Martitha May worked Tuesday’s Kitsap County Health Board audience like M. Night Shyamalan played movie crowds in The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable.

Nearly everyone in the room was eager to leave. The meeting had already started late and run long. County Commissioner Jan Angel had already banged the gavel early trying to adjourn the meeting and a previous community member had been at the podium a while.

As May was making her own way to the podium, Angel asked for just an amount.

May was there to tell the board how much money had been raised for El Centro de la Familia and she didn’t comply with Angel’s request.

By the end, I’m sure most were glad she didn’t. Angel said she had goosebumps.

You can see why by clicking here.

On Tuesday, intern Tom Giratikanon wrote about the possible closure of El Centro de la Familia, a health program that reaches out to the growing Hispanic population in the county. The Kitsap County Health Department, which administers the program, is facing budget cuts and needs to look at closing the center to save $65,000 on a $200,000 budget deficit, district officials say. A budget hearing is set for Aug. 20.

The story has drawn comments on the Kitsap Sun Web site from a number of readers, including Sharon O’Hara who asks, “Are these people here legally or are they illegal aliens?”

To which another writer, “baisah,” responds, “Are you asking that question about ‘them being here legally or are they illegal aliens’, just because they are Hispanic??
Poor is poor and knows no boundaries.. From the other comments, it looks like there are other important services being cut as well.”

Tom said he did not mention the issue of immigration (legal or illegal) in the story because it was not part of health officials’ thought process as they considered budget cuts.

But now that the issue has been raised, what do you see as the role of public health programs in meeting the needs of undocumented people living in Kitsap and North Mason counties?