SLO: HHH - Hunger, Homelessness and Housing (First Post 2/28/2014, Most Recent Post 4/30/2014)

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Update 4/30/2014: Thanks to SLO City Council member John Ashbaugh, I am now officially on the HSOC Housing Committee, and attended (and contributed) at the April meeting. I will give it a year to see if I can make a difference. I come from the perspective that the problem is political and not economic. In our relatively affluent society, we should be able to provide a clean, dry, warm bed for everyone, as well as a simple, basic healthy meal - period. That is my goal. Affordable housing is a key component of that goal.

Below: posts are boring without a photo. From a recent trip - while exploring a native American shelter in Johnson Canyon, Panamint Mountains, Death Valley, a small group of
Bighorn Sheep appeared about 30 to 40 feet above my head at the top of the cliff! It was getting dark, and the photos weren't great, but this was my best one; following that is the Indian pictograph cave that I was exploring. Click to enlarge - Enjoy!

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Update 3/5/2014: I attended the monthly Homeless Services Oversight Committee (HSOC) meeting today. HSOC is a SLO county advisory board that you can read more about by clicking here. Its about a 2 hour meeting, and I left a little more than an hour into the meeting. My main purpose in attending was to meet Laurel Weir, who is the coordinator of this committee. I enjoyed interacting with her while I was applying for the HSOC committee myself (I was NOT appointed - no surprise). I was hoping to also meet Jerry Rioux, who is executive director of the San Luis Obispo County Housing Trust Fund. I have spoken with Mr. Rioux about homelessness housing issues over the phone, but we had never met before. We didn't meet this time either, because although he was in attendance, nobody could identify who he was before the meeting started.

Although I applied to be on HSOC recently, I was skipped over in favor of others who appeared to have far less experience in dealing with homelessness than I have had. How do I know? I read their applications. Note, however, that no experience with Homeless Issues is required for you to apply, but I would think they application committee would find the experience helpful - apparently not. Also, they interviewed some of the applicants over the phone, but declined to interview me. How do I know? Because I was told by people "in the know" that the other applicants were interviewed, so I didn't even come close to getting on this board. I'm trying to be happy about not being picked, but my ego has gotten in the way a little bit (read below for an explanation). When I was younger, I always got picked for this stuff, but no more. No longer politically connected - no surprise. I'm not trying to be.


However, I only applied for the HSOC when others had not stepped forward to apply, so I'm happy that the seat has been filled. Also, I resigned from all the volunteer boards I was on more than 12 years ago, because I wanted to do hands on work, and wanted to know that what I was doing was actually helping somebody. This viewpoint has not changed. When I staff the homeless overflow, or help the unaffiliated homeless out on the street, or other volunteer activities, I know that I am doing some good. Sitting in a meeting, I'm not so sure.

In any case, there appears to have been some sort of a HSOC consolation prize, as Ms. Weir noted that I could be on one of the HSOC committees, even if I wasn't on HSOC. The housing committee appealed to me, as it is an area where I believe I can contribute. Who knows if I have been somehow "appointed" to this committee, or it just meant that (like the HSOC monthly meeting) the Housing Committee is open to the public and I am free to attend. In which case, its not a consolation prize, but just an invitation to exercise the same rights as everybody else. Unfortunately, the first meeting is on Tuesday March 18, when I will be in Ridgecrest, Calif. giving a presentation at the Historical Society there, which you can read about by clicking here.

Instead of staying for the last hour of the presentation, I headed out to finish my errand run for Waag and Co. Along the way, I stopped to talk to a homeless person, like I often do. He was on an outlandish bicycle that was made out of an actual aircraft hull (fuselage is the correct term, I believe). He said his name was "XXXX" (name protected in case you run into him) and that he was heading to Morro Bay. He seemed to have all (or most) of his faculties, and seemed to be doing well. I helped him with a sprocket problem with his "bike-like contraption" (I'm an avid Mountain Biker myself). We talked for about 20 minutes or so, and then I was on my way - convinced that XXXX was gonna be okay for at least the next few days.

Before I left, I heard from XXXX about how he wished for a plot of land that he could build a shelter upon, as he was not looking for a handout. He was on SSI, and made about $700 a month, which was enough for him to live on. A few observations: 

1) he was not looking for a hand-out, yet was taking SSI. Okay, maybe SSI is not a handout, but he looked and acted far more like he was employable than many folks who are employed. 

 2) Except for SSI, he was not looking for a handout, but did want a more permanent shelter than his bike and the creeks. Like many homeless men, he previously built a sturdy shelter, but it was ripped out by the local constable after about 6 months. XXXX is more like the hobos of yore, and I think we, the public, should have something to offer a person like this. Maybe something like Hope's Village?

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Update 2/28/14: Tackling Poverty in the Bay Area: Ex-Apple Employee James Higa Creates the "Invention Hub" to bring together Tech Companies, Nonprofits, and the Underprivileged, which you can read about by clicking here. Can we do something like this in SLO County? Okay, apparently, you can't read the article unless you have a Wall Street Journal account, so I pulled few paragraphs from the article so that you get the idea - Happy Reading. 

Tim's Summary of the Invention Hub: This effort fits into our multi-prong approach to tackling HHH issues. Its starts with the Silicon Valley folks wondering why the techies aren't doing more - given their opulent wealth? Good Question. Here in SLO County, we certainly have our share of wealthy residents. Maybe they too could do a bit more to help?

James Higa, founder of "Invention Hub" states the obvious: "We try to aspire to change the world, but if we can't even change our backyards, how can we aspire to change the world?". Indeed.

Mr. Higa made his fortune at Apple, and more recently at his tech consulting company, "Index Ventures", but now spends most of his time helping those less fortunate. He is inspired to do this based on the widening income gap in the Bay Area. No doubt, this same gap exists in SLO county.

Mr. Higa is a founding partner of "Invention Hub" (IH) which recently opened. In a nutshell, IH teams businesses with non-profits to provide job skill training to the underprivileged. The current 6-month program is teaching the unemployed how to be baristas (coffee servers) - apparently a skill in demand in the Bay Area. IH puts together successful business owners with those who are willing to learn a skill, craft or trade through training and internships - a fine idea, in my opinion. 

Of course, the critics are out in force, saying it isn't enough. The real question is, what are the critics doing to alleviate HHH? Anyone in the SLO Business Community listening?

Key Parts of the Wall Street Journal Article from 2/27/2014: SAN FRANCISCO—More than a decade ago, James Higa was one of Steve Jobs's trusted advisers at Apple Inc., helping lead thorny negotiations with music record labels and ultimately paving the way for the iTunes store. Today, he faces an arguably more difficult challenge.

On the first floor of a sun-drenched, airy room that could easily pass for one of the city's many startup pads, Mr. Higa is tackling the Bay Area's socioeconomic problems. He is one of the first residents of the just-launched Invention Hub, an incubator for local jobs that is designed to bring together tech companies, nonprofits and San Francisco's underprivileged.

The former Apple executive is among a growing group of techies seeking to bridge a widening income gap in San Francisco, riddled by rising home prices and persistent poverty.
Next week, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee is co-hosting a brainstorming session, alongside local enterprise-software company Zendesk, to discuss the revitalization of the city and reveal a new mobile app called Link-SF, designed to connect the homeless with "lifesaving services."

Higa is the executive director of the Philanthropic Ventures Foundation, a nonprofit group that gives small grants to local causes, amounting to roughly $12 million a year. Mr. Higa also spends much of his time leaning on his connections in tech and philanthropy to push for greater collaboration between the disparate parts of the Bay Area community.

Mr. Higa is particularly focused on spreading the word to mid-to-large-sized startups, those with 50 or more employees, that will need nontechnical help, such as those delivering goods and services across the Bay Area. The hope is that the combination of these elements will create new jobs and begin to change how tech companies operate within their neighborhoods.
Not everyone, however, is convinced such actions will create a big enough dent here. Carlos Rivera, a communications coordinator for the Service Employees International Union Local 1021, a labor union, says job programs will help some, but he wants to see bigger sacrifices from tech, such as donating the money they get from tax breaks. "It's a step in the right direction but not enough," he said.

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PRADO WARMING STATION 

OPENING WEDS. NIGHT 2/26 THROUGH SAT. NIGHT 3/1/2014

Update 2/27/14: I just got through meeting with Shawn (manager at Prado Day Center) and she gave me some good news: all the shifts for the Warming Station are covered, and dinner for all the nights are covered, too! Awesome - thanks, everyone.

What you can do for this Warming Station session is the following: (1) donate non-perishable food and shelter items listed below; and (2) make a charitable, tax-deductible donation to Prado Day Center. Here's your chance!

Original Post: For those who do not know, Prado Day Center (located at 43 Prado Road in San Luis Obispo) operates a "Warming Station" during the winter when it is forecast to Rain or drop in temperature for consecutive nights. Prado Day Center hosts homeless folks who are not sheltered overnight in the Warming Station (you can read more about the functions of a warming station by clicking on this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warming_center).

(source: Tribune newspaper 2/27/2014) The Prado Day Center "Warming Station" in San Luis Obispo will be open to provide shelter to the homeless during the current storm. Volunteers are needed to staff the warming station during the following shifts: 4:30pm to Midnight and Midnight to 8am from now until Saturday 3/1/2014. Prepared meals are needed for 40 people for today, Friday and Saturday. Also needed are donation of plates, bowls, cups, utensils, coffee creamer, juice, cereal, sleeping bags and sleeping pads. Donations should be brought to Prado Day Center at 43 Prado Road in SLO. For more information, contact Dee Torres at DTorres@capslo.org or call (805) 440-6760.

For those of you who want to make a difference, this is your chance to help! Don't just talk about making the world a better place - do something! You have some choices here at the Prado Warming Station tonight thru Saturday: 
(1) donate a meal; 
(2) donate food and shelter items listed above; 
(3) work a shift; 
(4) make a charitable, tax-deductible donation to Prado Day Center. Here's your chance!

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