Homeless people on North Whidbey will soon have an emergency shelter within the community.

The long-held goal for many in Oak Harbor was accomplished in the right way, through a public-private partnership.

In many cases, people can no longer rely on government to solve community problems. They must take an active role in identifying priorities and developing solutions.

On Tuesday, the Island County commissioners awarded the nonprofit Whidbey Homeless Coalition $122,000 for operating shelters and housing programs on Whidbey. That includes the Haven, the first overnight shelter in Oak Harbor.

The Haven opens for the first time on the evening of April 13 at the Christian Reformed Church.

It’s truly community effort.

Members of the church and Rotary Club of Oak Harbor stepped up as volunteers to augment the staff of two.

The nonprofit Spin Cafe is serving as the check-in point.

The plan is for the location of the overnight shelter to rotate between church fellowship halls — and volunteers — every 90 days. This lightens the burden on any one church and, more importantly, means a greater segment of the community will be involved and “buy into” such a worthwhile endeavor.

The problem of homelessness is real and is only exacerbated by the affordable housing crisis in Island County.

The county estimates that the number of homeless, or those at risk of losing shelter, ranges from 200 to 400 people.

Most of those people are in Oak Harbor.

While panhandlers are the most visible signs of homelessness, advocates say that there is also a less-visible population that may need emergency shelter.

That includes families with children, people whose circumstances suddenly change and working people who simply aren’t able to find housing.

An emergency shelter won’t solve the homeless problem, but it may give people who find themselves down on their luck a running start at getting back on their feet.