One of the more under-reported obstacles for people experiencing homelessness is the sheer number of social service agencies they must visit not just to get their lives “back on track”, but simply to guarantee day to day survival. The labyrinthine route to housing or employment or affordable healthcare often involves multiple trips to different locations spread throughout the city. This constant trekking from agency to agency is especially difficult when you consider a homeless individual’s limited transportation options, especially if they are aged or disabled.

That’s why United Way’s Community Resource Exchange, or CRE, is one of the most powerful direct service events we organize here in King County. I am incredibly excited that our fifth CRE is less than a month away. This year’s event will be taking place Friday,  September 24th from 9AM to 2PM at QWEST Field

What is the CRE?

Not just another nonprofit acronym. The CRE is a mega-event where people who are experiencing homelessness can come to receive a wide variety of services all in one place and all in one day.  Because everything is gathered under one roof, what would normally take days is done in a few hours. Last year, we  had over 1,100 homeless families and individuals from all over King County (not just the downtown core) come to the event.

Services We Have Offered

We’ve always had a little bit of everything available at the CRE. Here are some examples of the services we have had in the past:

• On-site benefits applications (things like food stamps, low-cost healthcare, etc.) by DSHS
• Community Voicemail Accounts from Solid Ground
• Long-Distance Phone Calls from AT&T
• Employment Searches and Counseling by YWCA WorkSource
• Haircuts by Northwest Hair Academy
• Free dental care by Medical Teams International and the UW Oral Health Collaborative
• Mini-Manicures
• Footwashing
• A hot meal provided by Farestart
• A“store”  filled with everything from socks to sleeping bags to hygiene kits. Guests have been able to stop by and grab what they need.

This year, we are also proud to introduce some new features at CRE, including a “Tell Your Story” corner utilizing NPR’s StoryCorps and a fully staffed restaurant experience (with hosts and waiters).

Obviously, this is only a small sample of what has been at the CRE. We work with over 70 organizations for this huge event. The CRE always has a great mix of vital services as well as quality-of-life services. We are constantly trying to improve and increase capacity for what we can offer.

Engaging Volunteerism

With an event that has 70+ agencies and 1,000+ guests, you could imagine we need an army of people to make it all run smoothly. And we do have an army — an army of volunteers! We usually have 200-350 volunteers that help in different capacities.

A handful of volunteers organize donation drives. They take a lead at their workplaces, at their places of worship, or in their community groups and collect supplies for our care packages and “store”. The work they do is vital; without them, there wouldn’t be any care packages or a “store”.

Another group of volunteers come out the day before the event to help set up. The biggest job that is done that day is sorting through the donations and setting up the store. It’s a fun, relaxed day with pizza and mingling (and sorting!).

The biggest bulk of our volunteers come on the actual day of the event. Volunteers greet the guests, answer questions, assist agencies, run the store, and handle the outtake process. Our volunteers really make sure the whole CRE runs smoothly!

The CRE volunteer experience is unique because we really encourage the volunteers to sit and talk with the guests. They can play board games, eat lunch together, or just chat. People going through homelessness all have diverse backgrounds and unique stories to tell. Our volunteers get to take all of that in first-hand. For many, it’s an eye-opening experience.

September 24th, 2010

On Friday, September 24, we are hosting our fourth Community Resource Exchange. We really hope to make it an even better one than our last. If you are a service provider and want to get involved with the CRE, please email cre@uwkc.org as soon as possible!