Serenity House board member Lynn McAleer (left) and Deputy Director Brad Collins (right) accept a Sound Community Foundation award from (from second-from-left) Kari Osterberg, manager of Sound Commercial Bank’s Port Angeles branch; Kelly Raymond, mortgage loan executive; and commercial loan officer Wes Ochs.   Submitted photo

A Sound Community Foundation award to Serenity House of Clallam County will help renovate the old Aggie’s Inn ballroom, which is now part of the Tempest Apartments facility, 112 N. Albert St., Port Angeles.

Sound Community’s investment of $2,500 will fund construction of a new powder room, making the refurbished hall suitable for resident and public events, said Brad Collins, Serenity House deputy director for capital projects.

Thanks to the grant, a community holiday gathering may be possible at Tempest this Christmas, Collins told Kari Osterberg, manager of Sound Community Bank’s Port Angeles branch; Kelly Raymond, mortgage loan executive; and Wes Ochs, commercial loan officer. The group toured the site Dec. 1, along with Lynn McAleer of the Serenity House board and Serenity House Executive Director Kathy Wahto.

The bankers have volunteered to coach Tempest residents and other Serenity House clients in money management skills once Tempest’s common spaces are ready for use.

The common area rehabilitation is the final phase of renovations that began in 2005 when Serenity House purchased part of the former Aggie’s Inn.

Earlier phases remodeled the spaces now occupied by Serenity House’s Housing Resource Center and teen Dream Center, and converted 13 motel rooms into studio apartments for homeless, disabled local people. Occupied since 2008, the permanent supportive housing has decreased use of the county jail 85 percent among residents, who were all chronically homeless due to mental health or chemical dependency prior to moving into Tempest, Wahto reported.

Serenity House is dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness for people  in Clallam County. To break the cycle of homelessness, the community-based private agency provides housing and financial assistance with targeted supportive services to very-low-income homeless and at-risk families and individuals of all ages throughout the county.

Serenity House and Sound Community Foundation are both 501(c) 3 nonprofits.

The foundation invests in the future of communities served by Sound Community Bank by awarding grants to organizations that help individuals and families improve their quality of life, especially those where Sound Community Bank employees volunteer. Sound Community Foundation was formed as a part of the minority public offering by Sound Community Bank’s holding company, Sound Financial Inc. in 2008.