Newsletter Stories
December 31, 2008
A Year End Thank You from the Founders
As December comes to a close, we want to thank you for the time you spent with us this past year helping us, supporting our families and encouraging others to get behind this 
vision to save lives, change lives and impact the lives of homeless families and children for today, tomorrow and forever. We are grateful for your loyalty, especially during these particularly challenging times.
There are so many people to thank. When this vision was put together the idea was that it would be formed around a working collaboration involving all segments of the community. We believed that both the “public sector” partners (local, state and federal government) and the “private sector” partners (business, faith and civic community) would respond to this call to action if our message could convey that your involvement and investment would:
- IMPACT children’s lives and help to reshape their futures, permanently
- SOLVE family homelessness, not just manage or contain homelessness through ongoing emergency type responses or “relief” programs, but really solve it!
- BUILD a sustainable model that would keep impacting lives and solving homelessness for families and children for as long as our community needs it.
Some of you got the Solutions for Change message this past year, felt those goose bumps on your arms and joined our cause. Others have been with us since the very beginning. Whether you are a government worker, a church volunteer, a high school student, an elected official, a business leader, a girl or boy scout, a civic club organizer, a staff member or resident here at Solutions, you are all involved in something powerful. There is a place for everyone to get involved in solving family homelessness, one family and one community at a time.
In 2008, we continued to focus on improving our programs and making your involvement as meaningful and rewarding as possible. From making our Terrific Kids Homework Club stronger to expanding our “New Solutions” permanent housing, to the further development of our award winning approach to solving family homelessness using the innovative “Solutions University” model. Although these last few months have been tough on us all, we believe that God wants us to move through this time with a quiet heart and a peaceful certainty that our lives and this program are in His hands.
Next year marks Solutions for Change’s 10th anniversary and there is a lot of exciting new opportunities to look forward to, starting with the launch of our Impacting Lives - Reshaping Futures community partnership challenge in January and then our Solutions for Change Ten Years of IMPACT Party celebrating the lives of 542 families who have defeated homelessness since our inception. With this and so much more happening as we lean into our 2nd decade of service to our community we can’t wait to show you how your involvement with this cause will continue to impact lives and reshape futures, permanently!
With love and admiration,
Chris and Tammy
A Year End Thank You from the Women of Solutions for Change
Thank you for supporting a cause that is changing my life.
You hear a lot about how helping Solutions for Change impacts the lives of children and reshapes their futures. It’s true, our children thrive here. But for us women, the Solutions for Change opportunity provides this amazing place to heal, learn and work 
hard to achieve our goals. It’s a safe place, a place for restoration of our mind and hearts, and a dignified place that respects us for our individual capacity and right to learn and grow as women. This is a place where we search out, discover and find our real potential. It’s weird saying this but I am lucky to be here in a place such as this. I am getting shelter here, but Solutions for Change is nothing like a shelter. They are teaching me, coaching me and showing me the way to provide a better life for me and my kids.
You hear comments around here all the time about how this program is so much different from other homeless programs. Personally I’ve never been in those other places so I can’t really comment, but what I can say is that everything about this place makes a person work on solving the things that got them in this situation. When I first got here, I didn’t really like it because there was so much to do.
It takes a lot of work, because solving the stuff that got us homeless to begin with doesn’t happen without some real introspection, without some real honesty and willingness on our part. Permanently solving my families homelessness isn’t going to happen by giving me a house to live in, food to eat and things to depend on. I am now fully involved here in a process that is teaching me how to take care of myself and my kids.
The women staff here, Tammy, the Kelly’s, Barbara, Lilly and all of them, see us as partners and support us in our journey. Accountability to each other seems to be a key piece.
Speaking as one of the 46 mothers here, I want you to know how grateful I am for you. It didn’t take much for me to figure out that your belief and support for Solutions for Change gives the fuel they need to equip me and my family for a future full of promise. That future used to look pretty bleak but today because of people like you its bright and full of possibilities for myself and my kids. As a homeless mom with my kids, I’ve seen the bottom of the economic rung so even though these uncertain economic times are a little scary, nothing can stop me now.
Knowing many of the moms here, I can honestly say that they feel the same way I do. We know how important you are. Your involvement with Solutions for Change, your belief in this cause and in us, is impacting our lives and reshaping our futures too.
So from all of us here, God bless you and may 2009 be filled with health and happiness,
A grateful Solutions for Change mother
One last 2008 Story – An Update from April and baby Joseph
Last year about this time we shared a story with you about a young single mother named April and her newborn baby Joseph. This past year as a new mom in our program April 
has had many challenges to overcome. She has done some incredible work on herself and we are all very proud of her!
Here is her story in her own words:
“My name is April, and I would like to share my story of success with the Solutions for Change program. I cannot imagine what my life would be today had I not ended up on the Solutions for Change doorstep.
“It was just a few years ago and as a young 20-something wife I wasn’t much worried about anything. My husband made good money, we lived in a decent place…life was pretty good. But due to some bad decisions and immaturity I messed up and spent two months in jail. Shortly thereafter I became pregnant. The relationship with my husband fell apart and we separated. All of a sudden my life started to spiral out of control. I applied to several recovery and housing programs and did not meet the criteria to enter those programs. My last stop was Solutions for Change, if I was turned away, I did not know what would happen to me and my unborn child.
“On July 3, 2007 I entered the Solutions for Change program, scared and unsure of what was to come. The program was stringent, but I had a child on the way and needed a place to get my life in order. I was willing to do whatever was needed to end my homelessness, regain my life, be a loving mother to my child and be a successful woman.
“My son Joseph was born on Christmas Eve and as of November 2008, I have been sober and drug free for two years. I was given the opportunity to help with the Solutions for Change childcare program and activities. Additionally, I work in the evenings at the intake shelter, which is a very rewarding experience. I have the opportunity to warmly welcome new residents, share with them my personal experiences. I have the blessing of watching the transformation that occurs - the same transformation that occurred in me.
“Thanks to Solutions for Change, I have permanently ended my homelessness; my son has a safe, loving environment in which to grow up in. I am now moving forward with my college study in Child Development. None of this would have possible without the support and love I received from Solutions for Change.”
ON POINT: Chasing Symptoms - Banging Heads
by Chris Megison, Founding President and Executive Director
My IT guy has been digging around in my server for five weeks trying to fix a problem of intermittent server outages. He comes in, finds what appears to be the problem gives me the “good news” and then about two days later, it happens again. After 30 hours and numerous head on the wall banging episodes later he has come up with this analysis: “Chris, we are trying to locate and resolve the root problem, but it’s very hard to find, and once we do find it we have to have the right fix to make sure it doesn’t come back.”
Chasing and slapping the quick fix on the symptoms of the root problem has been a costly and frustrating experience. For me it’s only a few thousand bucks and a quick plaster patch job on the wall. But what about when we translate this to the problem of homelessness?
In my humble opinion of nearly two decades working in this field, this is what many communities STILL do with their homeless problem. Slap a quick fix on the problem. Feel better for awhile. Get more homeless impacts.more quick fixes. And the cycle continues ad nauseam. The press drives the issue constantly saying that we need to do more, more shelters, more money to help, more, more, and more. And for the most part, most people out there really DON’T have the time to learn and understand such a complex issue, so they take one of two sides: Help them, or don’t help them. But there should be a third way and it’s the way that Solutions for Change has been proposing for many years. SOLVE the ROOT problem! But that message gets drowned out in another newspaper story, another meeting, and another plan.
So we end up doing more. All the while it LOOKS like we are doing something because after all, we have our emergency winter shelters, our ten year plans, our consortiums and meetings and it goes on and on. I’ve been a participant in this process and I have seen firsthand how the system works.
Someone once said that every organization (or in this case our homeless policies) is perfectly designed to get the results that they are getting. There were 1.3 million homeless children in America this year. How do you like those results?
A friend of mine, Tom Suddes, puts it this way. Three powerful insights: ABANDON, REDESIGN, REIMAGINE.
Abandon the old way we approach and manage the problem of homelessness.
Redesign using new entrepreneurial intervention and engagement strategies cemented in the absolute non negotiable bottom line: SOLVE IT! Solve it for the person. Solve it for the community. Period. End of planning process.
Reimagine our North County community with NO homeless families. No homeless people in the parks. No homeless impacts in our cities.
Maybe 2009 will be the year. We never give up hope here.
December 18, 2008
Homeless at 19 with a six month old son:
A mother’s gutsy determination to battle and defeat homelessness
When a family loses their home, the burden of recovering from this tragedy rests mostly on women. 85% of the families helped at Solutions for Change are headed by a single mom.
Isela came to Solutions for Change in the Fall of 2007 as a young teenage mother with a six month old son. 
Isela’s father kicked her out of the house when she was 7 months pregnant. The father of her child abandoned them so she had to rely on friends and other family members for temporary places to stay.
With little education and no job, tired and alone, Isela found her way to the doorway of hope called Solutions for Change. Isela not only wanted a safe place for her and her son to stay but this petite shy woman demonstrated to her new friends at Solutions for Change a bold tenacity, a burning desire to change the direction of her life. She had the look of a person who wouldn’t quit without a very tough fight.
When she entered Solutions for Change Isela said, “I learned that I was the only person who could get my self and my son out of the problem. Solutions laid out the plan with me and provided me the opportunity, encouragement and accountability, but they couldn’t make me change. That was my job. Coming to Solutions for Change has given me a sign of hope that not only can I get out of this hole, but I can stay out of it.”
Isela was motivated. She not only wanted to end her homelessness, she also wanted the skills, knowledge and resources needed to solve the underlying poverty issues and believed that Solutions for Change could help her do that. In order to do this Isela needed to address the factors that caused her and her son to become homeless. A customized plan was built to address Isela’s lack of job skills and education. Both short range goals of getting the income and housing resources needed to defeat her homelessness and the long range vision of beating poverty were crafted.
During her on year stay at Solutions for Change Isela has been able to learn many new skills that have enabled her to grow as an individual and a parent. She has been employed full time for eight months, has put DOUBLE the required amount of money into her mandatory savings plan to be used for her own housing and new life and has consistently (and still quietly) went about battling homelessness.
When Isela came to Solutions, like most single mothers in her situation, she was scared that homelessness might cause her to lose her son to Foster Care. But the partnership with Solutions and her hard work chartered an entirely different course. “The impact that this Solutions for Change program has had on my life has definitely reshaped the future for my son. It gives me goose bumps just thinking about his future now, compared to where we were headed just one year ago.”
“Being at Solutions has been a great experience. I have grown from a child to a woman. I have learned to be responsible and that I have to be accountable for my actions. This has been a life changing experience.”
Isela will be ready to graduate the Solutions’ program after the New Year. She has been equipped to find and keep permanent housing, maintain a steady full time job and be involved in outside community support systems that will continue to encourage her and help her move towards a positive and productive future.
In It for the Impact: Lives Changed Forever
“Solutions for Change has greatly impacted and changed my life. It’s given me the strength and the self-esteem to be able to take a serious look at my life and where I was headed and where I was dragging my kids along with me. And after coming to Solutions I’ve been able to stop that bad trip in its tracks.
“I’ve only been here about six months and I have given birth to a healthy, beautiful baby. I’ve now have a support group full of women that know and love me and who I can trust and turn to. I now have a job as well. But most importantly, I have hope and self-respect and my faith has never been stronger.
“I feel very grateful to Solutions and know that I’m blessed to be here and also know my being here is no accident. I thank God and all the staff at Solutions with much love.”
— Skye
“Solutions for Change is the biggest part of my family’s future, and a stepping stone laid down for my family by God as a hand up. We are in preparation to graduate and move into our new home in the next six months. This is a huge difference considering six months ago I was jobless, with little money and soon to be evicted. This partnership has rocked my whole world and way of thinking, living and walking through life. The uniqueness of this program cannot even be compared. It’s more than change, it’s a new life. You do the work, and you get a new turnkey life. It’s not easy but it’s so worth it. I can accomplish my dreams now.”
— Cheston
“Solutions for Change has impacted my life in a lot of different ways. It has helped me and my son learn to set goals in all areas of our lives, so that we can better our future in many ways.
“I have learned how to save money, pay bills, and how to get a job that will support me and my family in a better way. I thank Solutions for Change for all their love and support for me and my family.
”
— Latina
“Solutions for Change has saved my life. Before coming to Solutions for Change me and my daughter were homeless. We were living in motels and living in emergency shetlers. Solutions for Change gave me hope. It has been a place that has supported me and guided me, as well as allowing me to make my own decisions. I am very grateful for Solutions for Change because it has given me a chance to break the cycle by being a positive role model to my daughter and giving her a chance to live a positive and productive life.”
— Maribel
The Mission of Addiction: Consume and Destroy
A couple’s comeback trail from losing it all to drugs
Addiction to drugs or alcohol is the number one single causative factor leading to homelessness in America. Sure, there are millions who are addicted and not homeless but many have had their addiction consume and then destroy it all: the marriage, the relationships with family and friends, the job, the bond with our children, the self respect and dignity and yes ultimately the home being the last thing to go. Learning how to effectively intervene and engage a homeless person who is addicted is therefore paramount to every community’s battle plan. Yet in many cases our plans and how they are executed are woefully inadequate.
Using drugs and moving from place to place, Amber was stuck in her addiction bad. She had never lived out on her own but as an addict she felt she could not stop using drugs. Amber had been dating Randy for a year and he was also using drugs. They wanted to be together and raise their daughter but Randy went to jail for using drugs. Amber then applied at Solutions for Change. She wanted to stop using drugs and find some stability in her life and try and end her homelessness but did not know how. She said before coming to Solutions she felt defective and did not know how to have fun.
When Randy was released from jail he joined Amber at Solutions. He said he was tired of not being sober and he was sleeping behind dumpsters. He wanted a better life. The Solutions program provided the structure and a plan they both needed to start their lives over. They attend 12 steps meeting and obtained sponsors. Both wanted to be better parents to their children.
Randy and Amber have had many accomplishments; both have been clean and sober and have full time jobs. They both now have driver’s licenses and with their income from work, bought a car so they can drive to work instead of taking public transit. Most important is that they now have an adult relationship where they talk, laugh and work things out instead of using drugs to cope. Amber and Randy were serious about staying sober, living a better life and raising their family in a healthy manner. It hasn’t been easy, but they are well on their way to defeating homelessness and beating their addictions. As soon as they find affordable housing they will be graduating from the Solutions program. They are a shining example of what is possible here at Solutions for Change.
ON POINT: Surviving the worst of the worst
by Chris Megison, Founding President and Executive Director
The cold, wet, whipping wind that we feel this week is a good reminder. Mother Nature is unpredictable and can open a can of whoop butt on us whenever she so desires. All of us non profits got one of those cans opened up on us this holiday season. But Mother Nature isn’t the perpetrator, the recession is. I wish I could tell you that we were spared the ravages, but with just one week left before Christmas, we have enough gifts for only half of the 123 kids here in our programs. And our budgeted year end donations are so far below what we had hoped for, Tammy and I are counting the days and praying for a miracle.
I've never been good at begging, and I’m not going to try and start to be good at it now. All I can say is read the article in today's North County Times. It pretty much sums up where we stand. I've always felt like your donation of time, energy and money was an investment into rebuilding futures for homeless families and kids for today tomorrow and forever. That message works well when it’s not YOUR today, tomorrow and forever that is being threatened. We are going to get through this thing. You are going to get through this thing. Faith is a powerful ally.
Keep Connected to Chris' BLOG Here...
December 10, 2008
A Husband, Wife and Their Two Children: Humbled and On the Comeback Trail
On May 17th 2008 Cheston was called into his employer’s office and was notified that they were going to lay him off. Cheston felt he should have seen it coming, as business 
was not as it should have been. He began to pound the pavement, applying at over 50 job openings. The few employers that did respond were not offering enough in starting wages or the job sites were too far away.
In retrospect, Cheston reflects on the fact that he should have humbled himself and taken one of the jobs he had been offered, regardless of how low the wages were. Unpaid bills began to pile up, Deborah; Cheston’s wife began to become scared of what would happen to them. Not wanting to have an eviction on their housing history, they packed up their belongings and began to seek out another place to live.
Eventually they were referred to Solutions for Change and on July 1, 2008 Cheston, Deborah and their two children, Sidney and Ashlyn entered the Solutions for Change program. It was a difficult adjustment for them all. Cheston shares what a humbling experience it was to enter a homeless program. Neither he nor Deborah ever thought they would be in such dire straits. They were shocked at the number of people there and once again, felt it was a place they did not belong.
Cheston and Deborah began attending the series of classes required by the Solutions for Change program. Additionally, Cheston attended a Financial Fitness / Homeowner preparation class offered by Community Housing Works. Currently both he and Deborah are gainfully employed and they are planning on purchasing a home after they complete the program at Solutions for Change. Deborah and Cheston both express that Solutions for Change has changed their lives and is, “ a gift from God.” “This program is for people who really want to change their lives.”
Solutions for Change Success Snippets:
In It For The Impact – Lives Changed Forever
“So if I could tell people why I’m so excited, it would be because I finally feel I’ve been put on the permanent road to success. Solutions for Change molded me into a normal productive person living in society. I’m no longer just a taker of life; I have enough in me that I’m able to give back to the world and most importantly to my children. I’m eternally grateful that Solutions put the time and effort into my life and saw something in me.”
Lena
Graduated the Solutions Family Center in 2007
with her two young children
“Solutions for Change changed the life of my family forever by starting with the biggest challenge: ME. I was stuck in a rut, feeling dependent on others and 
was blaming my woes on everyone and everything else. That’s all changed today. Now I have this sense of freedom which I feel came only after I took responsibility. I feel as though I have the emotional strength that everything is going to be alright. My kids sense that in me now and they act differently today as a result.
A seed of faith for a better life was planted in me and grew from the constant message of hope that Solutions for Change sent into my head and my heart every day. Now our family has our own place to live and we earn enough to get by. And as to our future? Even though times now are tough, I’ve seen and felt MUCH worse. I will never forget what Solutions for Change gave to me: MY family back.”
Angie
Graduated the Solutions Family Center in 2008
with her team of five kids
“Solutions for Change impacted my life by showing me there are people here that offer a new hope with a solid plan, which if applied, cannot fail to end my homelessness. By allowing me to afford rent and attend college my financial future is changed which was the big struggle to end my homelessness.
Today my life is saved only because Solutions gave me the tools to work toward my goals that have changed my life and that of my two kids forever. If everyone that was homeless came to Solutions, homelessness would no longer exist!”
Lisa
Graduated the Solutions Family Center in 2007
with her two children
Solutions for Change has changed my life by showing me, proving to me really (because I am so stubborn) that I can have a “normal life.” Normal was not a word in my vocabulary prior to Solutions for Change. You see before Solutions, I lived my life as a convict gang member, an addict with a very bad attitude. I never knew how to be a mother or a woman. But this wonderful amazing thing happened to me to show me how to be a real mom...the women I was meant to be all along. The people at Solutions for Change embraced me and their compassion and no nonsense insights cut threw my hard exterior and helped me find my heart.
Now that I have been clean and sober for two years, I live my life gang free, and drug free. Because of the accountability and structure given to me by Solutions, I am no longer on parole. I am a good mother. I learned to love myself, now I can love others…
Merrilee
Graduated the Solutions Family Center in 2008
with her one child
December 3, 2008
It’s All About the Impact
We know that you really enjoy hearing about the personal victories, the “comeback trail” stories and how we save lives, changes lives and 
impact the lives of homeless families and children for today, tomorrow and forever. So beginningDecember 2nd, on the heels of the day that Solutions for Change leans into its tenth year and another decade of defeating family homelessness for kids and communities, we are going to share some of those incredible personal struggles and victories with you. We will send them out in our newsletters weekly until the year is up and keep them on our website for you to share with others. So sign up for our Newsletter HERE.
Our first story is an update about a beautiful four year old girl named Sierra. Three years ago Sierra was homeless being pushed around in a baby stroller in the rain. Her parents Scott and April battled hard for Sierra and their other children, Erik and Anthony, and as a result of their hard work they defeated homelessness and graduated Solutions in 2007. Little did they know then that the real battle would begin the day Sierra said, “Mommy my tummy hurts."
Sierra Gets a New Puppy
by Laurie Frame
When April Craft, Scott Wiseman and their children Erik, Anthony and Sierra entered the Solutions Family Center a little over 2 years ago, they knew that their lives were about to change. What they didn’t realize was how one single event would change the course of their lives for a very long time to come.
April and Scott started planning their future and setting both their short and long term goals. April had hopes of becoming a Holistic Health Practitioner and soon was enrolled in school to make her dream a reality. At the same time April was offered a position working part-time for the Solutions Intake and Assessment Center (shelter), where she and her family had once been residents themselves. Scott decided that he would pursue a job with a local grocery outlet and was soon working too. Their son’s Erik and Anthony attended local middle and elementary schools, while Sierra, still only 2 years old attended daycare. As a family, they found comfort in having a safe and secure place to live, a daily routine and Scott and April were now able to provide for their family.
It wasn’t too long after living at Solutions Family Center that April and Scott were ready to graduate. They had a built a solid foundation of recovery, employment and life skills and were now ready to re-enter the community. In December of 2007 as April and Scotts family and friends attended their graduation ceremony and listened to April & Scotts story of rising from hopelessness to success, there wasn’t a dry eye in the audience.
Shortly after graduation, April, Scott and their kids moved into their own apartment where they were able to spend their first family Christmas together, with their own Christmas tree, homemade Christmas dinner, hang their Christmas stockings and share blessings of the season. Their prayers were answered and life was good.
Shortly after Christmas, after a regular day at childcare, Sierra complained that her “tummy hurt” and she wouldn’t eat. April took her out to dinner and ordered Sierra’s favorite-waffles. Sierra took one bite and laid down in the booth in the fetal position. Later that evening Sierra complained that her legs “wouldn’t work.” April knew that something was definitely wrong. Sierra had always been a happy child with lots of energy and a healthy appetite. April and Scott decided to take Sierra to Tri-City hospital where the doctors spent the evening trying to diagnose what was wrong. They spent the night at the hospital and by morning, after numerous tests and still no diagnosis, the attending doctors at Tri-City had Sierra rushed to Rady’s Children’s Hospital in San Diego to undergo more tests.
For all of us there has been one defining moment, one event, a situation, a decision that has changed us forever. For April and Scott that day came on January 18, 2008, when after a cat scan they were told by Sierra's doctor that Sierra had cancer.
One 6 letter word that in that moment brought them to their knees, broke their hearts and at the same time they experienced fear in a way they had never experienced it before. How do you react to being told that your child, your baby, your beautiful, innocent, curious, full of life daughter has cancer? For April and Scott they had no choice but to do whatever was necessary to ensure that Sierra would be ok.
Not too long after being diagnosed with cancer, doctors were able to identify the type of cancer that Sierra had. It is an often fatal and rare type of cancer called Neuroblastoma. Chances of surviving this type of cancer are slim. Sierra also was subjected to many surgeries and chemotherapy sessions that left her weak and sick. April and Scott knew there were times when Sierra was in so much pain and was so weak that it was hard for Sierra to understand why she had to go through yet another painful process.
April and Scott felt that they had to give her a reason, some hope, an incentive to keep fighting. April recalled that during Christmas, Sierra had asked for a puppy. Sierra’s auntie had a dog that Sierra loved and every time she saw a dog, she let her Mom know that’s what she wanted, even more than a “princess dress.” April told Sierra if she would just do one more test or one more surgery she would have the puppy of her choice. April and Scott truly believe that with the hope of having a puppy, kept Sierra fighting this battle.
Today, Sierra is currently in remission and has been accepted into a 6 month “antibody study” through Rady’s Children’s Hospital. Hopefully, through this study, Sierra will receive the antibodies she needs to prevent the Neuroblastoma from becoming active again. It is everyone’s hope that Sierra stays in remission for 3 years, at which time she will be considered cured.
Through a year of tests, surgeries and participation in this study, along with the promise of a puppy, a few weeks ago April and Scott kept their promise to Sierra. As a family they went to the San Diego Humane Society and Sierra got her new puppy…she named him Jessie James.
For Kids and Communities: Defeating Family Homelessness
Those of you who’ve watched us in action this past decade know that here at Solutions for Change (the name tips you off) that we do things a little differently. As a result, it sometimes confuses people. Here is why:
- We shelter 190 kids and their mom’s everyday year round BUT we don’t “do shelters.”
- We put 148,488 meals into hungry kid’s mouths every year BUT we don’t “do food lines.”
- We are a not for profit (technically) but we see ourselves as a FOR IMPACT organization.
Here are some more examples:
Old Way |
New Way |
Manage homeless problem |
Solve homeless problem |
Containment |
Solutions |
Provide Shelter |
Provide Solutions |
Shelter |
Beyond Shelter |
Serve |
Equip |
Help / Aid |
Teach / Coach |
Serve the homeless |
Equip the homeless |
Provide a Meal |
Provide a Meal (and a plan) |
Servicing |
Partnering |
Bowl of Soup |
Bowl of Hope |
Feed for a Day |
Teach to Feed Self |
Must help the homeless |
Must solve homelessness |
Compassion transaction |
Compassion relationship |
The result after nine years?
542 once homeless destitute families have defeated homelessness.
Hundreds of kids, once stuck in a poverty rut have had their futures permanently reshaped.
Over the next several weeks you'll hear about the IMPACT of this vision to save lives, change lives and impact the lives of homeless families and children has had on our community and on the people in it through short video clips.
A vision to save lives, change lives and impact the lives of homeless families and children today, tomorrow and forever.
This is a vision, a grassroots cause that many of you have helped make real. It’s the IMPACT that we are in it for. Are you in?
ON POINT: The Homeless Issue in North County
by Chris Megison
When serving in the Corps, we had to make our own parts in the metal shop. We couldn’t just put in the trusty requisition form and expect to get a nice new part the next day like the Army or Air Force. I've been making "parts", finding creative solutions and helping to rebuild much more important things since those days.
It started by accident when I lost a bet with my fellow Marines, I wasn’t too happy about having to serve in a soup kitchen line. Little did I know that this would be the divine pivot point that would change my whole life. That first night, I met one of North County's most prominent "chronic" homeless persons. Steve. Nickname: Wolfman. Not knowing exactly why, I sat down with him over a bowl of soup.
What I learned starting in that moment with Steve was that there was an elaborate system of churches and non profits and many heroes who worked tirelessly to feed, clothe and take care of all the Steve's out there. But the more I talked to Steve and listened to his trials the more troubled I became.
So I decided to do what any good Marine would do, I packed my stuff and went on a little recon mission into the parks, beaches and service centers of San Diego county. What I came out of there with a few days later fired me up big time and put me on a divinely navigated pathway, which as you’ve figured out by now would take me on a 17 year mission (my friends say it’s more like a calling). What I have learned then and what I know now is much the same, only I can summarize it better now because (like most Marines) I needed to get some of this stuff drilled into my head. Here it is:
- Many churches and non profits have these amazing dedicated compassionate people, heroes really, working tirelessly trying to help the homeless
- Many homeless people, desperately needing help, consumed the resources given by these great organizations
- The people helping felt good
- The people being helped felt good
- The business community, the government and community at large where the homeless and the programs were in felt bad. They were angry actually.
- Why? Because the programs were helping the homeless at the expense of the community instead of with and for the community.
- They were helping the homeless with a “one size fits all approach” instead of recognizing that there were distinctly different needs around vastly different segments of the homeless:
- Intervention, Engagement and Strategy Number One: Solve it for the Will Not. The Will Not is typically the highest percentage of homeless person out there on the streets representing 40% or more of the homeless. This is the person who is normally stuck in an active addiction and is impacting our community the greatest. Not utilizing a customized strategic plan with this segment of the homeless problem is the single biggest reason why we fail. The cost to society of managing this group and “churning” them through the various government funded “systems” is staggering.
- Intervention, Engagement and Strategy Number Two: Solve it for the Can Not. The Can Not represents about 18% of the total homeless population. This is the person that suffers from a bonafide mental illness or a dual diagnosis. Interestingly enough, this number is often over represented in the field because a high percentage of WILL NOT’s get treated like CAN NOT’s. This is a recipe for disaster.
- Intervention, Engagement and Strategy Number Three: Solve it for the Have Not. The Have Not’s are all the other homeless persons out there. Typically they are the ones who become homeless due to economic reasons, domestic violence or other factors due to external or environmental reasons. This is the percentage of homeless that most homeless providers call “skimming the cream” because they are the easiest to work with (when compared to the Will Not or Can Not) and have the highest relative positive outcomes.
Lesson learned after the recon mission and more. Megison’s New Mission. The Goal: Figure out a way to SOLVE homelessness for the person AND the community simultaneously.
The ultimate test of effectiveness (and it is progressive with greater positive outcomes seen over time) 1) Less homeless people in our community, 2) less homeless impacts in our community 3) More formerly homeless people being productive and contributing to a healthy and strong community by earning income, buying goods from area merchants and helping others by paying it forward.
After many years of playing around with and retooling “parts” we’ve been able to social reengineer and get these results consistently.
When a community runs emergency shelters and homeless programs and we see many homeless people struggling to survive in parks, beaches and public spaces are we solving the problem or containing the problem?
The reason this happens is because we are stuck in using outdated and ineffective operational models. After working for 17 years on this issue and experiencing thousands of interactions with the homeless we've developed a model based on innovative intervention and engagement strategies. The model can work for any community that wants to SOLVE homelessness. I’m not saying it’s easy, but I am saying that it’s doable. The documentary being done on Vista and the efforts in this city to SOLVE homelessness proves this.
It really comes down to how bad do you as a community want to solve homelessness?
An Inside Look From One of Our Own
My name is Kelly Gutierrez and I would like to share with you my experience with Solutions for Change. SFC is a personal passion of mine. My hope is to inspire you to embrace the Solutions for Change program as well. My initial encounter with Solutions for Change, over eighteen months ago, occurred when my church had put a request for volunteers in the Sunday Bulletin. The request in the bulletin was to assist with serving a meal and provide childcare for one Thursday a month for SFC. I immediately signed up. I have always had a special place in my heart and a strong desire to help those in need. I eagerly waited for Thursday to come.
The evening I arrived at the SFC apartments, as I walked onto the property I was in awe of the facility and overall program. There was a welling up inside of me that the LORD had led me to a ministry opportunity like no other. It was a grand opportunity and I seized it.
Being so impressed with the SFC program I sought out another opportunity to volunteer and began working with the director on a Job Preparation program, assisting with resumes, employment opportunities and interview skills. I had never in my life felt such a passion for any position I had previously held, paid or volunteer, than I did when I began at SFC. To be able to observe on a daily basis the daily small miracles that occur is wonderful. What an honor it is to see the precious life changing moments in our residents. I have incredible respect for our residents and the genuine effort and hard work they put forth to permanently end their homelessness.
There is no greater joy to watch the transformation that transpires in our program. I encourage you to take a moment out of your day to visit us at SFC, see what we are about and I am certain you will be drawn in to the wonderment of SFC as well.
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