#123. What Humboldt’s Homeless Services Are Really Facing | Anjali Browning

Anjali Browning joins Scott Hammond for a conversation about homeless services, applied anthropology, and the work of building capacity for local nonprofits in Humboldt. She talks about Arcata House Partnership, Project Roomkey and Homekey, housing work in Southern Humboldt, and what she is seeing among people with deep roots in SoHum. The conversation also touches on travel, loss, Dia de Muertos, and Rise Over Run Strategies.

Transcript

Fourth Of July Welcome

SPEAKER_00 0:30

Ladies and gentlemen, friends and neighbors, it's Scott Hammond with the 100% Humboldt Podcast on our Fourth of July weekend edition, uh 250 years old uh in our American experiment with my new best friend, Anjali Browning. Hi. Hi. How's your day? It's a good day. It's a good day. Yeah. It's the best day I've had so far today. That's my father-in-law saying. So tell me about you, Angeli. Who who are you and uh where do you come from and all the things? What do you do?

SPEAKER_01 0:58

Well, you said this was gonna be easy. Um so who am I? Well, um I live here in Eureka, um, but certainly doesn't define who I am.

SPEAKER_03 1:12

That's true.

SPEAKER_01 1:13

Um I uh work in the homeless services industry largely in the homeless services sector. And um I uh am currently running a um a consulting firm um that uh it works to build capacity in um sorry in those organizations in nonprofits across Humboldt, but particularly for homeless services.

SPEAKER_00 1:44

I love it. Yeah. I'm really really impressed. I I looked at your your resume and I'm going, oh, so you're an anthropologist, an an applied anthropologist. What's that?

SPEAKER_01 1:53

Yeah, so um generally speaking, it's people who are working in the field um finding solutions to practical problems, usually, ideally. Um one of the things that I found uh working in um field work was that it's

Applied Anthropology Meets Homeless Services

SPEAKER_01 2:10

pretty easy to find problems. Problems are everywhere. Um, the hard part is solutions. And the hard part is actually finding solutions that work. Right. And uh that's actually how I ended up getting into the work that I do now because um I think I'm also uh a a puzzle solver. I liked I like challenges.

SPEAKER_02 2:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:30

And um actually the way that I ended up in homeless services was uh the the former executive or the current executive director at Arcada House Partnership. Uh we had been on a city committee together.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

Who is that?

SPEAKER_01 2:42

Uh Darlene Spohr.

SPEAKER_00 2:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 2:44

And um she uh challenged me with a question and about coming on board and she said, you know, it'll be the hardest work you ever love.

SPEAKER_00 2:53

Wow, I like that.

SPEAKER_01 2:54

Yeah, and it and it and it is. Um and I thought to myself, well, you know, I've always had thoughts about what could be done um for homelessness, but let's see if I could put uh put my uh my thoughts to work.

SPEAKER_00 3:09

Good. Yeah. So let's talk about our Arcada, um, Arcata House real quick. Um it's sort of iconic, quintessential. And uh Jason Shea, my good friend and pastor, is on their board and he also speaks very highly of it and her. So tell tell me uh what's been your involvement there? What did they do for the homeless populations?

SPEAKER_01 3:29

Oh goodness. Well, when I started with them um in uh let's see, 2018, um they were really um at a transition point. Um they were uh I think it

Arcata House Partnership Full Spectrum Care

SPEAKER_01 3:40

was about 17 staff at the time. And um, you know, had a had an array of services, but um really during COVID was when a lot of the uh large funding came thro through for homeless services and became part of the national dialogue. And um, and so that was a sort of a a a weird opportunity, right? That um a lot of this funding came in. We were able to s successfully get some programs off the ground like the tent shelters or the um safe parking programs. There was a lot of willingness in the cities to take a little bit more risk, but also there was more funding coming in in to um to support these kind of newer projects and ideas. Well, um, and so really it was sort of that that catapulted the organization to sort of a very different level.

SPEAKER_00 4:26

And Arcata would be fertile ground for all that stuff because they're they're forward thinking and progressive. And let's hey, let's get curious, try something new. Yeah. So tell me about the uh I was reading about the um what did you call it? It's that safe zone, the parking.

SPEAKER_01 4:40

Safe parking?

SPEAKER_00 4:41

Yeah, tell me, tell me what that is, because that had my interest.

SPEAKER_01 4:44

Yeah. Um, so that was a pilot project with the city of Arcata. Um, very forward thinking, like you were saying. Um it was the first one that was uh ever done in the county. Um and the idea was basically to give people a place to safely park and deliver services to them on site. And uh that project actually did very well. Um, unfortunately, just the funding didn't get renewed. But um, you know, it it's obviously ideal to really just get people indoors.

SPEAKER_00 5:12

Right.

SPEAKER_01 5:13

Um, you know, but it was a good way to I like it.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

Short of that is creative workaround.

SPEAKER_01 5:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:18

I live in my car and I can shower there and I'm safe. And was it was it by the transit center down by the ballpark?

SPEAKER_01 5:25

No. Uh actually the tent shelters were done there. Um no, the safe parking program was um office of Old Boulevard.

SPEAKER_00 5:31

Okay. Nice.

SPEAKER_01 5:32

Was uh the old soil soilscapes.

SPEAKER_00 5:35

Yeah, okay. Yeah. Which is probably an old logging deck back in the day.

SPEAKER_01 5:40

Yeah, well, it's right next to that little logging spot.

SPEAKER_00 5:42

Yeah. So Arcata House, what are they what do they do? Tell me about the services they provide. Oh yeah, they have Oh, before before you do, I have to do my prop. It's it's uh it's very important that I do this. So Arcata, if I can get my point there it goes. We're in Eureka. Arcada's up here on the northern side of the bay.

SPEAKER_03 5:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:59

And we're we're here. I live in McKinleyville. Um and uh Nick lives in Eureka. Don't you, Nick? See how I broke the fourth or fifth wall there? Anyway, so sorry to interrupt my question. Yeah, your answer.

unknown 6:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:15

Um Arcada House.

SPEAKER_01 6:17

Yeah. So Arcata House has the full spectrum of homeless services. So that means they have everything from walk-in or outreach services, um, shelter programs and um and permanent housing. Um, and they've done a lot of firsts in the county for sure. Um tell me some. Um, well, obviously those programs I just mentioned, the tent shelters and the safe parking, but also um the Project Room Key when that launched uh during COVID. Yeah,

Safe Parking Plus Room Key To Home Key

SPEAKER_01 6:45

what's that? So that was funded by the governor uh during COVID to safely shelter people in place who had no shelter. Um, and so basically it took um it funded putting people into hotels um to shelter in place. Um and our actually the the project we ran there was um quite successful. Um we had a very high rate of placement out of that program. Wow, partly because uh around the same time our actually sort of following up on room key or sorry, Home Key was um the recognition that, okay, now where do we put all these people? And so the governor started Project Home Key. And that was to basically take these same hotels or other hotels, basically fund um the rapid conversion of hotels into permanent housing.

SPEAKER_00 7:36

Wow. So like Valley West out that way. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 7:39

So the the Arcada House had one of those, the the Grove. Um, they also did the the Kemiak Place, which is in Eureka.

SPEAKER_03 7:45

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 7:46

Mm-hmm. And um so a lot of the people that were in Room Key did transition to those. Sorry, we're in uh RoomKey went into Home Key. Sorry.

SPEAKER_00 7:55

Into Home Key.

SPEAKER_01 7:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:56

Okay, got it. Cool. And so, you know, when I think homeless, uh, I think a lot of things, but I think of Betty Chen. So you were part of her world for a minute. Yeah. Tell me, tell me about that.

SPEAKER_01 8:07

Yeah, I've worked with Betty over the years, um, working to transition people, you know, a lot all the providers locally do cooperate and you know, sort of try to help problem solve on people.

SPEAKER_03 8:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:18

Um, so I'd I'd known her for quite some time through that process. And um uh as I mentioned about a year ago, I started um working it uh on my own in consulting. I have a a a group of partners that we all work together. And um Betty had asked me to to help her um on a couple of projects.

SPEAKER_00 8:37

Um and she sort of just calls me when she needs an extra hand or as I was talking to you off camera, we um she came over yesterday because we found an old photo of her uh at a friend's house. And she was so touched that she's always very gracious.

SPEAKER_01 8:53

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:53

Yeah. And I had a you know, I had her on the show, she's one of my first guests, and you know, I had all those preconceived notions

Lessons From Betty Chen’s Shelter Work

SPEAKER_00 9:00

as we all have. Yeah. And uh she dispelled uh like 97% of those. It's like, wow, you're an amazing person. I go, are you ever afraid to go to a homeless encampment? She goes, never. I I'm not afraid of anyone. I go, okay.

SPEAKER_01 9:15

I can personally attest to that. Um, you know, uh before I ever met Betty, I'd heard about Betty, right? Everybody's heard about Betty.

SPEAKER_03 9:22

Right.

SPEAKER_01 9:23

Um and uh not too long ago, actually this last winter, um I had been working with her on some things and I I'd heard that she didn't have um some staffing for that night's winter shelter because I most people don't realize she's still there for them and she sleeps right there or you know, she does right on the spot, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:44

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 9:44

Um, and uh so I said, well, you know, Patty, you should have told me, you know, what's we're always here to help, right? So I went over and, you know, sat at the desk and watched some people, and pretty soon I recognized some people that, you know, I remember from other places that I've worked. Sure. Uh a particular person that um I know even police don't really like to engage because that person tends to be pretty um uh escalated and um gets physical. And I was surprised to see him there. And uh he was very peaceful sleeping in his bed, and he started to get up and he, you know, she was just coming the other way and he said, Uh I'm gonna move over here. She says, No, you stay there. And then he said, Okay, thank you and laid down. Thank you, ma'am. And I was just in awe, right? That people don't seem to really understand you know, she's it's it's Betty's way, right?

SPEAKER_00 10:41

And And you better obey.

SPEAKER_01 10:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:44

The nice lady.

SPEAKER_01 10:45

Yeah, but she does amazing work for them, and I think that they know that.

SPEAKER_00 10:48

She's telling me that she um she puts up with a lot and then she has a limit, and then it they're done. Then if they're not responding and it's not working out, then she lets them know.

SPEAKER_01 10:58

She definitely holds people accountable.

SPEAKER_00 11:00

That's good. I think that we should all do that a little bit, a little bit better. Maybe without the shame piece, which is a whole other topic.

SPEAKER_01 11:06

Without a doubt.

SPEAKER_00 11:07

Now I heard that she went to Rome and got audience with Pope Bob.

SPEAKER_01 11:13

I did hear that. Um I don't know if I'm at liberty to share it, but I but I uh I think uh it's it's quite a moving story. I think it was a real uh pilgrimage for her. And um she's so modest, she doesn't really want to, you know, brag about these things. But how many of us make it to Rome at all, much less Yeah, right. And apparently he already had a copy of her book.

SPEAKER_00 11:39

Oh, that's cool. That's really cool.

SPEAKER_01 11:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:42

I should ask for that. I got to go to Florence last week.

SPEAKER_03 11:44

Did you? Oh, that's right. You told me right before.

SPEAKER_00 11:46

It was way too crowded. Oh, wasn't it? It was 90 degrees and it was cool, but it was like, hmm. But mango gelato, that's the that's the key. And the tr and the truck stop coffee, the Italian espresso at a truck stop is better than you could find in America. Yeah. So good. Oh my gosh. These guys really know how to eat and drink. This is cool. Yeah, so that was fun. Uh so uh we'll come back to all of that and and Southern Humboldt too. But first, let's hear about your uh you were raised in Napa City. River City, Napa.

SPEAKER_01 12:19

Napa, Napa River, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:21

Um tell me all about that in your youth. Where did you go to school? What'd you do? Sure. UCLA, that's cool.

SPEAKER_01 12:27

Yeah, yeah. I've um been a lot of places for sure. Um yeah, I was born in Napa, Queen of Valley Hospital. Um, and uh grew up there until um through through elementary school. When when people hear you grew up in Napa, they think of what it is now. Of course, at that time it was mostly pastures and dairy farms, and you know, there were wine

Napa Roots And Bay Area Schools

SPEAKER_01 12:50

wineries when they were out on the outskirts. And that was sort of the thing you did when family came to town.

SPEAKER_00 12:55

Uh up in Rutherford and Calistoga. Yep. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:58

Yeah. Um and uh my grandparents were actually in Sonoma, so we were always kind of back and forth between there, but it wasn't the quite the um elegant idea that you have of it now. It was pretty rural.

SPEAKER_00 13:09

It's pretty bougie now.

SPEAKER_01 13:11

Very bougie now. Yeah. Yeah. Well, yeah. My parents owned a house um that they bought that backed up to the uh Silverado Country Club at the time. And again, that was just sort of an outskirts, wasn't something like that. Yeah. And they they sold the house when when I was in elementary school or finished elementary school. No, actually, it was earlier than that, um, before we moved to the river. But they um they uh thought they just made out like bandits because they sold the house for $100,000. It was an acre backing up to the country because congratulations. Yeah. They thought, oh my God, I can't believe they paid that.

SPEAKER_00 13:48

Right.

SPEAKER_01 13:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:50

Like San Diego where I grew up, a lot of the houses remember they used to advertise homes on TV for $199.95 out in Powerway and Escondito and Rancho Bernardo and East County, and I'm going, wow. And I was raised in the hood by my mom in an apartment, a little condo. And um, now those homes are, you know, two million dollar homes. Just crazy. Just the same ones maybe fixed up a little bit better. But yeah, it's funny how real estate blossoms. So you went to school in Napa?

SPEAKER_01 14:20

I did. Um, yep. We moved over to the river when I was probably third grade and we spent a lot of time out in the river. My dad was really into sailing and so we had a boat.

SPEAKER_00 14:30

And then the river goes into the delta?

SPEAKER_01 14:32

It does.

SPEAKER_00 14:32

And that's where okay, gotcha.

SPEAKER_01 14:34

Yeah. And then she c go through like Bileo and then out into the lot of places to r sail on boat, right?

SPEAKER_00 14:42

Oh yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:43

Yeah, yeah. Um a lot of sloughs out there too, not unlike here. Um there's a there's a fairly good size bay there.

SPEAKER_03 14:50

Okay.

unknown 14:51

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_01 14:51

Yeah. Um, but then when I was um actually when I finished elementary school, we moved to uh the Bay Area.

SPEAKER_00 14:58

Okay. What part?

SPEAKER_01 14:59

Um so I went to Los Altas High. Again, one of those things that sounds very fancy. Um, but this was in Silicon Valley was just getting going.

SPEAKER_00 15:07

So it wasn't that big of a deal.

SPEAKER_01 15:09

You know, yeah. It wasn't that big of a deal. But um, but yeah. Um so I went to Los Altos High and then went to Foothill College for a while. And you know, I didn't have a lot of pressure on me to you know get working right away.

SPEAKER_00 15:23

So Foothill. Is that in San Jose?

SPEAKER_01 15:26

Um it would be just out well, basically Los Altos. Okay. In the hills there.

SPEAKER_00 15:31

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:31

Very pretty campus. Not unlike CR actually. Oh, nice. Kind of a similar vibe.

SPEAKER_00 15:36

Then Stanford.

SPEAKER_01 15:37

Yeah. Well, I didn't go to Stanford. But I did make it to USA later on.

SPEAKER_00 15:41

Oh, that's cool. So you graduated high school in in in Los Altos.

SPEAKER_01 15:45

Mm-hmm. Okay. Yeah. And then um got a chance to do a uh study abroad through Foothill College.

SPEAKER_00 15:51

Oh wow.

SPEAKER_01 15:52

Mm-hmm. So um I did that and then uh did a whole backpack experience.

SPEAKER_00 15:57

Um, I want to hear about that. Yeah. Across the globe at 17.

SPEAKER_01 16:00

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:01

What? That's pretty brave.

SPEAKER_01 16:04

You know, it didn't seem like it at the time. I think I just didn't know enough to know. Did you go with a group or um

Traveling At 17 Without A Phone

SPEAKER_01 16:10

well I started with the city abroad? Um actually it really happened because of my mom. Um, because my mom said, um, well, she kind of realized I was maybe a little aimless and a little not, you know, getting into some trouble, maybe didn't have the best friends in her mind.

SPEAKER_00 16:26

Oh, you're hanging out with the stoners.

SPEAKER_01 16:29

Yeah, well, not the stoners, but the punk rockers. And for her that was a little you know close enough. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:34

Adjacent.

unknown 16:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:36

Or distant cousins.

SPEAKER_01 16:37

Yeah. So uh she walked in one day with this newspaper and said, Hey, there's this uh, you know, study abroad program. Maybe you'd be interested, but you have to do a you have to complete a quarter of of school before you do that. Oh. And so um I said, sounded pretty interesting. So um it was a study abroad in London. And I actually had a friend that was living there already. And um, and so started there, got a, you know, the what is it, the um Brit Rail Pass and then the URL pass. And then in those days it was also you could fly from, you know, London or wherever to Amsterdam.

SPEAKER_00 17:18

Yeah. Cheap.

SPEAKER_01 17:19

Just cheap, quick. Yeah. So it was a great time.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

Far out.

SPEAKER_01 17:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:24

What a great way to go.

SPEAKER_01 17:25

Yeah. No cell phones.

SPEAKER_00 17:26

You were 17?

SPEAKER_01 17:27

Yeah. No cell phones.

SPEAKER_00 17:29

Yeah. Better that way.

SPEAKER_01 17:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:33

It's kind of weird to imagine a world without the weird device trailing and reporting in. And God, what am I gonna oh, how will I get uh you'll ask somebody or get a map.

SPEAKER_01 17:47

Or you just had to wait till they got a message and called you back.

SPEAKER_00 17:50

Or you'll wing it or make a phone call or do something. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:53

Yeah. It was one of the m really most amazing experiences of my life because you know, I had a your rail pass or a Brit rail pass or, you know, whatever, and a map, and just wake up and decide where you're gonna go that day because everything was so accessible, you know.

SPEAKER_00 18:09

Europe's so close.

SPEAKER_01 18:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:11

Did you go to Eastern Europe too?

SPEAKER_01 18:12

Not as much. I regret that. I would have liked to have done that. Um, but I did go, you know, after there I went to uh India and Thailand and you know a handful of other places in in the east as well.

SPEAKER_00 18:23

But um still at 17? Did you turn 18 on the road?

SPEAKER_01 18:27

I did turn 18. Yes. Um but uh you know it was just so it's such a different world. I I think about now I got I have a son who's 15 going on 16, and I couldn't imagine just cutting him loose. Right. I mean, I'm yeah, I have the cell phone just you know, tracking him when he's sure in Eureka, you know.

SPEAKER_00 18:46

And the country called Eureka.

SPEAKER_01 18:48

Yeah, yeah. So um yeah, I that would be uh I can't even imagine it now, but it was just such a different time.

SPEAKER_00 18:57

Oh, yeah. Parents were different. Nine, 10, 11, 12 years old going downtown San Diego for the day. We'd get on the bus at 10 in the morning and go all day downtown Belbo Park and play. And Jack of the Box downtown was a big treat, and the Spreckles Theater had a movie and they had these things called arcades.

SPEAKER_01 19:15

Yeah, I remember those.

SPEAKER_00 19:16

Go to the vinyl store and look at the vinyl, like Nick's collection over here. And it was just a you know, Ferris Bueller's day off and nothing ever happened. It was always cool. I was never really maybe we're stupid or just you know, dumb dumb luck. Uh but it was like, oh, different world.

SPEAKER_01 19:34

Well, I also feel like we didn't have the same steady diet of, you know, Fear Factor around every corner, you know? Um True. Actually, I um in my house, sometimes the the news can be so bad, you know, that I stop listening. Yeah. And my son took on a habit of uh, you know, now kids are all on their devices and um have their um uh like their feeds, right? And so he's been finding all of the positive stories to tell me in the world. Whoa. And he just starts reading them to me. Did you know? And it's been such yeah, and it's in such a breath of fresh air for me.

SPEAKER_00 20:16

I bet.

SPEAKER_01 20:17

Right? Just to hear that's right, there are good things happening in the world, and we need to focus on those.

SPEAKER_00 20:21

Yeah. I wanna I wanna I wanna ask what that feed is. Uh I'll find out. I'll get it. Yeah. Chad'll tell me. Yeah. Chad knows everything. Yeah. Um, I love that. Because we s we stopped doing news probably early COVID. It like early-ish. It just like kind of turned that feed off because it's like it's it's the same story recycled again and again. It's like, and it's all crap and everybody's going to hell in a handbasket, and life's horrible, don't you know?

SPEAKER_03 20:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 20:49

And then people start walking around acting like that. It's like, oh, wait, is there a correlation here?

SPEAKER_01 20:56

Yeah. And you know, I was just having a conversation with somebody the other day about um exactly that and how even um, you know, stories that are on some of our local media, right, that the comment sections are just, you know, full of trolls and saying horrible things, you know. And so it's it's you almost want to avoid reading anything anymore. And it kind of tugs at our spirit, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_00 21:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 21:27

So hey, trolls, forget you, man. Yeah. Get out of here with your trolling troll ways and your negativity, negative Debbie Downer, wah wah. Anyway, uh that's kind of a pet peeve of mine, so I won't go there.

SPEAKER_03 21:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 21:42

So uh so you you toured the world and came back and went to UCLA? Or what happened next?

SPEAKER_01 21:48

Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_00 21:49

But wait, before you do that, what were the three highlights of your tour around the globe? Three takeaways, just random.

SPEAKER_01 21:57

Wow. Um takeaways, one would be how b big the world is and yet how small. Even at that time, without all the internet and everything, um, I was actually I actually believe it or not, had a horrible time in Paris. Um and yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:21

Like one day, or was it a big thing? The restaurant's not a problem, but I think multiple days?

SPEAKER_01 22:25

Uh yeah, it was a run of bad days for sure. Wow. I was staying in a hostel, had a bunch of Step stolen and you know, just a bunch of things. And I was and I was traveling on my own. And like I said, I just didn't know enough to know that, you know, I need to be a little more aware of uh what's around me.

SPEAKER_03 22:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:46

Um, but uh I was really defeated and you know, almost like ready to just give it up and go home. Wow. It was uh I was pulling up in a taxi at night to this hostel, I was walking by and I saw this guy sitting slumped over on a wall, you know, and I thought, that guy looks familiar.

SPEAKER_03 23:08

Huh.

SPEAKER_01 23:10

We knew each other from from home. Wow. And he had also been having a terrible time. He hadn't been able to eat because everywhere he went, nobody would uh serve him food. Wow. Yeah. And so then we ended up traveling together for a while. But uh wow. So it was um small world after all. Small world after all, yeah. And um, I feel like I've found that to be the case over and over again.

SPEAKER_00 23:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:32

It's it's huge and then smaller than we think.

SPEAKER_00 23:35

Then you see somebody in Amsterdam going, Hey, what what are you doing here?

SPEAKER_01 23:39

Yeah, yeah. Um I think part of what also uh happened for me in that experience, um, and probably what my mom had an idea about when she suggested it. Um it puts you in a in a sense of perspective uh vis-a-vis the rest of the world. There's a lot of other life ways, there's a lot of other ways of viewing the world.

SPEAKER_03 24:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:03

Um, and I that's very much what led me towards anthropology eventually. Um, you know, the that appreciation for how many different ways that we as humans have come to live in the world and see the world.

SPEAKER_00 24:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:17

And that ours isn't the only one, and it's not the right one, it's not the wrong one, it's just one.

SPEAKER_00 24:21

Spain was very different from Italy, which was different from Marseille.

SPEAKER_01 24:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:25

It it's like a whole different deal, man. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 24:27

And it'll work.

SPEAKER_00 24:28

Yeah.

unknown 24:29

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:35

And it was it was cool, it was cool. People are gi generally friendly and speak when spoken to.

SPEAKER_01 24:41

Yeah. Well, and I think that's sort of the the third one is um understanding the value of diversity.

SPEAKER_00 24:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:52

You know. Not be afraid of it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:54

Yeah. Yeah. And there's a universal um ex the journey is very universal. Mm-hmm. Yeah, it really is. Those are good. So when you got back then, what? Did you immediately go to Foothill or UCLA?

SPEAKER_01 25:07

Um not immediately to UCLA. Um I boy, I gotta think about it for a second. Um, I I did um I stayed in India for a year.

SPEAKER_00 25:21

Oh, right. I read that.

SPEAKER_01 25:22

Mm-hmm. Yeah, it was and that was again so just part of that richening of my own worldview and you know, learning different ways.

SPEAKER_00 25:32

What part of India?

SPEAKER_01 25:33

Um Well I actually traveled around quite a bit, but then I did stay uh in an area just outside of uh what was then Bombay, now um Mumbai.

SPEAKER_00 25:41

Wow. And an ashram, is how you say it? Is that like a farm or a commune?

SPEAKER_01 25:46

No, um it's well, it's like uh you could say a retreat center or something else, but um, but I was studying particularly.

SPEAKER_00 25:54

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 25:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:55

It's like Benjamin Button or something.

SPEAKER_01 25:57

Kind of.

SPEAKER_00 25:57

He was like on tour. Yeah. I love it.

SPEAKER_01 26:00

Well, you know, I think I also got it from my dad. Um my mom had the original inspiration of me going, but my dad, he was the one with the wander list and very much uh adventuring spirit. And um so when he was basically that same age, round 17, he his family um decided to spend a year in Europe. Oh they came from money, so you know, they could do things like that. Um my family didn't have the same money, but you know, so they could quite do it like that. But but yeah, they spent a year um traveling abroad. And um, and so that was his last year of high school, was basically doing that. And so I think that that all of those stories and experiences really, you know.

SPEAKER_00 26:44

I had a number of friends from Humboldt State that did that. They were able to go for a year or six months and just backpack and hitchhike in your rail and do the whole thing.

SPEAKER_01 26:53

Yeah. Well, I think because there it's also so easy. I mean, it's it's almost just the the the national kind of default, that's what you do.

SPEAKER_03 27:03

Right.

SPEAKER_01 27:03

Right. And so everywhere we went, I shouldn't say everywhere, because obviously Paris wasn't different, but there were so many places that you know you just get off the train and somebody's right away, oh, do you know where to go? Do you know what and it was just very genuine, you know?

SPEAKER_00 27:16

Want to hear a funny train story on the way to Paris?

SPEAKER_01 27:19

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 27:19

So uh my son Jesse and and daughter-in-law lived in Utrecht, um, Netherlands, south of Amsterdam. So we're on the train going to Belgium to Ghent, and somehow we got on a Eurostar. It's red and it's fast, it's packed full of people, and they're having a good time. And the guy comes, he gets our ticket. He goes, You're supposed to be way on the Rotterdam. You're supposed to be way over there. What how did you get on this train? And he goes, You have to get off this train. And I go, and now we go into old, dumb, and American mode. And, you know, it and the train was packed. It was on its way to the Olympics last summer.

SPEAKER_03 28:00

Oh.

SPEAKER_00 28:01

And um fortunately the next stop was Ghent in Belgium where we were getting off. And it worked out good. But that was our dumb American how how did you even make it on this train, dude? Story. What what are you doing here?

SPEAKER_01 28:15

Well, and the thing is most people there will speak three or four languages, right? And we're the only ones that are kind of, you know, expecting everybody to speak English.

SPEAKER_00 28:22

Yeah, I wish I would have tried a little harder in uh Spain to speak Spanish, because I could do a little bit, but um yeah, to make the I think to make the efforts charming and I think they appreciate it a little. So anyway. But yeah, yeah, Netherlands is funny because people, uh the Dutch probably speak better English than many Americans, I know. Super articulate. Yeah. And different also a different culture, you know? Game face, tunnel vision, and then hey, I'm lost, and then they become human and they go, hey, well, let me see if I can help you. And so it's just kind of a different, a whole different deal. So leading to U UCLA, um, did you do the five years in Mexico after college?

SPEAKER_01 29:04

Um actually I started there uh while I was doing my graduate work.

SPEAKER_00 29:08

Okay. Um, because that's right to my field work. So what did you study at UCLA?

SPEAKER_01 29:12

Anthropology, pretty much all the way through. Um I had a concentration in history and did a lot of um political economy kind of studies.

SPEAKER_00 29:19

Did you live right at Westwood?

SPEAKER_01 29:21

I did. Well, um, yes, part of the time. Um it's expensive. Um, but so yeah, generally on the west side. But nice.

SPEAKER_00 29:29

You

Loss, Purpose, UCLA, And Oaxaca

SPEAKER_00 29:30

ever been to the Getty Museum?

SPEAKER_01 29:31

Oh yeah. And the the old one and the new one.

SPEAKER_00 29:33

Oh, you're super cool.

SPEAKER_01 29:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:35

Oh, the new one's so cool.

SPEAKER_01 29:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:37

And it's free, but it's 20 bucks to park. But hey, bargain. It's 20 bucks to do anything in LA.

SPEAKER_01 29:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:44

And yeah, we got we've been a couple times. It's really amazing.

SPEAKER_01 29:48

Yeah, it's an impressive facility for sure. Quite a collection. Tram going all the way up.

SPEAKER_00 29:53

Tell us about the old Getty. That's in that's over at the beach, right?

SPEAKER_01 29:56

Yep. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 29:56

Kind of on the Mellboop.

SPEAKER_01 29:59

Mm-hmm. It's all kind of collapsing there now. But yeah.

SPEAKER_00 30:01

That's supposed to be an amazing place too.

SPEAKER_01 30:04

Beautiful. Completely different.

SPEAKER_00 30:06

Right. How'd you like LA?

SPEAKER_01 30:08

You know, it's funny, so many people say, Oh, how could you live in LA? I actually liked LA, but to me, it has a lot to do with what I'm doing. Yeah. And so I liked what I was doing. And I had a group of people that I was interacting with.

SPEAKER_00 30:20

Did you have to commute a lot?

SPEAKER_01 30:21

Um well, even to go short distance is commuting a lot.

SPEAKER_00 30:25

A lot. So the point of not liking LA, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 30:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 30:30

I like it. I don't mind going.

SPEAKER_01 30:32

Yeah. It's it's funny because I went back to um, I mean, I go periodically, but um I hadn't been in a long time. And then um I want to say 2018, 19, something like that, we went down to to LA. And I I couldn't believe how much it had changed, you know, like for particularly like Santa Monica area and the promenade. And I mean it's very, very pretty, but it doesn't have the same kind of life that I feel like it had, maybe.

SPEAKER_00 31:00

Marina Del Rey was really yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 31:03

Yeah. We got married at Port Socala Wedding Chapel in um San Pedro Harbor a hundred years ago. And um yeah, it was all smaller. And then her Johnny's dad lived in Torrance. We go up to Hermosa and Redondo and ride the bikes all the way up to Marina Del Rey and back. That's a ride. Yeah, it's fun. Yeah. Yeah, because the beaches were all really it's always nice and warm. And you're right, the pain it's a pain in the butt to drive anywhere.

SPEAKER_01 31:27

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I I lived sort of um Marina Del Rey adjacent and um would have to commute up to the campus, and it's it's only a few miles, but it you know an hour. Yeah. Yeah. Well, and then there's parking. So then there's parking.

SPEAKER_00 31:45

Yeah. Yeah. And that c then that costs money. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:48

So I got pretty proficient with the buses.

SPEAKER_00 31:50

So did you do your doctorate work there too?

SPEAKER_01 31:52

I did.

SPEAKER_00 31:52

Nice. Anthropology? Imagine that.

SPEAKER_01 31:54

Yeah, I kind of went in with a focus.

SPEAKER_00 31:56

Wow. It's it sounds like it. Yeah. Were you gonna teach with that or what what were you what was your intention?

SPEAKER_01 32:01

You know, I don't know if I had a specific thing in mind. I just knew I really liked it. Um and I did do a little bit of teaching. Um and then I got a I did get a postdoc down at San Diego at Deanna UTSD. My hometown. Yeah. Yes. I was there for about a year, but did you live in La Jolla? No, I couldn't. That's too high rent discussion. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 32:26

You're from La Jala? Come on, man.

SPEAKER_01 32:29

No, I lived in North Park, which is a fun area.

SPEAKER_00 32:31

Oh, my dad lived there for a while.

SPEAKER_01 32:33

North Park's cool. It's a fun, fun fair.

SPEAKER_00 32:35

There are a lot of street fairs there that we we attended when it was fun.

SPEAKER_01 32:39

Yeah, they do. Um but uh yeah, I, you know, I went back to college. You know, I did a little bit of here and there college. I actually even went to CR for a little while, um probably when I was 20 or something. Um, but um I didn't really have a specific, you know, idea of what I wanted to do, and I wasn't particularly pushed to. I just was generally a pretty capable person and it but always seemed like other people had better things for me to do, you know. I didn't have that drive.

SPEAKER_03 33:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:14

Um and I had a pretty significant life event. Um, my uh partner at the time passed away um from cancer and I was 26. And yeah, and um it gives you perspective in your life. And um I think it gave me a moment to think about what am I doing here? What do I what do I want to do? And yeah, I'd always been interested. And like I said, that interest started with all that traveling and I just did it. Nice. Um absolutely loved it. And um when I uh I I had gotten my postdoc or sorry, no, when I was doing my field research for the doctorate, um, I was uh living in Mexico and um met my husband there. Uh um and um so that sort of it's another life course change.

SPEAKER_00 34:08

Yeah, I bet. Um where were you in Mexico?

SPEAKER_01 34:10

In Oaxaca.

SPEAKER_00 34:11

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 34:12

Mm-hmm. Yeah. It was pre-coco though.

SPEAKER_00 34:15

What'd you do there? Pre-coco.

SPEAKER_01 34:17

Very different now.

SPEAKER_00 34:18

See that movie.

SPEAKER_01 34:19

Yeah, yeah. Sorry.

SPEAKER_00 34:21

What'd you do there? Uh just study?

SPEAKER_01 34:24

Yeah. Okay. Well, yeah, well, initially that I was there to do my field work. Um, and uh and then uh came back to finish my my program and then he came up to to do a program. He got a master's in urban planning.

SPEAKER_03 34:37

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 34:38

And so um actually at UCLA as well. So we kind of just both got on that train three. That train, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 34:44

And now it's all matter of record.

SPEAKER_01 34:47

All matter of record.

SPEAKER_00 34:48

How long have you been married?

SPEAKER_01 34:49

Um we are going on 19 years. Congrats. Yeah. It's cool. Is that right? It's 2026.

SPEAKER_00 34:58

It is 2026. I know that part. I don't know the 19. Yeah. Cannot verify. So if you're just joining us, my new best friend Angeli Brownie uh Browning, and I'm um delighted. I mean, I have I've never talked to somebody that's traveled so much. So um look at you go. Been there done that. So uh let's talk about Sohum here in a minute. I'm trying to think if we want to oh, let's introduce the uh do you like chocolate per chance? I mean Do you have to ask? I don't. Um Hi Jody. My wife Jody says there's no woman that does not like chocolate. And she could say it. I didn't say it.

SPEAKER_01 35:36

It's not I like Jody already.

SPEAKER_00 35:38

Yeah, Jody's the black fig.

SPEAKER_01 35:40

Oh, that's a fantastic one.

SPEAKER_00 35:42

Personal favorite. And let's uh let's do the quiz and then let's talk a little bit about um SoHum and how we could get a hold of you and shout-outs and how how we could support the work that you do and maybe those that you do it for.

SPEAKER_01 35:55

Sounds great.

SPEAKER_00 35:55

A lot of agencies, right?

SPEAKER_01 35:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 35:58

There's ways that we could participate by our our time or treasure.

SPEAKER_01 36:02

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 36:04

And you know, homelessness has been you know, the three things uh housing, homelessness, and healthcare. Uh you you're right of the main theme of this podcast, so it's uh it's a recurring thing.

SPEAKER_01 36:16

And it's an important thing to focus on.

SPEAKER_00 36:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:19

Affects everyone.

SPEAKER_00 36:20

Yeah. And the answers um we'll get to, but let's have some fun first. Let's get you that black fig. Ready? Okay. Okay. Angela for all the money and the Dick Taylor chocolate bar. Brought to you by Dick Taylor Chocolate Jerica, California. Right over there on the map. What was your best day ever?

SPEAKER_01 36:42

The day my son was born.

SPEAKER_00 36:44

Ooh, nice. He's four fifteen now. Oh, good answer. Why was that the best day?

The Chocolate Quiz And Core Values

SPEAKER_01 36:52

Um boy, that's an inexplicable feeling. Um yeah. Hearing his first cry, there's so much anticipation waiting to know this being. You know.

SPEAKER_00 37:03

This person.

SPEAKER_01 37:04

And yeah, I I mean without a doubt, that takes I like that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:11

Yeah. You didn't have any trouble with that at all. Nope. Question number two for ten points. Worst day ever.

SPEAKER_01 37:20

Oh my goodness. I think I might have just had it.

SPEAKER_00 37:24

Not today.

SPEAKER_01 37:27

No. Um, no, not today.

SPEAKER_03 37:30

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 37:30

Worst day ever. Wow. Um, probably probably the day my mom died. It was a bad one. It was hard with my dad, but there's something about losing your mom and just what she does for your world.

SPEAKER_00 37:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:50

As and I mean, I was thankful that I was able to be with her. Right. But um just in terms of the life shift that that's it.

SPEAKER_00 38:00

Yeah. The permanency of the death is really interesting.

SPEAKER_01 38:03

Yeah.

unknown 38:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 38:04

We got to talk about death a little bit yesterday. It was really good. It's really um kind of a refreshing topic, although hard to talk about. Because then it brings a lot of perspective. And and at 66, I could attest to the fact that I'm I'm in my autumn years. And uh, you know, uh this nobody gets out of here alive.

SPEAKER_01 38:24

Well, you know, one I don't know if I'm allowed if we're still doing the quiz, but uh if I can elaborate please, we'll come back to question number three in a minute. Okay. Um in a way I misspoke about it being the worst day. Um it was maybe the most painful day. Painful. And in that I, you know, that loss. But at the same time, one of the things that I really fell in love with about the Mexican culture is Dida Muertos and the idea that um, you know, this this kind of close connection to the to the people that you've lost that aren't really lost. Yeah. Um and um, you know, that there's this embrace of death as part of life. Yeah. And um, it's something that has always resonated with me. And I think that I've I've had the honor of being with a number of people in their last moment, and um, it is an honor.

SPEAKER_00 39:14

Yeah. Oh, it's a whole next level. Yeah. And Las Vegas and Arcata and Eureka.

SPEAKER_03 39:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:20

Located and and Kalpala. They celebrate that every year. They do. Yeah. Dennis has been very good, Peter.

unknown 39:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:28

And they um yeah, it's cool. Hey, question number three.

SPEAKER_03 39:31

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 39:32

What do you find fulfilling in your life?

SPEAKER_01 39:36

Hmm. Well, I probably work too much. So I would say um I probably need to find better work-life balance. Um, so I would say I do find my work fulfilling, but being with our loved ones really matters more.

SPEAKER_00 39:56

Yeah. It's funny, I I can work and it's fulfilling until I cross over into the non-fulfillment.

unknown 40:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:04

It's like, oh, I don't I don't like what I'm I I've had enough. And I need to find other fulfillments.

SPEAKER_01 40:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:13

It's it's distracting.

SPEAKER_00 40:15

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:16

It takes a lot of your your focus and your energy, but you need to find other parts.

SPEAKER_00 40:20

Yeah. I I I prefer to think of it as work-life synchronicity because sometimes family needs to take full priority.

SPEAKER_03 40:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:28

And it and it can shift and it's okay. And just to know when to shift it is the trick. Hey, question number four. What do you find soul crushing?

SPEAKER_01 40:38

Taxes.

SPEAKER_00 40:39

Taxes. Okay. Haven't gotten that one yet. Um I like that. I had to now that you mention it, you're right. As a business owner, um there's tax bills that come due. They just do. There's quarterlays and payroll tax and all that. It's like, oh wow, this is a real pain in the butt.

SPEAKER_01 41:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 41:02

Oh.

SPEAKER_01 41:03

I definitely have a lot of avoidance around it.

SPEAKER_00 41:05

I have a fifth employee, employee at my place. He's another team member at Scott Hammond State Forum. His name is Uncle. His last name is Sam. And so Sam is like another team member. Problem is he doesn't do much for me, I don't think. Maybe national defense. I mean, uh maybe they're protecting me from something. Anyway, not here to gripe, here to be encouraging. There is no condemnation. All right. For all the bonuses and all the chips, who are you? And what do you want?

SPEAKER_01 41:38

You told me you weren't gonna give me tough questions.

SPEAKER_00 41:41

That's easy. The question's really easy. No. The answers are tough.

SPEAKER_01 41:46

Who am I and what do I want? Um I was actually, I kind of thought you were gonna ask something like this. And I was thinking about it this morning. And I think if I were to give one word to myself, it would be undaunted. Um I take on big challenges, probably too big sometimes. Um I think I'm always trying to climb that hill.

SPEAKER_03 42:13

Wow. Yeah. I like that.

SPEAKER_00 42:16

That's good. I like it.

SPEAKER_01 42:18

I don't know if I'm ever gonna find that f that final puzzle piece though.

SPEAKER_00 42:21

That's who you are. What do you want? What do you want to see happen?

SPEAKER_01 42:25

I want to see happen. I want to see happen a real qualitative commitment to change.

SPEAKER_00 42:42

I like it. That's a powerful answer. And with that, a powerful black fig bar. 72% Tanzania dark chocolate with black fig. Congrats. Ooh, let's ring the bell.

SPEAKER_01 42:54

Has anybody failed the quiz?

SPEAKER_00 42:55

Do they what?

SPEAKER_01 42:56

Has anybody failed the quiz?

SPEAKER_00 42:58

No one yet. No, not yet. Good question. Um so let's go back to SoHum and your new your newest um projects. Um Southern Humboldt, which lies in the south of Humboldt County. It does. Right in here, kind of uh down the 101, not the 299, but down here. Um lots of um still a lot of timber and a lot of farms and still very sparsely populated and kind of depressed now post-cannabis, right?

SPEAKER_01 43:31

Very. Yeah, definitely. It's uh economically struggling. Businesses are having a hard time.

SPEAKER_00 43:36

And can post-cannabis is has that added to our the trim immigrants

Southern Humboldt Housing Opportunities Launch

SPEAKER_00 43:40

that have become jobless and stayed around Humboldt? Is there any correlation? You know, I think there's any science around that.

SPEAKER_01 43:47

There's some. I mean, I don't know that there's anybody that's actually quantified, you know, how many people are post-trimigrants that are now homeless. But to be honest, uh since I've been working down there with Soham Housing Opportunities and um sorry, um also a little bit with uh Redwoods Rural because they had a partnership with Redwoods Rural, um, several other organizations. Um most of what I'm seeing of the people that they're serving are pretty long time grew up in Humboldt, you know, grew up in Southern Humboldt. And so they're um not real interested in leaving Southern Humboldt. Um all of them, you know, mo for the most part do have family nearby. I mean, there's there's some some roots, yeah. You know, there's some people that don't have the long term roots. But most of them really are.

SPEAKER_00 44:31

I mentioned things are pretty tough down there. I know business-wise, Garberville's supposed to be kind of a mess.

SPEAKER_01 44:37

It is tough. They don't have um nearly enough business to support the local businesses for sure.

SPEAKER_00 44:42

Yeah. So tell me what you guys do down there.

SPEAKER_01 44:45

Yeah. Well, um I started working with them uh just about a year ago. Um I had cons not really officially consulted, but when they were first applying for this the current grant that they have, um, you know, I had given them a little bit of advice and and whatnot. But um uh yeah, about a year ago, Patty Ray, who was uh the person who was really kind of spearheading that organization and that effort, uh, and Jimmy Derschlag and a number of other people down there that um really put in a lot of heart and soul and um built uh uh an organization. Um a lot of that came up through uh COVID. Um they had had gotten one of those uh room key projects I was mentioning earlier. Um and so they but they just, you know, they didn't have the same amount of resources or other things that we have here in North County, and even here, this is sure pretty uh limited. Um and um they had a uh a pretty strong partnership with Redwoods Row and um worked uh to to serve people there. They were doing food outreach and other things apart from the Roomkey project. Anyway, um about uh what is it, 2024, end of 2024, into 25, they they were awarded um a large state um grant for um the encampment resolution funds, which are to take specific camps working with Caltrans or Sheriff or whoever else is doing the abatement to resolve those camps, uh meaning to quickly place people that are in those camps into um shelter or housing.

SPEAKER_03 46:23

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 46:24

Um, or to work with them directly on site. And the idea with these projects is that you're not just moving people along. So and you're working with all of the local um partners to ensure that they're not just getting kicked out and then spread around, right? And then you can't it's even harder to get them the services. So um so they got this uh quite large uh grant to do this project. Sorry.

unknown 46:47

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 46:48

But they reached out because um they had kind of gotten it to a certain point, but um really needed more expertise in in terms of how to actually launch the and run these programs. And so um I started working with them and they had hit some roadblocks with the mostly with the construction. Um, they were funded to do uh street outreach, um uh renovate the the Garberville Grange. Um, and they'd purchased the Garberville Break uh Grange and then they also purchased an adjoining property. And uh they were just hitting some issues with the construction. It's just it was a bigger undertaking because they bought that second property and needed to merge it, and so it turned into just a much bigger administrative project. And so they were really kind of stalling on getting their shelter open. So uh luckily we were able to strike some um great relationships there. Um, when I uh actually Patty initially made some of these relationships, and then I just kind of uh uh rode the wave in a sense. But um, so what we did was we very quickly, it was it was coming up on the winter, um, and they were worried about getting people indoors uh this last uh fall, you know, November.

SPEAKER_03 48:01

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 48:02

And um so we we worked out a relationship with one of the local hotels to quickly um shift the shelter operations there. And uh they gave us a a great price and we were able to and the the the family there. Um I want to give shout out to to Ken who owns the the Johnstons, that's where we built. Ken. Yeah, just good job, Ken. Just an amazing person um and has been a tremendous asset to making this happen. Um anyway, so uh we were able to uh quickly transition uh a large uh number of their population into this shelter. They had already housed a few people with with uh housing vouchers. Um and then um we started shifting a few of their other projects. So we uh then were able to they needed to spend out um some of their voucher money, but the problem is there's not enough housing to put those vouchers on. So we were able to work out another uh relationship with another hotel, actually just across the street with the Lompine. Um so shout out to Anil. He's also been uh really wonderful in this process. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 49:10

Hey Neil.

SPEAKER_01 49:10

Yep. And um so we were able to work with the state and with the county building department uh to get permission to use uh the rapid rehousing funds, which is a very specific type of funding, uh to master lease the hotel and then use that as uh basically leasing units to individuals as housing, which is uh this is a very unusual um arrangement because usually you have to do a purchase because if you're gonna change the use from hotel to residential, then you have to go through the conversion. It's very expensive. You know, in this case you did well. We have uh again, shout out to the building department. Um, they've been fantastic, Chief Ingersoll, um chief among them. Um, but he um what's his first name?

SPEAKER_00 50:02

Is it Keith?

SPEAKER_01 50:03

Keith Ingersoll, thank you. Yes, I had a blank. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 50:07

I know Keith. Hey, Keith, I miss I miss your dad dorm. His dad is a dorm. We used to go to church with him.

SPEAKER_01 50:12

Oh, wonderful.

SPEAKER_00 50:14

Also a builder, but yeah, Keith runs planning.

SPEAKER_01 50:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:16

And he made this happen.

SPEAKER_01 50:18

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 50:18

Keith Ingersoll, ladies and gentlemen. The man, the myth, the legend.

SPEAKER_01 50:22

Wonderful. Yes. I I'm so thankful. Um, basically, they did something kind of innovative. They said, you know what, we don't really care how you're going to pay for it as long as you don't actually change the use. And so under certain parameters, they allowed us to move forward with this. Um, and so it created almost what would be like a home key light. So instead of having to do a purchase and renovation and conversion, um, and it was a unique facility that allowed us to do this, a type of setup, because all the units already had kitchen and microwave, and then there was a main house that they could use as sort of a shared facility. So it it the project or the the the site itself lent itself to this idea.

SPEAKER_00 51:03

And the people were stoked.

SPEAKER_01 51:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 51:05

Yeah. Is it mostly men or women that would use it in this case, that property?

Master Leasing Hotels As Housing

SPEAKER_01 51:11

You mean in terms of the participants?

SPEAKER_00 51:13

Yeah, with the population.

SPEAKER_01 51:14

Um it's definitely more men than women, but a lot of women. Um I would say we're probably running about 35 to 40 percent women.

unknown 51:21

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 51:22

An arcata house, would they do more women and children?

SPEAKER_01 51:25

I'd say it's about the same.

SPEAKER_00 51:27

About the same?

SPEAKER_01 51:27

Yeah. I mean that they they are larger, so they serve a larger number of people. Um and they have dedicated family shelter and you know other kinds of shelters. So, you know, uh show, Soha Map housing opportunities, they're just really getting off the ground as a you know, a funded organization.

SPEAKER_00 51:44

So before we talk about your legacy and who you want to be remembered as and by and for, yeah. Um what if we wanted to send treasure and time to who who would you how would who would you shout out? I mean, your organization, I mean you could probably use do you guys use volunteers?

SPEAKER_01 52:02

Oh, so for for our consulting group, we don't necessarily utilize volunteers, although it probably in the future we will. We're just we're also very new. Um, but certainly SoHum Housing Opportunities needs volunteers, 100%. Um there's about that.

SPEAKER_00 52:17

Where do we find that? They have a website. They're on the web. They are on the web. What are they called? What's the address?

SPEAKER_01 52:23

Uh so it says SoHum Housing Opportunities, just type that one in the Google.

SPEAKER_00 52:27

Okay. Yeah. People find it or chat.

SPEAKER_01 52:29

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 52:30

Okay. And how do we get a hold of you?

SPEAKER_01 52:32

Um so we support you guys. Oh, I love it. So we are uh Rise over Run Strategies, but it's just R-O-R Strategies.com. And I say that, but probably if people go to it right now, it might not be active. So working on that, but we do have the domain.

SPEAKER_00 52:48

What does R O R be together? Rise over run. Rise over run.

SPEAKER_01 52:52

Rise over run.

SPEAKER_00 52:53

Run. Rise over run.

SPEAKER_01 52:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 52:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 52:56

It comes from um actually my very first anthropology class. Um so rise over run is is the um you like when you're building a staircase or a slope, it's the it's the rise to run ratio.

SPEAKER_00 53:11

Right. Um and otherwise you have really steep stairs.

SPEAKER_01 53:13

That's right.

SPEAKER_00 53:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 53:14

You gotta get the right proportions.

SPEAKER_00 53:16

Yeah. Or you have really long stairs that never end and never get there.

SPEAKER_01 53:20

Yep. And so the idea, obviously, there's a a housing component to this, right? Um, but uh the idea is that you know you have to have the right ratio for healthy growth.

SPEAKER_00 53:32

Nice. I like that. Yeah. So um what do you want to be remembered for?

SPEAKER_01 53:38

What do I want to be remembered for?

SPEAKER_03 53:43

Doing really good work. Um being a good human.

SPEAKER_00 53:56

I like it. Yeah. I get the sense that you are that.

unknown 54:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 54:01

Try to leave places better than I got 'em.

SPEAKER_00 54:03

Well, you got a heart for the homeless people and the kids, the m moms and dads and the humans that are there. You know, it's it's it's so easy. I think on this side of the desktop, hey, the homeless. You know, it's hey, the Giants fans.

SPEAKER_03 54:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 54:18

You know, or World Cup soccer fans. It's like no, they're people. And every one of them I'm telling you this. I know every one of them has a different story.

SPEAKER_01 54:27

Well absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 54:28

You know, radically different. And and you know we love Zach. He's our home our our the guy that's homeless behind my st store. And Zach's just a wonderful human being.

SPEAKER_03 54:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 54:37

And he's he's cool, and I'm sure I don't know his issues. I I'm not not in my lane to ask. But um But I see Zach. I see I see him. And I don't and I don't understand him, but I I'm present with him and I get it. Um so tell us more um real quick about what what we can do as as as people as other humans. And and helping fellow humans. Because I think everybody would like to do that. Everybody has a perspective that's you know probably incomplete at best. So what what would you what would you tell us? What could what could you share with us to go, hey, here's how you can maybe get come on the field and play football with us. Yeah. Jump in the water. It's the water's fine.

SPEAKER_01 55:27

Well, you know, it's interesting. Um homeless services and and many other kinds of crisis services, um, particularly like rape crisis or you know, domestic violence services, they're they're kind of for a lot of people, kind of uncomfortable topics. Like we know they exist.

SPEAKER_00 55:44

Totally.

SPEAKER_01 55:45

Right? But we're not real comfortable with them. Or we all have a little bit of unease, like, yeah, maybe I should do more, maybe I should help more, maybe Hospice.

SPEAKER_00 55:52

People are dying, what?

SPEAKER_01 55:53

Yeah, yeah. And um I think at the end of the day, it's about it's

What Helping Really Looks Like

SPEAKER_01 56:00

about acceptance of what it is. We're not gonna, we can't fix everything. Yeah. Right? Yeah. But we can make our small contributions, however that looks. It's different for each person. Yeah. And I think back to kind of what we were talking about earlier, you know, it's it's so easy to become desensitized. Yeah. Right. We've we're walking past so much all the time, and it's it's exhausting, and there's so much need for help in so many different ways. And we're all bombarded by those asks. And, you know, I would say look in your backyard, look in, you know, to your to your Zach's, right?

SPEAKER_00 56:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 56:38

Um, but my Zach. Yeah, yeah. Um, I think acknowledging not looking away and you know, given what you can.

SPEAKER_00 56:50

I like that.

SPEAKER_01 56:51

You know?

SPEAKER_00 56:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 56:52

There's so much misunderstanding about um both homelessness and homeless services. And y you know, when when Soham or Show first uh reached out to me, um, you know, they were uh asking me to to help and I knew it was gonna be a heavy lift. There was a lot of work to do. And um, you know, it's it's um it's the easiest possible thing to do is care. Right. And I at this point I've interviewed and hired I don't know how many staff at this point um and trained a lot of people. Um and almost everybody comes in saying that you know their reason they were applying is because they care. And I'm not diminishing that whatsoever. That's a baseline, you gotta care. It's just like with having a family, the easiest thing to do is love them. We love them. The hard part is living with them is living with them. Absolutely. And so, you know, the same thing is true in this case. The hard part is learning what it means to help.

SPEAKER_00 58:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 58:08

And helping doesn't always look like giving people everything they want. I mean, of course, there's not enough. We w every we need to provide more, right? Um, but it what part of part of the difficulty for people when they're when they're starting to do this work is learning that it's not about a roof. I mean, yes, we need more housing, one hundred percent. We need more funding, one hundred percent but without understanding the underlying issues that generate and perpetuate homelessness, we're not gonna make those changes.

SPEAKER_02 58:43

Yeah, amen.

SPEAKER_01 58:44

Yeah. That's good. You know, and for for individuals who are, you know, uh in that situation rarely is it um just a house that they need.

SPEAKER_00 58:56

Sure. Yeah. It's other things.

unknown 58:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 58:59

I love your answers. Let's start somewhere. Thank you. You know, start with start in your backyard. That's really good. Because we um I want to go and have an opinion and get on Facebook and just kind of share that. And it's like, and I did something. And now you were just one of the friends of the trolls. Yeah. Trolling along and do it your whatever that was. And it takes you know, my dad used to say it takes money to buy whiskey, which is means action. Take take take a step. And I encourage everybody to do that.

SPEAKER_01 59:28

Well, I just want to build on that for a second because sometimes we want our giving, whether it's time or money, we're we're attached to the result, right? We want it to go to something. Right. Meaning, you know, we want some outcome from it.

SPEAKER_03 59:43

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 59:44

And you know, like I said, this isn't something we're gonna fix overnight. And so it's almost like don't don't worry about picking the right thing. Just do the thing you can.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:00

Get on the team and go.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:01

Get on the team and go, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:02

I love it. I want to get on the team and go. Speaking of going, yeah, thanks for being here. Oh. Appreciate you. I'm so glad to be here. Yeah, I love your heart toward the all all of it, all the people that are involved, and it's really cool. Hey, and if you're just joining us, uh, it's the end of the show. So you're really late. Um, thanks for joining

Volunteering Links And Farewell

SPEAKER_00 1:00:20

us. Scott Hammond with the 100% Humboldt Podcast located in Humboldt County, California. And thanks, Angela, for being here. And if and if you want to support us, you can do that too through uh time uh well, through donations or a comment or subscribe today. And we're on all the platforms. We're on Access TV and Humboldt, we're on YouTube and uh and we're on everywhere. So uh that's what I know. Have a great day. Thanks for joining me.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:45

Oh, thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:46

All right, have a great day.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:47

All right, you too.