Washington County COVID-19 Community Engagement Newsletter |
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The Delta variant is here! |
The Delta variant is much more contagious than the original COVID-19 variant and it's spreading rapidly! The best way to protect yourself, your family, and your community is to GET VACCINATED! Almost all of the people who are dying or going to the hospital with COVID-19 are NOT vaccinated. If you are fully vaccinated, there is still a small chance you could be infected, but your symptoms will likely be mild. |
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Lottery & scholarship winners: "Get Vaccinated!" |
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Maria Corona Lopez, lottery winner: “I advise everyone to get vaccinated for their health, for their families and for others.”
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Kamal El-Jadah, lottery Winner: “I just thought that it was the right thing to do, to combat the coronavirus and keep my family safer.”
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Jennifer Martinez Chavez, scholarship winner: "Getting sick made me want to get the vaccine because I didn’t want to get COVID again. I wanted to protect my family and prevent the spread of the virus,” said Martinez.
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Cynthia Navarro, lottery Winner: “I teach middle school and was happy to get the vaccine, it definitely gave me a lot more peace of mind when we went back into hybrid learning.”
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Scott Butcher, lottery winner: "Initially I didn’t know anyone who had gotten sick, but then a friend’s kid got sick, people started getting sick that I actually knew and then I decided to get the vaccination. |
Josie Erjavec, scholarship winner: “I wanted to get it as soon as possible because I could be considered high risk. I have a condition similar to asthma, but COVID could make it much worse.”
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Congratulations to our winners!
Washington County awarded 10 $10,000 lottery prizes to adults and five $20,000 college scholarships to students (12-17) who were vaccinated by June 27.
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Help us close the vaccination equity gap! |
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Vaccinating communities of color
In mid August, only 53.3% of adults who identify as Black and 55.2% of adults who identify as Hispanic/Latinx in Washington County have received a COVID-19 vaccination. Please help us spread the word about the importance of vaccination. It is SAFE and EFFECTIVE and can prevent you from dying or being hospitalized with COVID-19. To see updated race/ethnicity data go to the OHA website and sort by Washington County. |
Bringing the vaccine to you
In collaboration with multiple community partners, our mobile vaccine team is travelling the county, going to the Aloha Farmers Market, the Cornelius Farmers Market, M & M Marketplace, and other gathering places. Get your vaccination and a $50 gift card to the market. Some clinics are cancelled due to excessive heat for the week of August 11, but will resume the following week. You can also find plenty of appointments at pharmacies, find links on our vaccine webpage. |
Watch our video on community clinics
Thank you to our more than two dozen community partners who worked with us to co-create 40 community vaccination clinics, and deliver more than 15,000 vaccinations. Watch our video to see how we partnered on locations, scheduling appointments, walk-up opportunities and community resources. |
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Emergency Rental Assistance |
Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program (OERAP). For those who live in Oregon and have felt uncertain about their housing due to COVID-19, this program can help them with rent and utility payments. Individuals can request rental assistance starting from last March (March 13, 2020) and up to 3 months of future rent at a time, until the program funds run out. Rent and utilities can include expenses like: electric, gas, power, heat, water, sewer, bulk fuel, eviction costs, fees charged by a landlord, and hotel costs if the hotel is the main residence. Click for an application in Spanish or in English. To learn more about the program, click on www.oregonrentalassistance.org.
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Deadline for Nonpayment of Rent Extended
Oregon lawmakers extended the deadline for rent payments and related costs that have accumulated during the pandemic in Senate Bill 282. Costs like late charges, utility or service charges or any other charge or fee as described in the rental agreement. Tenants have until February 28, 2022 to repay their rent balances accrued between April 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021. Learn how a tenant can receive eviction protection here.
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For clients who are houseless and looking for temporary shelter in their community, this site lists all available shelters in the area: www.shelterlistings.org
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Free TriMet Bus or MAX Passes to Vaccinations |
Free day passes are available for people who would like to ride TriMet buses or trains or the Portland Streetcar to get to vaccination site. People can receive two free day passes to get both a first and second vaccine dose. Community organizations can request and distribute them by filling out this request form online. CBOs can request to pick-up or drop-off passes in person or via mail. You can also email TriMet at ticketsoha@trimet.org or call 503-962-2150 with any questions.
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Internet Service Discount |
Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB). The Federal Communications Commission has launched a temporary program to help families and households struggling to afford internet services during the pandemic. The Emergency Broadband Benefit fund provides a discount of up to $50 each month toward broadband service for households that qualify and up to $75 per month for households located on qualifying Tribal lands. Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers. For details, please visit: http://www.getemergencybroadband.org/
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Help with Past-Due Balances at NW Natural Gas |
Oregon Arrearage Management Program (AMP): Oregon NW Natural Gas customers in need may be able to receive assistance through several grant options available to help with a past-due balance. This new program provides instant grants of up to $300 and more options for larger balances. A grant can be used to help offset the cost of a payment plan or to pay off a past-due account balance. Click here https://www.nwnatural.com/account/payment-assistance or call Customer Service at
800-422-4012.
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Portland General Electric encourages all customers to call and ask for information on payment plans, fee waivers, and other assistance. The phone numbers are 503-228-6322 (for Portland), 503-399-7717 (for Salem), or call toll-free at 800-542-8818. |
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Access to Healthcare Services
Project Access NOW has a mission to improve the health of our community by creating access to care and services for those most in need. They support comprehensive solutions adapted to meet the changing needs of our community. As they continue their core work of connecting low-income uninsured people to donated healthcare services, their focus has expanded to include innovative initiatives and partnerships that go beyond simple healthcare and address the social determinants of health. For more information click https://www.projectaccessnow.org/programs.
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Mental Health and Addiction Services in Washington County |
Services may be accessed by calling the Washington County Member Services Line at
503-291-1155.
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Domestic Violence Resource Center 24hr Crisis Line |
Click here https://www.dvrc-or.org/ or call the 24hr Crisis Line at: 503-469-8620. If the survivor experiencing domestic violence has a minor child in their care, they may be able to apply for the Temporary Assistance for Domestic Violence Survivors grant through ODHS (Oregon Department of Human Services), which may be able to help them flee, if eligible. To apply for this assistance, the survivor needs to contact their local ODHS Self Sufficiency office and request Domestic Violence services. Click here for information: https://www.oregon.gov/dhs/abuse/domestic/pages/tadvs.aspx or call: Tigard – 503-670-9711 – 10777 SW Cascade Ave, Tigard, OR 97223
Beaverton – 503-646-9952 – 15425 NW Greenbrier Pkwy, Beaverton, OR 97006
Hillsboro – 503-693-4555 – 5300 NE Elam Young Pkwy, Hillsboro, OR 97124
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This monthly newsletter is designed for community-based organizations to share COVID-19 related information and resources specific to Washington County. Please email us if you have:
- Information or resources you would like to include in this newsletter
- Question about resources needed in the community not included in this newsletter
- Opportunities or ideas you’d like to collaborate with another CBO on (e.g. Media campaign or events)
- Successful outreach events or stories you would like to share with other CBOs
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