Hope of the Valley
If ever there was a place that lived up to its name, it’s Hope of the Valley. One of its main missions is running an emergency shelter in Pacoima, that offers a warm bed to the situational and chronically homeless. But the people counting on this important and vital service ran out of hope the night of March 31. You see, that’s because it’s a seasonal facility, and there is only enough money to keep the doors open from December to April. The funding comes from the Los Angeles Housing Services Authority, a joint venture between city and county.
Imagine for a moment, that as of right now, you have no idea where you are going to sleep from tonight until Christmastime. That is the tragic reality for the 120 people who until recently found shelter at Hope of the Valley. Not only was it filled to capacity every night, but there were always people who had to be turned away. Now they will join the 7,000 other homeless people in the area who have nowhere to go.
The CEO of Hope of the Valley, Ken Craft, founded the shelter and the Help Center in Van Nuys in 2009. The two facilities work in tandem—the shelter is open from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for sleeping, while the Help Center offers free showers, hot meals, medical care and computer access during the day. “We believe in a holistic approach to restoration including spirit, soul and body,” he explains.
While making his rounds right before the shelter closed, Craft encountered a woman in her late 40s who had a terrified look on her face. She told him simply, “I’m scared.” You may not be surprised that she now has nowhere to sleep, but you might be shocked to learn she works full-time in the office of a construction company in the Valley. Her co-workers have figured out she’s homeless, mostly by the backpack she carts to and from work every day. Despite her best efforts, she cannot afford a decent place to live. Her 8-year-old old son is staying with her mother.
The woman is also exhausted—having to leave the shelter every morning at 5:30, take a van to the Help Center, wait two hours until it opens to shower and then walk to work. The same trip is repeated at night. She is also not getting enough nourishment to stay healthy. “I have no place to cook,” she says. “I am gaining weight from all the fast food.”
Despite the fact that the shelter is now closed, Craft is grateful it exists at all. He was turned down by 20 churches and temples before the Greater Community Baptist Church agreed to let him use their space. “Pastor Dudley Chatman was not only willing to have the shelter at his church, he wanted it there. They are an amazing congregation.”
Another stroke of luck came unexpectedly. The community was very resistant to the idea of a shelter in its neighborhood. After meeting with the City Council, Craft was required to institute what they termed a “good neighbor policy.” Among other things, he had to put up a wind screen so neighbors couldn’t see the people at the shelter. No one is allowed to physically walk into the facility. They have to go to one of five pickup locations, be transported to the shelter and then driven through a gate. They also established a hotline, where people could call if they had any complaints.
The beauty of the regulations is they turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Craft, a former minister, says by agreeing to and implementing these, it allowed them to not only stay in operation, but to form a bond with the community.
As for solving the homeless issue, Craft emphasizes the need for what he calls “crisis housing” or shelter that is immediately available. On average, it takes two years to get a housing project completed. However the homeless population has increased 40% in the Valley in the past two years. “You cannot build your way out of this crisis,” says Craft. “We need to ease zoning restrictions, streamline the approval process and give tax benefits to those willing to retrofit their building for housing purposes.”
While the temporary closing of the shelter is troubling, Craft remains hopeful about the future, saying, “The political will has never been stronger. If the will of communities can change to allow the creation of housing in their areas, then we can greatly impact the crisis we are in.”
Hope is in the eye of the beholder, and this is one man who is determined to keep hope alive.