Community room at North Hollywood homeless shelter named for Alex and Jean Trebek
Longtime "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek and his wife Jean have made contributions to local homeless shelters and on Thursday the community room at a new North Hollywood facility was named for them.
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- San Fernando Valley residents for over 30 years, Alex and Jean Trebek have witnessed the growing homeless crisis firsthand. Now they're giving back to their community in a big way.
"I'm not one of those NIMBYs," the longtime "Jeopardy!" host said. "I'm not one of those people who thinks that we can't deal with the homeless near my house because that's bad. I don't feel that way. I wish more people would react in a positive way to reaching out and trying to help their fellow member of the community."
The Alex and Jean Trebek Community Room is the centerpiece of the San Fernando Valley's first A Bridge Home facility.
The North Hollywood facility will temporarily house 25 women and 60 men and their pets. The Trebeks donated $100,000 to this facility and another $500,000 to Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission for another shelter that will open in 2021.
The facility helps the homeless "become folks who we know are human beings and can feel that humanity again," Mayor Eric Garcetti said.
"And the goal of A Bridge Home was very simple - to put A Bridge Home shelter in every one of LA's 15 council districts and deliver the services they need to save their lives now," said Garcetti.
The Trebeks believe that the homeless are just ordinary people who have had bad circumstances happen to them and deserve a helping hand, not judgment.
"I was delighted to come out here today because it's so important to Los Angeles and in particular, the Valley. As I pointed out, Jean and I are Valley people," said Trebek.
An additional A Bridge Home facility will open in Sylmar on Friday and another will open in Van Nuys in August.
