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 June 1, 2025
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Dear Friends,
I spent a night at Safe Harbor Homeless Shelter on April 29th. You may have seen my opinion piece in the Daily Journal today:
The ABCs of homelessness
Here is a longer version of the piece that I would like to share with you.
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Making $109,700 in San Mateo County is now considered low income, according to the California Department of Housing. Angela, 52, (not her real name) doesn’t make nearly that much with her part-time job as a cashier at a grocery store. Becky, 50, (not her real name) showers and gets dressed at 9 p.m. to walk to the bus to go to the airport for her job in cargo services. She also doesn’t make anywhere near six-figures. Caroline, 62, (not her real name) gets up at 4 a.m. to get ready for her job for Uber Eats. She has a car but can’t afford rent to live here.
Angela, Becky and Caroline are homeless and stay at Safe Harbor shelter near the airport. I met them when I spent a night there on April 29.
I slept in a bunk bed like all other residents. There were twelve empty beds that night, so I wasn’t taking a bed away from someone in need. I had done the same in 2014 at the Maple Street shelter, inspired by Pope Francis who was rumored to don civilian clothes and spend time with the homeless in Rome. I thought to myself, if the pope can do it, I can do it.
Now, eleven years later, with homelessness in the United States at record highs, I wanted to see what had changed. Angela, Becky and Caroline were not unusual for the shelter. They were older, reflecting a UCSF study that found that almost half of all homeless people in the U.S. became homeless in middle age. They were also working for wages utterly insufficient to afford a place to live in San Mateo County, one of the most expensive counties in the country. From my 14 conversations that night, I estimated that 40% of the people staying at Safe Harbor had jobs, some more than one job.
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As of 2024, San Mateo County counted 1,145 unsheltered homeless individuals and 985 in our shelters. We currently have six shelters. The county’s goal is to reach “functional zero” where any homeless individual seeking shelter will have a spot. |
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Many of the people I spoke to at Safe Harbor have been in the system for months or years. They move from shelter to shelter, sometimes with a few days on buses in between. |
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Diana, 65, (not her real name) for example, has been homeless for six months. She was a single mom working for banks, high tech companies, department stores. She got beaten at a bus stop, requiring medical care, and became estranged from her daughter whom she had lived with. She is nearing her exit date at Safe Harbor and tells me she’ll just sleep at the airport for a couple of nights before she goes to the next shelter. At 65, she does not yet qualify for full social security.
Eric, 66, (not his real name) moved from the Navigation Center, the county’s largest homeless shelter, to Safe Harbor and is also nearing his exit date. He was working in construction but then had two heart attacks. He told me he simply can’t afford a place to rent.
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Medical emergencies, mental illness, accidents, drug addiction or relationship issues often contribute to the circumstances sending people into shelters. Caroline had breast cancer and has a heart condition. She used to be a caregiver but had a falling out with her employer. Becky used to live and work in Chicago until her son was shot and killed. She had a difficult time coping and came back to the Bay Area where she has family. |
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Having family in the area is also not unusual for shelter residents. Angela lived a middle-class life until a bad divorce upended it. She’s been homeless for ten years now. Her mother lives in South San Francisco but Angela says she “can’t live with her.” Frankie (not her real name), a young woman in her 30s, also has parents in South San Francisco. They are estranged. Frankie told me that she struggled with drug addiction but is now sober and her three children remain in foster care. |
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I believe that many of the people I talked to could be restored to stable lives, but we need to improve our system to help them. As one male resident put it succinctly, “I can function, but I can’t function by myself.” |
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Samaritan House which runs Safe Harbor has recently started to bring mental health services into their shelters. Laura Bent, CEO of Samaritan House, says that mental health needs are higher than ever because the cases are so complex, but federal and state funding are shrinking. “From a mental health perspective, there aren’t enough services available to meet the needs of the folks we are serving these days. That’s true of all the shelters,” she says. She points out that those services also need to be extended into permanent and supportive housing. |
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Secondly, we need to bring job training into the shelters. Angela, Becky and Caroline are so busy working their low paying jobs, they don’t have the time and energy to plan an alternative path that could lead them to better jobs and self-sufficiency. They need assistance.
And thirdly, let’s explore ways to bridge family rifts. Is there a role the county could play in reconnecting family members and facilitating better living situations?
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It was humbling and eye-opening to meet the people who are living in our shelters. Let’s listen to their stories and come up with bold ideas to address our homeless crisis. In the richest county in California, where innovation is in our DNA, surely we can do this! |
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