Homeward Bound a Biannual Publication ■ Spring 2013
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HOMEWARD BOUND A BIANNUAL PUBLICATION ■ SPRING 2013 A Brighter Future Gratitude is an action word: it’s not what you are, it’s something you do,” says Jamie, single mom and former resident of Rebele Family Shelter. Watching her son being driven away Jamie found that visualizing what by Child Protective Services, Jamie she wanted her life to look like was was devastated. The only thing more great motivation; she would imagine important to her than whiskey was her son sitting at the table eating his her son. Having him snatched from lunch, she would see focus in his her opened Jamie’s eyes to what eyes, a trait Jamie wants dearly for was truly important and triggered a her son. “You have to visualize what motivation to clean up her life that you want. See yourself in a better couldn’t be stopped. situation. What do you want your soap to smell like? How do you want “Billy came from the clear blue sky the floor to feel under your bare feet? and saved me from myself,” Jamie What is on your bookshelf?” More says of her three-year-old son. than that, Jamie saw their future Ultimately, the worst time in her selves giving back, just like someone life turned out to be a blessing in Jamie, former resident of Rebele Family Shelter gave to them. disguise; Jamie realized that in order to get her son back, she needed to Jamie has returned to Rebele Family Jamie’s gratitude for a fresh start turn her life around. Shelter, this time as an intern, with her son is evident in everything encouraging parents on their road she does; from filling up her car Valerie Verdugo, a senior case to sobriety and shining as a beacon weekly with anybody that will attend manager at Rebele Family Shelter, to those finding themselves homeless a recovery program, to creating signs knew Jamie’s mother when she was and scared. Having celebrated two that serve as a reminder to just take homeless and seeking help from years of sobriety in January, Jamie it “One day at a time.” Rebele Family Homeless Services Center, so it was looks forward to what the future Shelter residents, volunteers, and staff only natural that having known holds. Aside from being a loving and alike are encouraged by the changes Valerie for so long, Jamie felt a sense full-time mother, attending a recovery Jamie made in her life, which serve of accountability to her. Valerie’s program daily, and her internship at as a reminder that the work done at patience and compassion gave Jamie RFS, Jamie studies human services at RFS truly changes lives. ■ the push she needed to find housing Cabrillo College and is interested in so that Billy could come home to her. supporting women in recovery. Our Mission The Homeless Services Center is dedicated to the coordinated provision of services for homeless persons. The goal of the Homeless Services Center is to provide both emergency and transitional services that will enable our clients to achieve self-sufficiency. "Lightening Dragon" as drawn by RFS resident Alyssa, Age 7 Homeless Services Center STaff: From the Executive Director Monica Martinez, M.P.A., Executive Director (Ext. 2103) Shelley McKittrick, Director of Programs (Ext. 3110) Alyssa Willett, Finance Manager (Ext. 2104) oday there is an important dialogue Jessica Abramson, Development Manager (Ext. 2101) in our community about issues of homelessness and the related impacts Colleen Murphy, Operations Manager (Ext. 1104) T and responsibilities relating to those issues. Megan Carlson, Community Outreach Manager Many of these conversations revolve around (Ext. 1104) the perceived impact of homelessness on public Shannon Miller, Executive Assistant (Ext. 1112) safety, economic development, and open spaces. Mary Triulzi, Program Manager, Rebele Family Shelter Those leading these conversations are sharing (Ext. 1103) the message: Homelessness is a problem. Kris Younggren, Program Manager, Daytime Essential Services Center (Ext. 4112) There can be no disagreement with that truth. Sarah Peters, Program Manager, Page Smith In addition to the previously mentioned impact, Community House (Ext. 3111) homelessness is a costly public health issue. Valerie Verdugo, Senior Case Manager, Rebele Family Someone experiencing chronic homelessness Shelter (Ext. 1105) may access healthcare in the emergency room Kris Edin, Case Manager, Page Smith Community multiple times a month, stay in the hospital for House (Ext. 3108) days at a time, require dozens of ambulance Jeff Goodyear, Housing Support Specialist (Ext. 4102) rides, and be contacted by a law enforcement officer multiple times a day. These Tayler Paskal, Interim Volunteer Coordinator (Ext. 1102) unnecessary costs can add up to millions in public tax dollars for a single individ- ual. And even with these expensive interventions, someone experiencing chronic homelessness has a life expectancy of just 47 years. Board of Directors Homelessness is a problem. OffICErs: Claudia Brown, President While the community is searching for fixes, it is critically important that we all Marsha Shanle, Vice President help each other focus on approaches that are proven to solve the problem. Katherine Beiers, Secretary Luckily, those solutions are available and have been proven in many communities: Gloria Ploss, Treasurer We know that permanent supportive housing has been successful in decreasing MEMBErs: EmERITUS: chronic homelessness across the nation, so we have accelerated this process locally by championing the 180/180 Initiative (see more on page 7). Antonio M. Rowland Rebele Harriet Deck Alarcon Theresa Silveira Linda Finch We know that providing a place of respite and recovery for a homeless individual John P. Dietz Sibley Simon Phil Grauberger upon discharge from the hospital can save millions in unnecessary healthcare Fran Guerrero Mark Trabing Paul Lee costs, so we are opening the county’s first Recuperative Care Center in late 2013. Colin Herrick Stuart Tripp Mike Marini We know that temporary family shelter, combined with an income savings plan, Jim King Lucas Willey Donna Maurillo is successful in keeping families whole, and increasing future housing stability, Chris Rebele Sally Williams Paul Pfotenhauer which is why the Rebele Family Shelter has been successful in connecting over 500 Robert Yonts homeless families with permanent housing since 2006. Homeward Bound Newsletter We also know what doesn’t work. Editor: Jessica Abramson Most simply: We know that services do not cause homelessness, therefore reducing Writers: Megan Carlson, Shannon Miller or eliminating services will not make homelessness go away. Rather, reducing ser- Designer: Marianne Wyllie, [email protected] vices increases the likelihood of health-related expense to the community and can lead to an increased risk of early mortality for an already vulnerable population. AddrEss & CONTACT InformaTION We need to focus on solutions that are smart and have lasting results. In order PO Box 1319 Santa Cruz, CA 95061 to truly address the issue of homelessness, we must work together across sectors, 115-B Coral St. Santa Cruz, CA 95060 ideologies and geographies to implement solutions that: www.scshelter.org Email addresses: [first initial & last name] @scshelter.org 1. Address the root causes of the problems in addition to meeting immediate needs 2. Identify and adopt evidence-based policies, strategies and programs that are HSC Nondiscrimination Policy cost-effective The Homeless Services Center does not 3. Produce measurable results toward short- and long-term goals identified by all discriminate against clients, volunteers, or sectors of the community employees who meet the eligibility guidelines 4. Ensure that all our community members are treated with equity, dignity and for any Homeless Services Center programs. respect. If you think you have been discriminated Homeless Services Center is committed to these principles. As the community dia- against, please contact the Executive Director logue on homeless services continues, we hope you will stand with us in calling at 831.458.6020 (Ext. 2103). on our public officials to commit to the same principles. Together, we can improve our community and decrease homelessness at the same time. Keep current with HSC! Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/HomelessServicesCenter 2 Monica Martinez, Executive Director A Letter of Thanks Dear Friends at Homeless Services Center, Two months ago I found myself on the streets, without a home, and a friend told me about your Winter Shelter at the Armory as the weather turned cold and I had nowhere to go. Kris Younggren, the Program Manager of the Daytime Essential Services Center at HSC helped me get my name on the waiting list for the Paul Lee Loft emergency shelter and I, somewhat hesitantly, became a resident at the Loft. I never thought of myself as a “homeless guy.” I was happily married and working as a painting contractor until the housing market crashed a few years ago. Work really slowed down and I couldn’t pay the mortgage on my house. The dream my wife and I had of opening a Christian camp never came true. I was going to be the builder and she was going to be the chef. I had always been a good provider and I had really lost a lot so I became bitter — mad at myself and mad at the world. After bankruptcy and a divorce, I tried staying with friends to regroup but fell into a depression and started drinking too much. At some point, I realized most of what I was upset about was just material things. In my younger years, I had worked in a detox center for youth, so tried to apply to myself what I used to impress on the teens — don’t be judgmental, be kind, and be humble — stuff like that. My time at Homeless Services Center helped re-focus my energy. I had a mission to get on my feet again, give back to the people that helped me, and enjoy the beauty.