Okaloosa County BOCC — April 21, 2015 — Certification for Emergency Shelter

From: Sarah Yelverton To: Rick Owen Subject: Certification for Emergency Shelter Date: Friday, April 10, 2015 8:59:06 AM Hello, Thank you so much for your assistance with getting the certification for Opportunity Inc. I just met with the grant writer and a Board member from the Community Solutions of the Emerald Coast Inc., and they also are writing for the Emergency Solutions Grant for the shelter facility that is being renovated at the old water treatment plant. They too will need this certification by April 24th and they thought as the Executive Director for Okaloosa Walton Continuum of Care I would take care of getting this certification taken care of. Which I don’t mind doing one bit we really need that place to begin serving Veterans as soon as possible. What can I do at this point to get them certified as an emergency shelter for Okaloosa County. They are not serving clients at this time but do anticipate serving clients by the end of June. This ESG funding will allow them to operate once the buildings are ready for clients. They are writing the budget for staff, insurance, utilities, and bus passes for the clients. They are planning on phase one being a 10 bed facility for Veterans and also doing cold night shelter for the homeless in the winter. I have verified they will have the match requirements and have agreed to abide by our Continuum’s written standards for providing shelter services. I really appreciate any assistance on this. I did not know when Maggie gave you her certification that Community Solutions was applying for their facility. Let me know what I can and I do apologize . Sarah Yelverton Executive Director Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum of Care/Opportunity Inc. 850-409-3070