Recommendations Our initial observation is that community members are indicating needs for services that, for the most part, are currently being provided in their communities. Though these services may not be housed physically in the same geographic location as the community member, they certainly are actively being provided by a community organization from the local level or by a county or state agency. The Community Needs Assessment responses here indicate community members are not aware that services exist for their ‘needs’ while at the same time community partners report they are providing services for those ‘needs.’ Granted, there are perceptions and most of the time an eligibility criteria must be met – I don’t have a car so my geographic community is limited to where I can walk or where and when public transportation can provide for me. While I feel I am low-income, the funder thinks my income is above average. Our leading recommendation to the CAPECO Board of Directors and community partners is to continue current services and endeavors in assisting low-income individuals and households in Oregon’s Gilliam, Hood River, Morrow, Sherman, Umatilla, Wasco, and Wheeler counties to become independent, healthy, and safe. In addition, we recommend the following: • Childcare - Pursue community connections to establish or improve childcare that are considered safe and affordable. If CAPECO takes on this domain a deeper understanding of individual communities and their current Childcare resources would need to be studied. In many cases a boost to education and/or certification for current established businesses may be all that is warranted. In other cases, it may be a matter of finding a community member or partner to spearhead the development and maintenance of a new service. • Rent Assistance – Many variables factor into how Rent Assistance is a major need within CAPECO’s service area. At this point in time COVID could be listed at the top of the list, as a reason for why people are reporting Rent Assistance is a need, with the understanding that its trickle-down effect exponentially affects not just the tenant, but the landlords, and the community as a whole. Decreased health, closing of schools and businesses, loss of employment, increased rent, increased prices on goods and services, and the cycle of poverty all add to this great need for Rent Assistance. Even when individuals have a fundamental understanding of finances and a will to manage it there remains a limit to how far a dollar will go. Prioritizing necessary expenses over others inevitably exploits some needs, or most. Fixing a Rent Assistance issue includes, but is not limited to, building new energy efficient affordable housing, increasing available number of jobs with actual livable wages for a one-wage earner household, supports for safe and affordable childcare, geographically accessible health services for medical, dental, vision, and transportation that is available, reliable, consistent, and cost effective. Individuals needs a strong personal desire and an inexhaustible determination to want to move from a situation of poverty to another of adequacy before they will make necessary changes to see any intended outcomes. Without providing comprehensive, or wrap-around services individuals and households most often remain in a state of survival were grasping for that strong personal desire to improve one’s own situation is not even on their radar. Parenting, nutrition, and budgeting (including prioritizing needs over wants) are three of the areas where basic education can play a major role in positioning people to succeed in their move from surviving to thriving. • Improve public transportation – From a cursory analysis it would be acceptable if communities could provide reliable, timely-accessible, and consistent options for members. Continuing to purchase and use large transit vehicles that are never full and require higher level of maintenance qualifications may be a place to begin to look in considering alternatives. Since the Community Needs Assessment survey CAPECO | Community Needs Assessment Report | 2021 19
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