Report highlights income inequality, social isolation

WAGAP is a Community Action Agency that supports low-income individuals, families, and children with programs such as food banks, emergency shelter, housing, energy assistance, care coordination, domestic violence and sexual assault support, civic engagement, and a variety of youth programs.  

Administered every three to four years, the assessment updates demographics and tracks information related to the underlying causes of poverty; 711 people participated, which exceeded the goal to receive at least 600 responses. Some areas that were covered include financial security, housing factors, employment factors, transportation, a sense of belonging, and mental health support.

This tool helps WAGAP’s executive team and board of directors align the agency’s mission and strategic plan with up-to-date information, which more accurately reflects its program recipients’ current living conditions.

Income inequality data is derived from comparing the top 20% of earners divided by the bottom 20% of earners, and this gap has been growing in Klickitat County for a decade. In Skamania County, the gap had been falling from 2015-2019 but then began to rise again with the onset of the pandemic. 

The cost of living was more than $110,000 for a family of four with two working adults, notably higher than the median income in either county. Native American poverty levels are consistent in both counties at 25%, significantly higher than the county rates. Child poverty level in Klickitat County is at 17%, which is ten points higher than in Skamania County.

“Common threads show up in this most recent Community Needs Assessment,” said Jennifer Pauletto, WAGAP’s executive director. “Access to food and affordable housing, health and dental care, internet, and mental health counseling topped the list of needs ranked by participants. Connecting with people also was ranked high when adding together those who need a lot of help or could use some help in that category.”

WAGAP has grown significantly since its inception in 1966, with the depth of programming increasing to meet the needs of its clients. Since the last survey held in 2020, the organization’s ability to give people hope has increased to 79 percent from 71%. The ability to help recipients learn how to access services has also increased to 76% from 70%. 

This timeframe is consistent with the start of Pathways, the one-on-one resource coordination program linking the Community Health Workers with individual clients. Pauletto also said that the positive change was impacted by WAGAP working to decrease barriers to access programs for all services.

“Throughout the survey, it was noted among the recommendations for action to continue to strengthen the network of Community Health Workers,” Pauletto said. “They work with clients to bridge their personal needs with our internal programs and external partner resources to help improve clients’ lives.”

Loneliness was highlighted in the report, with 53% of respondents noting that they feel socially isolated or experience loneliness at least some of the time, and 37 percent said they wanted help connecting with others.

These rural communities struggle with access to mental health providers. While across Washington State the rate of providers to residents is 1 to 200, in Klickitat County it is 1 to 530, and in Skamania County it is 1 to 620. 

One alarming statistic is that up to 26% of tenth and twelfth-grade students, and 31% of sixth-grade students, have seriously considered suicide since 2021. These rates are about five percent higher than the state average. 

Staff refer clients to appropriate partner organizations for mental health services, and coordinate with partners to participate in various events throughout the year, like the Health and Wellness Family Fair. Pauletto said, “We have also been working to increase connections with family activities, Zumba classes, El Grito, and other community events that don't focus on services, but rather are just about connecting folks with people in their communities.”

Board President Debi VanCamp said the board is committed to addressing needs identified in the survey. As part of the evaluation process, the WAGAP board approved a new mission statement created by a staff committee: “Strengthening community through connection, collaboration, and action.”

The organization’s new vision statement reflects the staff and board’s commitment: “A community, free of poverty and oppression, where all people are connected with resources and opportunities to thrive. Basic needs are met with action, hardship is met with compassion, and disconnection is met with collaboration.”  

VanCamp says supplementing programs that serve as the organization’s foundation, like food banks, housing, and energy assistance, with more services connecting people with community-building opportunities, mental health support, and financial and housing stability resources will help the Community Action Agency get closer to that vision. 

“Imagine our communities with better access to mental health programs, continued support for groups that create more childcare opportunities, removing employment barriers for parents, and a better network for Community Health Workers,” VanCamp said. “That is where we are headed.”

A full copy of the 2024 WAGAP Community Needs Assessment can be downloaded at bit.ly/WAGAP2024CNA. For questions, email jennifer@wagap.org. 

The WAGAP main office is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Volunteers can connect at www.wagap.org/volunteer, donations can be made at www.wagap.org/donate, and community members in need can connect with online intake forms in English and Spanish at www.wagap.org/start.

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Una versión en español de esta historia está en línea en www.columbiagorgenews.com/enespanol.