Programs that could help prevent, reduce, and end homelessness will be discussed at “Lunch with the League” on Tuesday.
Mike Dunthorn, program manager for homeless service in the Knoxville Community Development Department, will be the guest speaker at Tuesday’s lunch, which starts at noon in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church.
Dunthorn’s presentation will focus on the issues confronting Knoxville and the efforts being made to address issues of homelessness by providing permanent solutions, a press release said. He will address the value of partnering with many other organizations in providing assistance to the homeless.
As a native Oak Ridger, he will also discuss some of the lessons learned in Knoxville and how they may benefit his hometown. Dunthorn was born and raised in Oak Ridge and is a graduate of Oak Ridge High School and the University of Tennessee.
After a year’s tour of duty as a staffer in the U.S. Senate, he returned to East Tennessee and in 1999 began working in the Community Development Department for the City of Knoxville. Early on, Dunthorn began to focus on the issue of homelessness and was a co-author of the Knoxville-Knox County Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. That plan was one of many similar efforts across the country and was a part of a national effort—encouraged by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness—to create local, outcome-driven community plans to address homelessness. As part of that effort, Dunthorn traveled to a number of cities across the country to share information and offer advice as other communities worked to develop and implement their plans to address homelessness. He is now in the process of working with the city administration and community partners to develop a new, revised plan for Knoxville.
“Lunch with the League” is open to the public, and it is co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge. There is no cost to attend, and reservations are not needed. Box lunches will be available starting at 11:30 a.m. on a first-come, first-served basis for $7, or you may bring your own. Coffee and tea are provided.
For more information about LWVOR, visit lwvoakridge.org.
The Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church is at 1500 Oak Ridge Turnpike.
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