Rotary Club of Carson City, district grant provides $12K for beds to furnish FISH student housing
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Wed, 11/08/2023 - 2:23pm
Members of the Rotary Club of Carson City got to work over the weekend assembling beds for the FISH Housing Project on North Carson Street. The apartments will provide housing for low-income students enrolled in degree and trade programs at Western Nevada College. The program is designed to help under employed individuals, with a focus on single parents, gain the skills needed to obtain higher paying jobs and careers.
The Rotary Club of Carson City along with a grant from the Rotary District 5190 provided $12,000 to purchase the beds and club members volunteered their time to assemble them. “The club supports this project because it hits so many facets of our community,” said Club President Garrett Lepire. “The student housing center is designed to help a parent keep the cost of housing way down, which will leave more money for child care, while attending vocational training or a degree program.”
The FISH project will also provide the social services and tutoring support to make returning to school financially feasible. The 36-apartment project is expected to open in December. FISH Executive Director Jim Peckham says the housing provides the short term help these students need while in school. “As they transition to new careers with medical and training benefits, FISH will help them transition to long-term market rate housing,” he said. “Our goal is not to provide more affordable housing, but rather help reduce the need for affordable housing.”
Lepire adds that projects aligns perfectly with Rotary’s values. “‘Benefiting all involved’” is one of the four core values of Rotary, this project truly embodies that. The students, their families, the schools, FISH, the community, and every other stakeholder benefit from having a better trained workforce that has opportunities to move up the ladder through programs like these.”
To learn more about the Rotary Club of Carson City and the club’s community projects visit www.carsonrotary.org.
