When Neighbors Carry Pallets for Tents, Cowlitz County Faces a Test of Values

By Charles D. Hendrickson

On October 1, Hope Village in Longview will close its doors. For many, it will be just another date on the calendar. For Kenny, a college student in recovery, it means hauling a wooden pallet across a muddy field to keep his tent dry through the October rains.

That image should stop us in our tracks. Kenny is not a statistic. He is a young man fighting to stay in school, stay clean, and stay connected to his support groups. His pallet is not just scrap wood and canvas. It is the fragile foundation of his recovery.

Hope Village was more than tents and tiny homes. It was accountability and structure. It required residency proof, participation in services, and responsibility to the community. Over two and a half years, it helped more than 110 of our neighbors stabilize their lives and move toward permanent housing. It didn’t fail people... it served them. What failed was leadership and long-term planning.

The consequence now falls on people like Kenny. Without stable housing, his ability to attend classes, access recovery meetings, and care for his dog is jeopardized. Without community support, he risks setbacks that could undo years of progress.

Yet we are not without options. A bridge plan can prevent collapse:

• Severe Weather Shelter at Hope Village (October–February): Repurposing the existing site as a winter shelter ensures people are not pushed onto sidewalks and into jails during freezing months.

• Housing and Resource Navigation: Peer Support Specialists and Community Health Workers can walk with each displaced resident, helping them locate housing, secure medical and behavioral health services, and stay connected to recovery.

• Care Coordination: Cross-sector collaboration—city, county, nonprofits, and faith groups—ensures the most vulnerable aren’t abandoned but are guided toward stability.

This isn’t charity. It’s accountability and return on investment. Every dollar spent on recovery saves four to seven in reduced jail bookings, ER visits, and crisis calls. Hope Village’s $1.5 million annual budget saved taxpayers millions by preventing those downstream costs. When we invest in recovery, we invest in safety, workforce readiness, and stable families.

Cowlitz County has always been defined by neighbors helping neighbors. From floods to mill closures, we leaned on each other. That tradition doesn’t become less important when the neighbor in need is battling addiction or loss. It becomes more important.

The ARC Framework: Accountability, Recovery, and Community gives us a roadmap. Accountability means transparent outcomes for every public dollar. Recovery means proven pathways to stability. Community means we face challenges together rather than pushing people into tents, courtrooms, or jail cells.

The question before us is simple. Will we allow people like Kenny to face October storms with only a pallet under his tent—or will we live out our values with a bridge plan that keeps hope alive?

Hope Village may be closing, but hope itself doesn’t have to. If we align as a community—leaders, faith organizations, businesses, and families—we can ensure that every Kenny keeps his recovery intact, his education on track, and his future within reach.

The rains are coming. Whether Kenny weathers them in safety or in crisis will depend not only on his determination but on the choices we make as a county.

Let’s choose accountability. Let’s choose recovery. Let’s choose community.