“We’re clearly filling a role. Let’s not make this more complicated than it needs to be.” -Kim Reinhardt of Mason County Host

Rereading this article and this article, I find myself still shaking my head. EACH year thousands of youth find themselves in dangerous family situations too unstable for them to stay at home, but not bad enough to warrant them going into foster care. Their options are limited, including sleeping with knives under the pillow, chairs pressed up against the doors for safety and to “couch surf” from relative to friend until they are out of options. Most likely, this leaves them to join the throws of young homeless adults.

This should not be the case with communities and good individuals wanting to develop host homes. These are the types of programs the state should be vetting and encouraging, but instead they bring out the red tape. Call…