Growing up in South Lake Tahoe, Milissa felt incredibly fortunate to be raised in an area where she could experience so much natural beauty and a multitude of outdoor activities.

Milissa has a diverse professional background. She worked in the service industry, owned her own landscaping business, was a photographer for casinos in Tahoe, and, with a competitive ski background, she even coached for the U.S Ski team.  

Milissa’s move to Santa Cruz started about 12 years ago when she needed a fresh start from her hometown. At the time she did not know anything about Santa Cruz but was drawn to its beauty as she began to reassess her life.

She found work right away in the Santa Cruz mountains and started therapy, wanting to make sure to focus on mental health in her new chapter. She quickly found more work, becoming the caretaker of an Airbnb on the property she was renting on the Westside of Santa Cruz. The work allowed her to be outside and take care of the property’s animals for nearly a decade, an experience she loved. 

Her move to Santa Cruz turned out wonderfully, until she suddenly faced homelessness for the first time in her life. In the winter of 2022, her landlord and employer passed away, and their children decided to sell the property. “I went from normallness to everything feeling like I was in quicksand all of the sudden. It is hard to express how when you reach rock bottom it is so difficult to get out of rock bottom. Even your friends you thought you can rely on just disappear, and you are left completely alone, disheartened and confused, not knowing any avenues. And it took awhile for me to learn that there was actual help available.”.  


Shortly after becoming homeless and living in her truck with her two dogs, Milissa came to AFC. She had met a former participant of Safe Spaces who had found the program and staff helpful. After enrolling in the program, things started to look up for her.  “I was introduced to my case manager, Victoria and slowly discovered that there was support available to me and the ball started rolling.”

Milissa shared that her overall experience with AFC and its programs were great. “The support and help was there more than I knew ever existed. I was no longer alone. It is the best program. You are put in safe hands and you are guided through whatever is needed and who to ask for help. All the way down to gas and car repairs. It helped me to make small steps in my life, and I was finally able to take action and get things done. Before I was just surviving and was at my lowest point, wondering how much lower I was going to end up going. Not to mention seeing other people on the street and you are left wondering, is it going to get any worse?. The safe parking was a Godsend, to have a safe location and not having to worry about who is walking around your car, being able to sleep safely, and having access to a clean bathroom.”


The road to finding permanent housing was hard work for Milissa. After being referred to a housing program which provided her with a Section 8 voucher, she was finally able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. This consisted of a long process of searching through housing listings and relying on the support of her case manager and housing navigator. “It’s not easy at all because there is not a lot out there”. Her patience and hard work paid off. In September 2024, almost two years after losing housing, she moved into her new home.

Milissa now looks forward to settling in and being able to reap the rewards of her long awaited efforts. She shared she still has a hard time believing this is real. She is still processing her experience of homelessness and everything that came with it. As she settles into her rental, she feels hope. She looks forward to having a much needed hip surgery so she can function at full mobility and start working again. “I feel positive that I am finally safe and can get out of survival mode.” 

​Michele’s journey back to housing was long and, ultimately, serendipitous. She enjoyed growing up in the Santa Cruz Mountains, and began working locally as a pre-school teacher. Sadly, this career didn’t last long, as she was left permanently disabled at the age of 20 by a drunk driver. She fought hard to get disability benefits, which gave her a small amount of stable income. 

Despite this tragedy, she began building a meaningful life. She developed a passion for art, creating beadwork, stained glass and other décor. She picked up the occasional interior decorating job, and sold her work at local art fairs. All of this came to a sudden halt when an unexpected divorce left her unable to afford housing. She spent some time living with family and caring for her mother, who was terminally ill. In search of more stable options, she would attempt to rent a room, but found it to be a highly vulnerable experience, with roommates and landlords attempting to take advantage of her. 

Ultimately, she ended up living in her car. She made the best of a tough situation, eventually getting a bus to be more comfortable. This brought her to AFC’s Safe Spaces program, where she found comfort and security during the pandemic. As had happened multiple times before, life sent her another curveball.

She began experiencing strange medical symptoms, and, after numerous doctors’ visits, she was diagnosed with CIDP, an autoimmune disorder that progressively affects the nervous system. The diagnosis had life changing implications. She would have to get infusions every three weeks for the rest of her life, and her driver’s license was suspended for medical reasons.

Without a license she had to make the tough decision to leave AFC’s Safe Spaces program and park near Santa Cruz City Hall, where friends would move her bus daily to avoid ticketing. Her time parking on the streets was difficult, and scary at times. While she found nearby city employees to be friendly and caring, she experienced harassment at the hands of strangers. Passersby would frequently yell at her simply for exiting, shouting things like, “Go home!” Her lowest moment came on a rainy night when she awoke to shattered glass all over her bus. Someone had broken in her back window, leaving her scared and exposed to the elements. 

Michele’s time in her bus came to an abrupt ending when the City of Santa Crus passed its oversized vehicle ordinance. In all of her time sleeping in vehicles, she had never been ticketed. Once the ordinance was passed, she received 10 tickets in 10 days, making it impossible to stay. 

Out of options, this brought her to AFC’s Faith Community Shelter. Like many who experience homelessness, she found the prospect of a shelter scary, but what she discovered was very different. “What I excepted versus what I experienced was black and white,” she remembers. She found the other shelter members to be open and loving. They looked out for her and went out of their way to help her, especially on the hard days of her illness.

Her time in the shelter also reconnected her with housing navigation services. She quickly qualified for a program that would subsidize her rent, allowing her stable housing for the first time in years. She began the housing search process, which was initially discouraging. “80% of people don’t even call you back,” she recalls. Then, one day, she was surprised to see a listing on the street she lived on when she was younger. It checked all of her boxes: a small cottage, a yard for her dog, single story, lots of light for plants. Within a day, she was viewing the property, and within two days, the place was hers. Her journey to housing brought her back to where she started, and she couldn’t be happier. 

She has now been in her place for several months, and loves it. “It’s just amazing,” she shared. “It’s like paradise. As much as I hurt from this disease, I’m at peace. Everywhere I look is beauty. It has been months now, and I still have a hard time closing my eyes. It’s like I’m dreaming.”

​Tony came to AFC’s programs, like many, after a series of bad breaks. His long-term rental in Aptos ended after the landlord’s family decided they wanted the property for personal use, despite Tony’s hard work in keeping up the property and caring for his aging landlord. This wasn’t the first time Tony had fallen on hard times, and he had developed a resiliency that would see him through. 

Growing up in Brooklyn, Tony found himself in trouble as a young adult. A series of crimes and ongoing substance use made him realize he needed to make a change. He moved across the county to California to get a fresh start, living with family and entering substance use treatment. After a couple of tries, he got clean, and began building his new life.

He found well-paying work and started a family. Life was trending in the right direction. He maintained his sobriety for 11 years, until an accident at work. While working as a window installer, he broke his back. At the time, doctors were overprescribing opiates, so he was given powerful narcotics while his back healed. The prescription drugs led him to relapse, and eventually lose his job. His life began to spiral. His wife had also relapsed, and their relationship fractured. At a low point, the drug use and relational conflict landed him back in jail. 

When he got out, he was determined to rebuild his life again. After bouncing around between family members, he made the move to Santa Cruz, where he lived with a friend and found work. He began washing dishes at a local bakery. When the owners saw his work ethic, they quickly promoted him to baker. Office neighbors also saw how hard he worked, and soon offered him jobs as well. After living in an RV for a short period, he was awarded a housing voucher, which would allow him to move into permanent housing.

His housing search was long, but ended when he visited a property in Aptos. When he arrived for a walkthrough, the landlord was in the middle of repairs. Tony shared the ways in which he could help, and he was approved on the spot. Over time, he and the landlord became good friends. They shared meals together, and, as the landlord aged, Tony began helping him with day-to-day activities. 

Tony recalls the impact that time had on him. “[The landlord] trusted me, a criminal from New York, so much. I didn’t want to disappoint him.” Tony didn’t. He lived up to expectations, and proved to be a faithful friend and caregiver. Unfortunately, his landlord’s family didn’t share that trust, and when they saw the arrangement, they kicked Tony out of the rental, saying they were going to use it personally. 

This led Tony to AFC. He initially found himself sleeping in his vehicle, and entered Safe Spaces, our safe parking program. Once a shelter bed opened up, he joined the Faith Community Shelter. He remembers feeling like the odd one out at first, but he quickly settled in. “I saw everyone respect each other,” he recalls. That mutual respect put him at ease. 

Tony brought his work ethic into the shelter, going above and beyond to care for the congregations that hosted. He also brought that work ethic to his housing search. With the help of staff and a local housing advocate, he applied to dozens of rentals. While the process was taxing, he remembers how helpful shelter staff was. “No one ever gave up.  They just kept looking. They just kept encouraging me.” 

Eventually, Tony’s hard work paid off. In a meeting with shelter staff, they called a rental in Pacific Grove, just blocks from the ocean. The unit was still available, and they put in an application right away. Tony advocated for himself with the property managers, sharing how reliable and hardworking he was. After a few tense days of waiting, his application was approved. After receiving deposit assistance from Santa Cruz County, he was able to move in.

The move allowed him to be reunited with his son, a Marine veteran, who moved in with him, along with the family dog, Athena. Not surprisingly, the neighbors and the property managers grew to quickly appreciate Tony’s friendly and helpful demeanor. While life isn’t perfect, it’s once again stable for Tony, thanks to a little support from others, and his own hard won resiliency. 

When Travis first came to the Faith Community Shelter, he was more than a little hesitant. Although he had spent the last 20 years in Santa Cruz County without permanent housing, he had never been in a local shelter, and had no desire to be. He imagined a crowded space, filled with substance use and interpersonal drama. The idea of a shelter in his head was so off-putting, he turned down a spot in AFC’s shelter initially. After some nudging from staff and volunteers, and a lack of safe sleeping options, he joined. 

While the shelter wasn’t perfect, what he found surprised him. It was more welcoming and friendly than he expected, with a generally supportive group of people. He had more personal space than expected, and found the shelter’s relatively small size much easier to handle. 

Travis’ journey to enter the shelter was a long one. After growing up in Maine, he landed in Boston as a young adult. When he arrived, he worked odd jobs and retail, trying to piece together enough to get by. He would couch surf, live with girlfriends, and, when needed, sleep outside. This already challenging life was about to get more difficult, as he had his first severe epileptic seizure. The seizure and subsequent fall landed him in the hospital, requiring reconstructive surgery on his jaw and arm. After two years in Boston, he knew he needed a change. 

As he surveyed his options, some friends from Food Not Bombs in Boston recommended trying California. They thought he’d connect with the laid-back lifestyle and hippie culture, so he gave it a go. He first landed in Humboldt County, but eventually made his way down to Santa Cruz County. By the time he arrived, he was receiving regular SSDI payments for his epilepsy, and had a steady girlfriend. Together, they were able to afford a rental in Brookdale and begin building a life together. 

Things initially went well, but, as Travis acknowledged, he began to unravel. Lack of mail access in Brookdale caused a mix up in his SSDI, which caused it to lapse. He began relying more heavily on alcohol. His relationship became stressed, and his choices became worse. After four and half years in Brookdale, he lost his relationship and his housing. 

For the next 20 years, Travis went without permanent housing. He worked hard, picking up odd jobs and helping Food Not Bombs, but could never afford a place of his own. He’d piece together temporary places to stay, and when those ran out, he’d get together his camping gear and sleep outside. When the winter storms of 2023 hit, life outside became untenable. He squatted in a storage shed to escape the rain, but was soon kicked out and back in the elements, which led him to the Faith Community Shelter. 

Despite his hesitance, the shelter proved to be a much-needed reprieve. He remembers everything felt so much easier than sleeping outside. He had good meals, a clean mat, and the space to focus on his health and housing. The timing turned out to be ideal.

After a few months in the shelter, his name came up on the Section 8 waitlist, which would allow him a rental subsidy if he could find an apartment locally. While staff was thrilled, Travis was skeptical at first. His name had come up on the waitlist twice before, and he could never find a rental before the voucher expired. Fortunately, this time proved different. 

Staff gave him options to explore, and he found a renewed motivation to make use of the voucher. At one point, he went up and down Pacific Avenue, talking to every leasing office that was open. When he came to the Palomar Inn, which has housed several FCS participants, he took an application, filled it out, and had AFC staff review it and help with the application fee. After he turned it in, several of the building’s residents stopped by the leasing office to put in a good word for him. Within a few weeks, he was approved and moving in. 

There’s always an adjustment period when someone is rehoused after years, but Travis is doing remarkably well settling in this next phase of life. He’s reapplying for Social Security, and receiving temporary financial assistance from the county. He used it to treat himself to a new coffee maker. Now, each morning, he makes himself a nice cup of coffee, sits in his recliner, and watches the sunrise over the boardwalk from his apartment window. On the table nearby, he has a few of AFC’s business cards, just in case he runs into someone who needs help getting back on their feet. 

When Linda arrived in Santa Cruz in Spring 2023, her life had taken a turn she never expected. The apartment she had in northern California was riddled with toxic black mold. Her landlord refused to remediate the mold, despite its caustic effect on her health. She began experiencing vertigo, and eventually had a stroke and a fall that broke her back. 

To fully recover, she knew she couldn’t stay in the apartment. Despite her vigorous cleaning attempts, the mold was spreading to her furniture and clothes. She made the tough choice to leave all of her things behind, holding on to only her car a few belongings. 

Around the same time, her son was in Santa Cruz receiving treatment for substance issues. Despite how overwhelming her situation was, she had clarity about next steps. “I knew my son needed my support. I was willing to go through anything,” she reflected. She packed the few belongings she had and came to Santa Cruz, content to sleep in her car if needed.

Initially, she came in confident. “I’ve been a camper all my life,” she remembers thinking. She quickly found the adjustment more difficult than expected. Her recent lumbar break caused nerve damage, and the stroke had slowed her cognitive processing. 

One of the most difficult experiences was the powerlessness she felt. Before retiring, Linda was an accomplished, well educated professional. She spent years overseeing social work programs in Minnesota and neighboring states, focusing on training to prevent sexual misconduct in the workplace. The advocacy group she worked for was so effective, they were featured in the 2005 film North Country. 

“I had the power in my career to get everyone together. I was able to coordinate the team. Say here’s the problem.” Experiencing homelessness in Santa Cruz felt like the opposite. She remembers thinking, “Who am I anymore?” What she wanted most from locals was empathy, not just for her, but for all of our unhoused neighbors. “In the process you need to see yourself too. That makes hard hearts soften.”

As she struggled to regain not just housing, but her sense of confidence and belonging, she joined AFC’s Safe Spaces program. While the program didn’t instantly solve her problems, it gave her a sense of stability and safety. She gives much of the credit to Victoria Verdugo, Safe Space’s Case Manager. “If I hadn’t seen Victoria every week, I would’ve failed completely,” she reflected through tears.  “Victoria could handle my emotions…There was a sense of respect and communication. It was all wonderful.”

With the support of Victoria and other local agencies, Linda began her housing search. She came to town with a Section 8 voucher, which would subsidize her rent, but the housing search was daunting. She woke up every day and immediately checked every rental listing she could find, sending Victoria the ones she found promising. 

Even with Victoria’s support, the ups and downs of her housing search began to take their toll. She was growing frustrated and tired. “I woke up one morning desperate, and prayed to God for mercy.” Despite the fatigue, she checked the rental listings that morning, and came across a small unit in the redwoods. At first, it didn’t seem like a good fit, so she moved on in her search. Over the next few days, she continued to get notifications for the listing, and eventually felt like she should check it out. 

She remembers arriving to the showing. “I got out of the car, and thought ‘wow!’” The setting was beautiful, and the landlords were kind and accommodating. While the unit wasn’t perfect, she felt like it was the right one for her. The landlords accepted her application, and she began the process of moving in. 

Fortunately, a program through Santa Cruz County bought her new furniture and home supplies, replacing what she lost to the toxic mold. As of late October, she’s settling in well to her new place. Most importantly to her, her son has completed treatment, secured work and housing and is doing well. “Seeing my son come to life again,” she reflected, “that was worth everything I went through.”

Randy always had a creative side. As the son of a university professor in Los Altos, he was exposed to arts and culture from an early age. Over time, a passion for music began to emerge, and he started working as a touring musician, collaborating with artists who would go on to write for big name pop stars. Music became his life, and he poured everything into it. He found belonging and identity in his community of like-minded musicians. 

While he was thriving in this environment, his life eventually derailed because of substance abuse. With time, he began taking his recovery seriously, and started rebuilding his life. Along the way he met his partner Sophie, who was also in recovery. They anchored one another, strengthening their sobriety.

Randy’s world fell apart again when Sophie tragically died. It sent him into both emotional and economic turmoil. He reflected on the time recently. “I had trouble figuring out who I was. I had to figure that out while in crisis, with unstable housing.” He hit rock bottom when he ran out of resources and found himself sleeping outside. He vividly remembers his second night on the street, when a torrential storm hit. He described it as “absolutely traumatic.”

This trauma led him to seek out local shelters, which led him to AFC. While things didn’t turn around overnight, he was able to stabilize. He connected with several of AFC’s volunteer cooks, some of whom he is still keeps up with. “AFC was a God given thing. It turned the most hellaciously terrible experience into something meaningful,” Randy said.  

Part of that meaning came through an unexpected avenue: the pandemic lockdown. Randy sheltered in place at the United Methodist Church of Santa Cruz. The church generously offered their space, even creating an art room. This room turned out to be a safe haven for him. Even though he had never painted before, he spent hours in the room putting his emotions and dreams onto canvas. It reignited his creative passion. “Once I started, that’s all I did,” he remembers.

He soon found his favorite subject to paint: his dreams. He had often reflected on his dreams, but putting them in to images was transformational. Even though the images were often abstract, they reflected profoundly personal experiences for him. One of the most personal was a dream he had about Sophie, his late partner. In the dream, she comforts him with words he can’t forget, “I know how it all ends up. You’re going to love it.” 

Finding creative momentum led to momentum in other areas of his life, including his housing search. He began putting his name on every affordable housing waitlist he could find. With time, his hard work paid off, and he was offered a small affordable studio with just enough room to paint.

Randy had a particularly meaningful milestone this past winter when he had his first art exhibit. The show took place on a First Friday at London Nelson Community Center. Hundreds of people passed through, taking in Randy’s works and hearing the stories behind them. He even sold his first painting. More than the money it brought in, the experience brought Randy a sense of pride and gratitude, putting his journey into perspective. “Doing this art exhibit was such an accomplishment,” he said. “It symbolized turning such a terrible experience into something positive. It made the world a little bit of a better place.”

AFC is excited to welcome two new Program Managers. Cristina Gomez-Hernandez (pictured on the left) is now overseeing our Safe Spaces parking program. She comes to the position with over a decade of social services experience, managing family based programs in San Benito County. The transition comes as Fr. Joseph Jacobs, previous Safe Spaces Manager, retires (Congratulations Fr. Joseph!). 

Courtney Barrett (pictured on the right) is taking over managing the Faith Community Shelter. Courtney comes with over a decade of experience working in substance rehab, having overseen large residential programs. She is moving into the role as Sam Altis. previous FCS Manager, moves into AFC’s Executive Director position. 

Need to reach Courtney or Cristina? You can email them at [email protected] and [email protected].  

​Meet Sandy, a longtime Santa Cruz resident who is 62 years old, and who became unhoused when her mom was moved into senior housing. Sandy has been living in her car on and off for over 10 years. She adopted a female rescue dog named “Missing” as an emotional support animal and companion. The two of them have been enrolled in SafeSpaces for over three years. During the “Rapid Rehousing Wave” and pandemic, Sandy did not qualify for an emergency housing voucher. She has been on the Section 8 voucher waitlist for 10 years. Her ageing motor vehicle developed problems that were too costly to repair, and the AFC SafeSpaces host site embraced her as their own.
Earlier this month something unexpected and wonderful happened. At another AFC member church, during a Sunday service homily, the preacher mentioned all the different ways we can help those who are unhoused. One of the examples they gave was of someone donating their RV to an unhoused person. A woman from the congregation named Rose was listening in on Zoom. She said “Suddenly it was like a light bulb went off over my head!” She reached out to the preacher and said she had an RV she would like to donate. The preacher emailed me (Fr. Joseph) from SafeSpaces, inquiring if we could make use of such a gift. I said “You bet!” I immediately thought of Sandy.
The next day, in the rain, I was driving Sandy to meet Rose at her RV. I helped the two of them sign over the title from Rose to Sandy. This was such a lovely, grace filled moment. Sandy was speechless with tears of joy. “Now I can have my granddaughter over and we can color and do projects on this table, in my home! And Missing can lay
on the bed! And I have a stove, and refrigerator, and a heater!” Grace upon grace, indeed. Later Sandy said “My life could not be any better right now, I am so grateful to you and Rose. I have a major upgrade in my life because of
AFC and my family is super happy also.”
As you’re reading this, maybe you know of someone (possibly yourself!) who has a motor vehicle in good condition that they’re not using. You might consider giving someone in our programs a “major upgrade” in their life. Rose was relieved not to have to worry about the low-mileage RV she was no longer using, paying to store it. She said “I feel like a huge weight has been lifted.” And she made two new friends: Sandy and Missing.
Thank you, Rose!

Jeannie came to Santa Cruz 30 years ago to study sculpture. Like many locals, she lived the artist lifestyle. She worked as a potter, a farmer and started her own jam business, living on local farms and in art studios along the way. Her jam business grew a loyal base of customers and kept her committed to the area. “Santa Cruz is one of the best places in the world to be a jam maker,” Jeannie noted. Even with the business growing, housing became increasingly tough to find. Eventually, she began living in her car, and when that became too tough, she joined the Faith Community Shelter in early 2020.
 
From there, she rode out pandemic in the safety of the shelter, making jam when she could. As vaccines rolled out, her partner Eric decided to move from Colorado in hopes of helping Jeannie find stable housing. He remembers his plan well. “Come out. Get a job, and get Jeannie out of the shelter. I had to get her out, and I couldn’t do it from Colorado.” He quickly found work and support through the Homeless Garden Project and began saving for their future.
 
About that same time, the couple was awarded a housing voucher, which would allow them to rent an apartment and pay only 30% of their income. The couple, and AFC staff, began scouring rental listings. Their housing search was long, and often filled with disappointment, until one day last summer. A landlord who had a good experience with another AFC participant called shelter staff to say he had another rental available, and he'd love to rent to another shelter member.
 
Jeannie and Eric toured the quaint duplex in the redwoods, loved it, and were approved on the spot. Within a couple of weeks, they were moved in, and Jeannie was cooking gourmet meals and making jam.
 
While the couple’s stay at the shelter wasn’t perfect – moving everyday can be hard – one of the most impactful experiences was the hospitality of FCS volunteers. “The people were so generous. We at like kings and queens,” Eric reflected.
 
Jeannie summed up their journey well. “I still look at Eric and say we get to go home!...It’s like a miracle. I can’t believe it’s actually happening!”
 
Want to try Jeannie’s Jams? Visit her site: http://www.jeanniesjams.com/.
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