A Lehighton man has volunteered to be part of a coalition to assist the homeless in the borough.

Jack Finnegan, who resides on North Seventh Street, explained his intentions to borough council on Monday.

“I’m interested in the homeless folks at (Dunbar Beach),” Finnegan said. “I can’t stop thinking about the folks down there.”

Finnegan, who serves on the Carbon-Monroe-Pike Drug and Alcohol Commission, said the Sunday before last, there was a pounding rain, and added he could only imagine what it must have been like for those people.

Further, he said that if there were dogs and cats out in those type of conditions, there would have been a community outreach.

“But they’re not animals; they’re humans,” he said. “Do we have any idea the population down there?”

Finnegan then shared his idea with council.

“My pitch is what collectively can the (Lehighton) community do to differentiate ourselves in terms of what we can do to help these folks,” he said. “I would be interested in participating in some type of coalition.”

Finnegan ended his remarks with a thought-provoking statement. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to drink water out of the Lehigh River,” he said.

Council thanked Finnegan for taking the time to share his thoughts with them.