Dr. Bud Pierce: Visit to homeless program that has results

By Dr. Bud Peirce for Governor campaign

I recently visited Rogue Retreat, a homeless program which currently provides temporary housing to more than 500 people each night.

Beyond housing, Rogue Retreat provides a continuum of care starting in a campground and ending at one of the state’s Turnkey Projects. They are currently working with Roseburg, Redmond and the Klamath Tribes to help them create their own homeless programs.

With a success rate of nearly 50%, the secret sauce of this special program is their focus on wraparound supportive services, which help its participants get a hand-up out of homelessness.

A key to their success is Rogue Retreat’s emphasis on getting homeless people off the street and living in facilities that provide shelter and food, as well as resources that reduce drug use and increase hireability of individuals. Chad McComas, the CEO of Rogue Retreat, is committed to finding real solutions that reduce homelessness for good, not just temporarily.

I’ll tell you what isn’t the solution to homelessness — allowing people to continue living on the streets, fighting amongst each other for basic necessities, and legalizing the life-ruining drugs that led many of the people in this predicament to homelessness in the first place.

We must do better. That begins with supporting organizations like Rogue Retreat and allowing them to educate local cities and tribal communities on the best solutions for homelessness.

Moving forward, I will continue to fund these solutions-based initiatives and explore new ways of getting people back to a life of dignity.

Dr. Bud Peirce for Governor