Before a routine outing, Misty Eckerdt, assisted by family and volunteer friends, packs 1000 pounds of dry dog food into gallon baggies. That doesn’t include the canned food, leashes, doggy jackets, toys, blankets, medicine, and a few items for cats that she and her crew load into the Ford cargo van she uses when she visits sites frequented by poor people and their pets. The van features a large photo […]
Homelessness in Stanislaus County
How a Wheelchair-bound Amputee came to the Streets of Modesto
The story of how a wheel-chair bound amputee ended up on the streets of Modesto for over a year is slowly emerging. Alan Davis, whose right leg was amputated at Sutter Hospital in Sacramento sometime in April of 2018, was sent to the Modesto Specialty Hospital in May of that same year, when there was no space for him in Sacramento rehab facilities. Davis arrived at the Modesto hospital on […]
Homeless: Alan Davis Gets a Shower
Frank Ploof, who coordinates services at the Modesto Outdoor Emergency Shelter (MOES), probably wasn’t thinking about fate or destiny as he was pushing Alan Davis uphill last Wednesday, but he could have been. Ploof was pushing Davis toward a rendezvous with his own brainchild. At least that’s the story according to Dean Dodd, the high-energy force behind the Cleansing Hope Shower Shuttle, a rolling marvel of a brilliantly-executed but simple […]
Homeless: Alan Davis Checks In
Alan Davis, the homeless man who haunted downtown Modesto and over the years was befriended by passing strangers who handed him food and money, has found a temporary home at the Modesto Outdoor Emergency Shelter (MOES). Davis checked into the shelter Tuesday morning, after a volunteer found him sleeping on the corner of 18th and G streets in Modesto. Frank Ploof, a coordinator of activities and outreach for MOES, was […]
Homeless: The Kindness of Strangers
Homeless outreach worker Randy Limburg came across Alan Davis a couple of weeks ago. Davis was frequenting downtown Modesto in an area roughly from the old Modesto Bee building, at 1325 H Street, to five points at J Street and Downey Avenue, near Ralston Towers. Davis said he was fifty-four years old and had been on the streets for a few months after waking up from surgery at Memorial Hospital. […]
Homeless: “It’s different these days.”
Many believe today’s system of care and recovery for homeless people is antiquated and inadequate. For the most part, they’re right. Nevertheless, some people just need an intervention and chance to get back on their feet, especially those with income and a place to go. Efren Torres is one such person. Efren Torres had been clean for three years when he lost his wife in a tragic automobile accident in […]
Homeless: It’s going to get worse
Every year, the community Continuum of Care (COC) does a Point-in-Time (PIT) count of homeless people throughout California. Thus far this year, 9 of the 13 most populous regions have reported. Of those 9, 8 regions counted more homeless people than last year. Conducted last January, the Stanislaus County count set a record of 1,923 people; the previous high of 1,800 people was in 2009, during the Great Recession. Still, […]
Homeless: Are Shelters Obsolete?
The rise in numbers of homeless shelters in the United States coincided with deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill in the late 1970s. During the same decade, runaway inflation—especially rising costs of living—left some members of the economy unable to keep up. The result was more homelessness. Over the years, socio-economic factors have continued to contribute to a rise in homelessness and consequent demand for more homeless shelters. Today, it’s clear […]
Visions of the Homeless: A Cop’s View
One day a few weeks ago, volunteer homeless worker Jeri Lynn Matoza was watching Modesto Police Sergeant Mike Hammond cruise slowly through Beard Brook Village, Modesto’ s permitted homeless encampment. Every few yards, Hammond had to stop because someone wanted to talk. “Look at that,” said Matoza, “How often do you see homeless people voluntarily approach a cop? That’s the sign of a good cop.” Hammond says he wanted to […]
Faces of the Homeless: Alvaro
“I want to work, but my hands hurt all the time. They hurt real bad,” says Alvaro Gayton, who’s been at Beard Brook Village in Modesto’s Beard Brook Park since last September. Gayton’s last job was at a Modesto Restaurant specializing in barbecue and smoked meats. “I cooked all day and washed dishes at night,” he says. “I was the only one who really knew how to smoke meat the […]