LYNNWOOD—Homage Senior Services is a 50-year-old non-profit organization that provides critical services, including mental health support, food and nutrition services, care coordination, transportation, and minor home repair, to low-income older adults and people with disabilities in Snohomish County.
During the recent Lynnwood City Center Station Celebration at the end of August, Homage’s Sr. Director of Government Funded Programs and Operations, Juli Rose, received an “Award of Excellence” from Snohomish County Transportation Coalition (Snotrac) for “outstanding leadership in partnerships and financial + program administration to maintain and expand transportation services throughout the county.”
In addition, local community advocate Alan Gossett received an award for citizen advocacy for his efforts in helping to secure funding for Homage’s Transportation Assistance Program (TAP) from the Washington State Dept of Transportation (WSDOT).
For $1.75 per ride, TAP provides curb-side pick-up and delivers older adults and people living with disabilities to services, including healthcare, congregate meal sites, shopping, reliable transport to maintain employment, and more. In case of any additional connections, TAP also has access to various transportation networks such as DART, Everett Paratransit, or ACCESS.
Gossett’s husband, Jon Howe, has a slow-progressing variant of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) called PLS (Primary Lateral Sclerosis), which makes him non-ambulatory.
The couple reside in rural northwest Snohomish County in an area southwest of Lake Goodwin where there are no public disability-accessible transportation options for disabled residents.
Howe had been confined to his home due to the lack of available para-transport options in his community.
Gossett took his plea for the need for disability-accessible transportation in his area to WSDOT, who answered his call and allocated $400,000 in additional funding for Homage’s TAP, specifically to increase and expand its service in the Lake Goodwin area of North Snohomish County, where Gossett and Howe reside.
The generous addition of this funding from WSDOT to cover rural northwest Snohomish County now means that the existing TAP funds that were shared from an overall pot to cover all areas across Snohomish County can be reallocated from the rural northwest area and dispersed to other places throughout Snohomish County where riders are also facing ride cuts or are on waiting lists, said Juli Rose.
It should also be noted that generous citizens also heard the need for additional funding and donated more than $18,000 to help families like Jon and Alan, added Rose.
Additional funding will benefit Snohomish County riders in the following ways:
- Homage can provide an additional 8,736 rides between now and June 30, 2025.
- Homage rides are available six days a week, including Saturdays (as opposed to just weekdays), thanks to the creation of a new pilot program.
- Homage is seeking riders! Due to this generous funding, folks who may have been unable to hitch a ride in the past can now climb aboard.
FOR INTERESTED TAP RIDERS
Snohomish County residents interested in accessing TAP can reach out to Homage. To qualify, all new riders must complete a quick over-the-phone application by calling 425-423-8517. Homage staff is available Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. to assist.
Author: Mario Lotmore
