Homeless get warm welcome at Santa Rosa outreach site

When Norman Jensen lost his job this summer as an in-home caregiver, he also lost his housing. With no savings, Jensen packed his belongings and turned to the streets.

He slept under a bridge near Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with his dog, Ozzie, for months, but this week, he got the call granting him a temporary bed at Redwood Gospel Mission’s homeless shelter.

“I’ve been struggling, and my life was in danger,” said Jensen, 43, who is HIV positive. “The cold weather is very bad for me.”

Jensen said he was connected with services through Catholic Charities’ Homeless Service Center in Santa Rosa, where he has washed his clothes, taken showers and been given food. On Friday mornings, the nonprofit agency hands out free coffee, food and clothing - what volunteers said are essential needs for homeless people during cold winter months.

“Every day, this place saves my life,” Jensen said as he set his piping hot bowl of oatmeal down on a table outside the center, at 600 Morgan St. in Santa Rosa.

The site draws about 200 people most Friday mornings, when volunteers hand out coffee, hot chocolate, oatmeal and clothing, said Jennielynn Holmes, director of shelter and housing for Catholic Charities. The crowd of about 30 people on Friday morning was smaller because of Thanksgiving, she said.

The operation also offers free showers, laundry and mail delivery on weekdays. Holmes called it a lifeline for people sleeping outdoors.

“It can take people a long time to come to us for help,” she said. “So many have mistrust because of trauma and crisis and other issues related to mental illnesses. If we can reach them here, it’s more likely that we can help them into housing.”

Jensen, like hundreds of other homeless people throughout Sonoma County, is on that track.

Sonoma County this summer launched efforts to house the chronically homeless. Once homeless people are placed in a shelter and connected with a case worker, their names are added to a list of people in line for housing. Catholic Charities is leading the county’s new effort to engage hard-to-reach people in services through a team of outreach specialists that will comb the streets, creek paths and other places where the homeless stake out camps.

Nearly 10,000 people are homeless in Sonoma County, according to estimates from last year’s biennial homeless count. Roughly two-thirds of those without regular shelter have major health problems, according to county figures.

Hypothermia and malnutrition can can exacerbate problems and lead to premature death, officials said.

The county’s approach to head off such cases involves getting the sickest and most chronically homeless people into housing. The initiative, called housing first and underway in cities across the nation, aims to help people struggling especially with mental health conditions and substance abuse while reducing costs associated with public assistance programs and expensive emergency room visits.

“So many people, once we get to know them, say, ‘you know what, yeah, I could use some help,’?” said Len Marabella, executive director of Catholic Charities.

Friday morning, dozens of people who came out to the homeless center picked up socks and sipped coffee. Akhuaya Gemmhinia, who goes by Gemme, grabbed a winter coat.

Gemme frequents the homeless center weekly to take showers, do his laundry and to pick up warm clothes. Recently, he was given an emergency shelter bed at Redwood Gospel Mission, and now he’s in line for a shelter bed at Sam Jones Hall, where he will be able to stay longer.

“I was sleeping on the street, but this place is helping me get back on my feet,” said Gemme, a street performer who plays the drums. “I’m starting to feel good.”

Gemme vowed to pitch in and help volunteers at the service center next week. Others who give their time called the experiences energizing.

“When you connect with someone who is different from you, you get something very special in return,” volunteer Kate Sefton said.

You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ahartreports.