A Blessing for the Forgotten
Mercy Holistic Ministry Showers Reaches out to Homeless
SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) – Pastor Berhanu Kumalo Didanu has known since he was a child what he was meant to do with his life. On January 6, 2021 he, his wife Miheret (Mercy) Bune, members of Sacramento based Mercy Holistic Ministry, and their Partners were present as the first mobile shower purchased to be used by the homeless in the Sacramento area debuted. The inaugural shower took place at Advent Lutheran Church in Citrus Heights as part of week one of the Citrus Heights Winter Warming program sponsored by Citrus Heights Homeless Assistance Resource Team (HART). David Leon Guerrero was the first guest and came out looking refreshed and happy.
Berhanu and his wife came to Sacramento from Ethiopia in 2008 and created Mercy Holistic Ministry to serve Ethiopian and Eritrean immigrant families find housing and settle into their new country. Since then, Berhanu has been ordained as a Missionary at Large at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Woodland, Calif. His education, natural heart for the needs of others, and experience since he was a teenager in Ethiopia makes this ministry a natural for him. The need for mobile showers was the overwhelming concern made known by Mercy’s clients to help restore their dignity and begin a change in their lives. The ministry, which relies on volunteers, also feeds and works with the homeless in the downtown Sacramento area. Until now their focus has been mainly on providing food, clothing and other necessities to their clients. With the addition of the showers their dream of serving the homeless in a much more meaningful and permanent way has finally been realized.
Their long-term goal is to be at a different location throughout the county once a week and to serve 30-40 guests a day. Mercy Holistic Showers is actively seeking partner churches. Hosts are asked to provide a place to park the showers and furnish electricity and a water connection. The trailer provides two individual showers with sink and toilet. Recycled water drains into the sewer. Ideally, hosts also provide clothing, food and other services such as barbers and doctors. Mercy provides each client with clean underwear, socks and toiletries and has access to an experienced counselor. This type of partnership is working well in the San Fernando Valley and Santa Barbara areas.
Funding for the shower has come from many sources, from GoFundMe accounts to major grants. Funds available following the closing of a church provided $55,000–enough for the purchase of a towing truck and to hire a person to keep the showers sanitized.
David Kretzmann, Mercy board member, said in an email, “We have been fortunate to receive $75,000 in grants, $10,000 each from Lutheran Development Society, and from Town and Country Lutheran Church’s endowment fund. We have raised approximately $10,000 through events and generous friends of Mercy Holistic thus far.”
Their approach is simple. In the words of Kretzmann, "It is important to all Mercy Holistic Board members to restore dignity to the homeless. By getting clean and restoring dignity a person can be encouraged and given hope for the future. Through the use of a simple refreshing shower a person can be encouraged to take new steps toward self-sufficiency. Looking for work and eventually becoming housed is the goal. Every homeless person is a mother's child and looks for love and understanding. We at Mercy want to encourage people by sharing God's love for all."
The official grand opening of Mercy Holistic Showers is Thursday, January 14, 2021 at 11 a.m. at Celtic Cross Church in Citrus Heights.
For more information on events and the organization visit www.mercyholistic.org.
Churches and other organizations interested in partnering with Mercy Holistic Showers should contact Mercy Board Chairman Dave Kretzmann at 916-482-6439 or dckretzmann@gmail.com
Doses May Go to Individuals in Lower Priority Groups When High-Priority Demand Subsides
SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) – The state issued vaccine recommendations to local public health departments and providers focused on accelerating the pace of COVID-19 vaccine administration. The recommendations clarify the state’s vaccine prioritization process and that after appropriate efforts to reach highest priority groups, health departments and providers may offer doses to lower priority groups when high-priority demand subsides, or when doses are about to expire.
“California’s health care providers have done incredible work thus far in vaccinating hundreds of thousands of Californians,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “On behalf of our state, I thank our hospitals, doctors, nurses, and others for joining us in this all-hands-on-deck commitment to safely and quickly Vaccinate All 58. When Californians join together, our spirit of resiliency and innovation always wins. By continuing to take the precautions we need to get through this surge, and by ramping up safe and equitable vaccinations, we can and we will get through this darkest part of the tunnel to the light.”
To maximize vaccine administration and reduce the potential for waste, local health departments and providers should immediately administer COVID-19 vaccines to individuals in all tiers of Phase 1a. In addition to frontline health care workers, this includes a wide range of people in health care settings such as community health care workers, public health field staff, primary care clinics, specialty clinics, laboratory workers, dental clinics and pharmacy staff.
Local health departments and providers should make special efforts to administer vaccine to vaccinators and consider partnering with others to provide vaccinations for individuals in prioritized tiers. They may also allocate doses on the assumption that immunization will be accepted by some but not all who are offered the vaccine, and then continue to offer vaccinations in progressive priority tiers. For example, if a county has maximized use of the vaccine to administer individuals in Phase 1a, they should move to Tier 1 of Phase 1b while continuing to offer vaccines to those in higher priority groups.
To view the full state recommendation visit: www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/OPA/Pages/NR21-008.aspx
Long Night’s Journey into Day
SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA (MPG) - It has been a long journey for Janae Taj. It’s taken her from months of living on the streets, to multiple hospitalizations for mental health issues, to living in room and board housing, to finally getting her own apartment and the independence that goes with it.
What kept her going? “The determination to find a place to lay my head down and properly take care of myself and be myself,” she said. “It was a battle.”
Taj, 28, was among Sacramento County’s homeless population, which numbers more than 5,500 people on any given night, according to the 2019 annual count by Sacramento Steps Forward. But she was one of the lucky ones, finding the help she needed to begin turning her life around.
Taj’s road to recovery began last February when Sacramento County linked her to Telecare ARISE, a County partner and provider of supportive behavioral-health services, said program administrator Danielle Wirtz.
As a first step, Telecare arranged to move Taj into room and board housing. “We look to get as many folks off the street as we can; it’s definitely a passion of ours,” said Wirtz.
Telecare managers also navigated community resources for Taj and linked her to a payee service, which helped manage her funds and coached her on budgeting.
But her first housing situation hit a bump after six weeks, when Taj told Telecare her living conditions were intolerable, with “four to five people sleeping in the same room, and (irregular meal service),” Wirtz said.
Finding alternative housing was challenging, however; Taj is a transgender woman, and “some people are not comfortable with that,” she said. “So Telecare had a hard time placing me because of my identity.”
Fortunately, she qualified for a housing unit through Mercy Housing, a national nonprofit group specializing in transforming former motels and hotels into housing for the homeless.
In this case, Sacramento County collaborated with Mercy Housing to transform a formerly crime-ridden hotel, a long term blight to the community – into housing.
On June 4, Taj was handed the key to her own apartment, which Telecare helped furnish. “She’s living independently now, which is huge,” said Wirtz.
Taj’s new goal is to “find employment and get myself back into the world,” she said.
What advice does she have for others? “If somebody offers you help, take it and go forward. Don’t procrastinate. You have to be active and motivate yourself to function on a daily basis.”
For more information on Sacramento County’s Response to Homelessness, visit our website.
SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) – The California Highway Patrol (CHP) announced the availability of nearly $27 million in grant funds to help local communities combat impaired driving.
The funding is the result of Proposition 64, the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act, which provided specified cannabis tax funding to the CHP to administer local grants for education, prevention, and enforcement programs regarding impaired driving. Funding for the grants comes from a tax on the cultivation and sale of cannabis and cannabis products sold in California since January 2018.
For the current grant cycle, the CHP’s Cannabis Tax Fund Grant Program will be awarding grants based on a competitive process to California law enforcement agencies and local toxicology laboratories meeting the eligibility requirements described in the 2021 Request for Application, available on the CHP website.
The CHP will hold a virtual workshop on January 6, 2021, to answer questions from potential grant applicants regarding the application process, the 2021 Request for Application, administrative program regulations, and other general questions.
Applications will be accepted beginning January 7, 2021, through February 23, 2021, for programs beginning on July 1, 2021. These grants will enhance existing efforts to address impaired driving.
“These grants represent an opportunity for the CHP to work collaboratively with local traffic safety stakeholders to strategically address impaired driving issues while making California’s roadways a safer place to travel,” CHP Commissioner Amanda Ray said.
Those interested in this grant opportunity can learn more about the program, obtain workshop updates, and view the 2021 Request for Application by visiting the Cannabis Tax Fund Grant Program page on the CHP’s website, under the Programs and Services tab.
The mission of the CHP is to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security.
In Loving Memory of Michael McDowell
SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA (MPG) - Michael McDowell was a dedicated Director of the Sacramento County Farm Bureau, local Delta farmer and avid agriculturalist. He passed away unexpectedly in early December, leaving behind his wife Amber and two young children, Sierra and Logan.
Michael operated his family's farm stand, Double M Farms, focusing on Bartlett and Bosc pears and many other specialty fruits from his orchard. Michael also created and managed McDowell Hunting preserve featuring pheasants, chukar and quail.
Michael was committed to protecting and promoting Delta agriculture, and was a founding member of the Sacramento River Delta Grown farm trail. He and his wife Amber were dedicated Farm Bureau members and always looked for ways to support youth in agriculture and our local community.
To support Amber and their children, a memorial fund has been established in Michael's name. Donations can be made at any F&M Bank branch or sent to our office at the address below:
Sacramento County Farm Bureau
c/o McDowell Memorial Fund
8970 Elk Grove Blvd.
Elk Grove, CA 95624
Make checks payable to: Michael McDowell Memorial Fund
If you have any questions regarding other ways you can help the McDowell family or about donations, please contact our office at 916-685-6958.
Our deepest condolences go out to Amber, their children, Ed & Eileen and the entire McDowell family.
Wishing you all peace, health and happiness in the New Year!
Sincerely,
Lindsey Liebig
Executive Director
The Golden State Killer Wreaked Havoc on Victims, Families and Sacramento Community
SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) – Joseph De Angelo-the man now convicted of thee horrific crimes in the East Area Rapist. He is the Golden State Killer. Beginning August 18, 2020 and ending August 20, 2020, De Angelo heard from his victims and their families. He was then sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
With the case now closed we have not forgotten the effect the East Area Rapist/Golden State Killer had on everyone who lived through the terror of his crime spree. Everyone has their own story, including me.
I was raised in Sacramento. I was 12 years old living in the Arden area with my parents and six siblings when the East Area Rapist started his reign of terror in 1976. In my family, my older sister was 16 and afraid to babysit for fear the “boogeyman” was coming. My mother slept with an icepick under her pillow. Years later, I learned my father bought a gun.
For those who lived here n Sacramento during this time, life as we knew it changed. For so many, the age of innocence vanished. Doors no longer remained unlocked; children couldn’t play outside after dark. Gun sales skyrocketed. Hardware stores sold out of window locks. Women took self defense classes. The impact the East Area Rapist had on the Sacramento community was overwhelming.
Understanding the magnitude of this case and the fact that the East Area Rapist became prolific and sadistic serial rapist and killer, drove so many in the law enforcement and the pubic safety profession to seek the truth. It was through passion and persistence and DNA that the needle in the haystack was ultimately found.
With he arrest, prosecution and sentencing of Joseph DeAngelo complete, I wanted to give a voice to all those affected by the East Area Rapist, so I asked those who lived in Sacramento in the mid-1970’s to email their stories to our office.
The response was overwhelming. We received several hundred emails from men and women who recounted their experience at different ages and stages of life during that time-as children, teenagers, young adults and parents. Every single response was read with great reverence for the time, thoughtfulness and courage it took for some to revisit that terrifying time,
Some examples of what was shared about how the East Area Rapist changed lives and instilled fear include: a family slept on their roof; a young mother packed her babies into the car and slept in the parking lot of her husband’s work while he worked the night shift; several people nearly shot their spouse or children who entered the house unexpectedly; a 74 year old woman with memory loss still thinks of the East Area Rapist when she “puts the stick in the window”; parents armed their kids with guns and knives; a woman practiced dialing the full police number in the dark as 911 did not exist during that time; a woman piled clean laundry on top of her bed to become invisible and hide while she slept on it; and one woman described the dear she felt battling cancer paled in comparison to her fear of the East Area Rapist. The impact of the East Area Rapist crime spree is undeniable, affecting generations of people who lived in Sacramento.
Although the stories were all unique, consistent theme and patterns emerged. People described intense feelings of vulnerability and fear that impacted their lives. Where they lived, how they raise their children were all impacted by the pervasive fear the East Area Rapist inflicted on Sacramento County. This book provides a platform for people to share their experiences and voice their feelings. As you will see, this was a shared community experience that forever changes Sacramento and the lives of people who lived through it.
To those who lived through the horror, especially to the survivors of his crimes. I hope that his capture and conviction brings you peace. To those who shared their stories, I hope the process was cathartic. TO those who will read these stories, I hope that you remain ever vigilant to the constant struggle between good and evil.
To read or view the electronic book visit www.sacda.org/sacramento-a-community-forever-changed/
Home is Where You Make It – Re-Housing Success
SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA (MPG) - Rising rents, increased cost of living and a shortage of affordable housing — among other factors — have caused homelessness to increase across California communities, including Sacramento. For people already living paycheck-to-paycheck, a rent increase threatens housing stability. Victoria Deal, who relies on disability and Social Security, was evicted and found herself homeless.
“I had nowhere to go … I was sleeping on my daughter’s couch, in my car, here, there and everywhere. So I called my navigator at Sacramento Self-Help Housing (SSHH) and I told her about my situation and my health problems,” said Deal. “I have a lot of health issues already and I can’t deal with people getting COVID-19 and being (unhoused). So they helped me.”
The organization Deal reached out to —Sacramento Self-Help Housing —is one of several nonprofits working with the County of Sacramento to alleviate homelessness. Funded through the county’s Full Service Rehousing Shelter Program (also known as the Scattered Site Shelter Program), SSHH master-leases 23 multi-bedroom homes throughout the county and provides small-group housing settings, as opposed to large congregate shelters.
“The goal is obviously not only to get people off the streets and under a roof, but we do it in such a way that integrates them back into a healthy living situation,” said Janna Haynes, public information officer with Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance. “Our goal is to identify what it is that’s keeping them in homelessness and how we can help them overcome those challenges so they can stand on their own two feet. And it’s different for people; it’s not always mental health or drug addiction. Sometimes it’s something as simple as help with a deposit.”
Deal, who lives with multiple physical and mental health conditions, was able to move into one of SSHH’s homes where they helped with all basic living expenses such as food and utilities. That allowed her to pay off debts, including back rent related to her eviction. With help from her case manager and housing coordinator, she was able to find permanent housing after four months. When she moved into her apartment in September 2020, County Full-Service Rehousing Shelter Program also helped with moving costs, the rental deposit and helped furnish her home with some basic furniture.
“I didn’t know of any other way in the world that I would be able to do it with my income,” Deal said. “I am thankful because they help me keep my stability, my mental stability and they helped me keep my possessions together. I’ve worked a long hard way to get to where I am today. They help me maintain that and my dignity.”
Uplifting Others - Employee Spotlight
Julie Field has dedicated her career to helping individuals and families in her community. Since 2015, she has served as the Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance Homeless Services Program Manager, designing and administering programs that support positive outcomes for persons experiencing homelessness. These services include outreach and crisis response, emergency shelter and rehousing programs, all geared to transition people into stable housing.
In her role, she has witnessed people overcome great challenges to lift themselves up and out of homelessness.
“It always starts and ends with the person; you, as a provider, can only do so much,” said Field.
The gains may be incremental and seem insignificant to the scale of the issue, but to Field and the people she works to support, every win is a huge win.
“When I first began my work in this role, the answer to homelessness always sounded so simple to me; you connect a person to a home,” she said. “What I learned is that the journey to housing is where the complexities and hard work lie, and getting to that destination is nothing short of amazing and inspiring.”
For more information on housing opportunities, visit Sacramento Self-Help Housing.