the following items: new socks and underwear, toiletries, blankets & backpacks.

Volunteers at the event work directly with the guests – checking them in and out, assisting them in locating services, translating, and making sure they have a positive experience. It’s a great experience for the volunteers and a big help for those experiencing homelessness in King County.

United Way’s website is here and contains links for people to sign up. If you have any questions, contact cre@uwkc.org.