By Jyl DeHaven
Vice Chair
Los Alamos County Health Council

If you are living life in Los Alamos, you may have often thought, “I wish we had… more restaurants, more things to do after 8 p.m., less traffic going up/down the hill, more affordable housing choices, better medical access…”

However, most days we are grateful for the sense of peace, safety, beauty, moderate weather, and walkability. For many of us, this is a great place to raise a family and grow old. We seldom see the harsh realities present in other towns in this nation – the invisible community members who sometimes need a hand-up. Those citizens are here, who might need various types of support.

As a proud member of the Los Alamos County Health Council, I asked to write this article because after living up here for a little less than two years, I believe most of us could benefit from learning about the Social Services Division and the critically important roles it plays for our community.

The Social Services staff, which is a division of the County Community Services Department, is the team that helps identify and support these folks. They oversee a spectrum of programs and services centered around supporting the Los Alamos community’s health and well-being.

Through case coordination and outreach, the staff can help persons who may be experiencing hardships navigate the often-complex procedures to receive assistance with the following services:

• Federal and state benefit programs: Starting or renewing applications for Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, and other programs;
• Utilities: Assistance with applications for LIHEAP and Los Alamos Utilities Assistance Program;
• Housing: Assistance with Section 8 / Housing vouchers; and assistance with eviction processes;
• Job-seeking: Assistance with Workforce Solutions and occasionally help with local businesses’ job applications as available; and
• Physical and Behavioral Health: Assistance with referrals to providers.

The Social Services Division also manages contracts with partnering agencies throughout the region that provide a range of programming and services for individuals, youth, families, and seniors throughout the community.

Did you know:

• In the past two years, they have assisted more than 40 different individuals experiencing homelessness with a variety of emergency and short-term needs, as well as working on the individuals’ longer-term goals;
• They have addressed emergency needs through providing gift-cards for groceries, meals and basic needs; provided food/toiletry bags when LA Cares and/or the Santa Fe Food Depot distributions were not available; and have distributed Narcan as needed; 
• They have further addressed short-term needs by assisting with Section 8 housing vouchers and rental applications; assisting with SNAP applications and WIC referrals when appropriate; assisting with utility bill payments and with Medicaid applications;
• They have addressed longer-term needs by assisting with job applications; sourcing cell phones and minutes; and helping connect people to other resources as needed, such as legal aid/public defenders; Self Help, LA Cares; First Born, JJAB, and more;
• They have helped four active clients secure stable housing in Los Alamos County in the past year;
• They have trained over 250 people in opioid overdose prevention, with more than 1,000 boxes of naloxone (brand name: Narcan) distributed in the past two years; and
• Along with fellow County Health Council volunteers, they have participated at dozens of events each year to interact and help educate the community, including Earth Day at PEEC, Science Fest, Farmers markets, and evenings at both libraries.

Although Social Services certainly reaches many, we know there is so much more that is needed to help. As a member of this community, the County Health Council wants you to know that you have a strong Social Services team that is here for all our citizens. Keep their information handy: they are located at 1183 Diamond Drive Suite #E, Los Alamos, 87544. To make an appointment, call 505.662.8068. Reach out if you or someone you know needs assistance.

If you are interested in learning more about the work of the County Health Council, our next meeting is Thursday, Aug. 7, 12-1:30 p.m. The meeting is held in a hybrid format and is open to the public. You can join us in person at 1000 Central Ave., Room 110 or via Zoom – the link to the agenda for the meeting (with the Zoom link) available at https://losalamos.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx, along with past meeting minutes and video.

Jyl DeHaven is a Commercial Real Estate Broker with Colliers International.