Posted
Washington County works with cities daily to triage needs for people experiencing homelessness. The coordination behind the scenes may start with someone like Megan Cohen, the homeless liaison serving SE Washington County.
Three county-funded housing liaisons help navigate homeless response for our city partners in Beaverton, Hillsboro, and SE Washington County, acting as connectors between libraries, law enforcement, outreach workers, housing services, and other city departments.
Connections across multiple government jurisdictions are necessary to help individuals find their way to housing stability. Expanding points of intervention can help more people access the services they need to thrive.
Megan shares, “I have seen how valuable it is for our city partners to feel empowered to help individuals access the services they need as quickly as possible.”
Megan has many stories of bringing together partners in her role supporting Tigard, Tualatin, and Sherwood, and leveraging resources and her knowledge of the system to meet the needs of community members in crisis.
One story she shared included spending weeks triaging with a Community Services Officer citing a family for car camping. With Megan’s intervention, the Community Services Officer was able to compassionately connect the family to available resources, and the family was connected to shelter before moving into permanent housing last spring.
Another story she shared involved working with Tualatin Police to support a 65-year-old woman with limited mobility who had been staying at a motel but was being evicted. Through Megan’s coordination, the Tualatin Police connected this woman to an emergency bed specifically set aside for law enforcement at the Just Compassion Resource Center, a shelter located in Tigard. From there, the woman was able to meet with shelter and outreach workers, who conducted a housing assessment and connected her with other services.
These experiences also spotlight Megan’s ability to translate available services to first responders in the field, building a stronger foundation for frontline staff working with people experiencing homelessness. Both stories also highlight vulnerable and marginalized community members, children, and older adults.
Washington County homeless services are structured to prioritize community members with the greatest need such as families, people over the age of 55, and people with disabling conditions. To reach these communities, we rely on connectors, like Megan, who bridge the gap and overcome barriers that are particularly challenging when you are experiencing homelessness.
“This work is heartbreaking and hopeful at different moments. Ending up on the streets is not just inconvenient, it’s life-threatening. The more we collaborate, the better our community is at making sure homelessness is short, temporary, and a one-time event,” Megan explains.
Megan knows firsthand that this is an all-hands-on-deck challenge, including law enforcement, healthcare workers, shelter operators, librarians, counties, and cities. Every success story she recounts includes a laundry list of people who came together to explore creative solutions and a family or individual who put aside distrust in the system and gave housing a chance.