PORT ANGELES — Mercy Luquetta-Cole is the new chairwoman of Clallam County Project Homeless Connect.
The project provides an annual service fair for local people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
Luquetta-Cole was one of a few hundred volunteers working at events Jan. 28, 2010, and March 17 of this year.
Those events were co-chaired by Jill Dole of the county Health and Human Services Department and Serenity House of Clallam County Deputy Director Cindy Burdine.
County budget constraints opened an opportunity for a volunteer from the community to take the lead for project planning, with Dole and Burdine stepping back to lower-demand roles.
“We are thrilled to have Mercy take this on,” Dole said.
Involved
“One of the goals I set myself when I moved to this area was to get involved in the community and contribute,” said Luquetta-Cole, who was born in Colombia and lived in Spokane before moving to Port Angeles three years ago.
Her husband, Milt Cole, is a native of Seattle.
“As a foreign person, I appreciate every aspect of living in the United States,” Luquetta-Cole said.
“It doesn’t make sense that someone is homeless in this country.”
She said she wants to make Homeless Connect more effective, organized and sustainable.
Specific goals
Specific goals include involving more service providers, such as medical and legal professionals and education-driven skills-training institutions, and building a working link with the West End.
Monthly Project Homeless Connect planning meetings will lead up to the next event March 30.
For more information, email Luquetta-Cole at merluco@aol.com.