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Youth Connection founder urges Mason County to explain contract review after $11.2 million investment
Summary
Susan Kerchoff, founder of the Youth Connection, told commissioners July 21 that the nonprofit has a $11.2 million investment in Mason County to add 12 transitional housing units and a youth-focused center and said she is concerned that a long monitoring process and ending the county contract undermine the county's five-year homelessness plan.
Susan Kerchoff, executive director and founder of the Youth Connection, told the Mason County commissioners on July 21 that the nonprofit is moving forward with an $11,200,000 investment in the county that will add 12 transitional housing units and a youth-focused community center.
"We are really at the the final tail end of connecting all the dots," Kerchoff said during public comment. She said the funding is "federal, state, and local dollars being invested right here in our our lovely community" and that the project is explicitly for young people in Mason County.
Kerchoff described outcomes her program tracks, saying more than 70 percent of the young people they serve come from foster care or other systems of care. She also said county monitoring of the Youth Connection took approximately 2.5 years and questioned whether earlier oversight might have identified problems sooner.
"I continue to struggle, though, how ending Youth Connection's contract serves the best interest of Mason County, the young people, and how it aligns with Mason County's 5 year homeless plan," Kerchoff said. She asked the commissioners to consider accountability for both service providers and the county when evaluating the program's future relationship with the county.
Kerchoff told the board the Youth Connection will continue operations regardless of the outcome of the county contract and described the program's focus on preventing chronic youth homelessness, providing stability and helping people exit to stable housing.
The commissioners did not make a response during the public comment period recorded in the transcript; the meeting proceeded to routine agenda approvals.
