SJC in the NEWS
Wildfires Expose Safety, Logistical Risks for LA County's Unhoused
January 22, 2025
Los Angeles, CA
By Aron Schrank
As wildfires tear through Los Angeles County, tens of thousands of unhoused residents face a cascade of risks: toxic air they can’t filter, emergency alerts they can’t receive, and evacuation orders they struggle to follow.
By Aron Schrank
As wildfires tear through Los Angeles County, tens of thousands of unhoused residents face a cascade of risks: toxic air they can’t filter, emergency alerts they can’t receive, and evacuation orders they struggle to follow.
County officials have relocated hundreds of people from immediate danger zones, but health providers and homeless advocates say there’s more to be done for the area’s 75,000 unhoused residents. The crisis, they say, has exposed critical gaps in how the region protects its most vulnerable residents.
“Our folks, they’re almost like sitting ducks,” said Melissa Chavez with VelNonArt Transformative Health, a community health provider serving unhoused residents in the Antelope Valley, San Fernando Valley and Long Beach.
“They’re in these fire hazardous places where there is still toxic air — with very limited resources,” Chavez said.
Wildfire danger in Southern California is far from over, with firefighters still working the Palisades and Eaton fires that started two weeks ago. New evacuations were ordered Wednesday after a fire erupted in the L.A. County community of Castaic and swiftly grew to more than 9,000 acres.
That means an even greater strain on area resources.
“We’re trying to meet as many needs as possible,” said Ryan Smith, CEO of the St. Joseph Center, the main homeless services provider in West L.A. “It’s not easy.”
Fox 11 News In Depth: Chef Cristela and Chef Brian Find Community at St. Joseph Center's Bread and Roses Café
January 7, 2025
Los Angeles, CA
In this insightful segment, Fox 11 News highlights the incredible work being done at St. Joseph Center’s Bread and Roses Café to combat food insecurity in LA. Chef Cristela Alvarado and Chef Brian Beasley share their stories as culinary program graduates and the meaningful impact of this transformative program.
Full Story: https://vimeo.com/1044733685
Interviews: https://youtu.be/REKCk7ueUl4
Jimmy Kimmel Hosts Annual Winter Wonderland - KTLA5 News
December 17, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
South LA—St. Joseph Center Board Member Molly McNearney, her husband Jimmy Kimmel, and the Jimmy Kimmel Live! family volunteered and transformed St. Joseph Center’s Open Air: A Safe Landing for Families into a Winter Wonderland with toys, decorations, and smiles.
Watch Video HERE
Jimmy Kimmel, His Family, and TV Colleagues Spread Holiday Joy for Families at LA's St. Joseph Center
December, 6, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
By Ashley Mackey | KABC7
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at one special spot in Downtown L.A. and it’s thanks to talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, his family and colleagues.
Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney, the executive producer for “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” partnered with St. Joseph Center in Los Angeles for their annual Winter Wonderland Event to bring holiday cheer to families.
Read Full Story Here:
https://abc7.com/post/jimmy-kimmel-family-tv-colleagues-help-spread-holiday-joy-smiles-deserving-families-st-joseph-center/15625992/
Read More:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/jimmy-kimmel-live-team-brings-011235117.html?guccounter=1
St. Joseph Center named as Bank of Americas 2024 Neighborhood Builders Honoree
November, 29, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
Celebrating its 20th year, Bank of America’s signature Neighborhood Builders® program continues to be one of the nation’s largest philanthropic investments into nonprofit leadership development while providing unique multiyear flexible grant funding annually to high-impact nonprofits in nearly 100 communities nationwide.
In Los Angeles, Bank of America has named Hollywood Community Housing Corporation and St. Joseph Center as its 2024 Neighborhood Builders. Specifically, both Los Angeles nonprofits are each awarded a $200,000 grant over two years, comprehensive leadership training for each organization’s executive director and an emerging leader, and access to a national network of nonprofit peers.
Drive-Through Turkey Giveaway
November, 28, 2024
Venice, CA
St. Joseph Center hosted its annual Drive-Through Turkey Giveaway providing over 1,700 Turkeys and Thanksgiving meals to Los Angeles families in need, sharing the joy of the holiday season. On Nov. 22, staff photographer Chris Mortenson captured the spirit.
Locals Thankful for Loved Ones and Community
November, 28, 2024
Venice, CA
Thomas Leffler | Santa Monica Press
Locals have plenty of reasons to be thankful this year. From city officials and education leaders to business owners and law enforcement, Santa Monicans pointed to friends and family as well as community as bright spots in 2024.
The season of thanks was also felt at St. Joseph Center in Venice last week, as the nonprofit hosted its annual drive-through turkey giveaway, providing more than 1,600 Thanksgiving meals to individuals and families in need.
Read More:
https://smdp.com/2024/11/28/locals-thankful-for-loved-ones-and-community/
St. Joseph Center Celebrates Milestone with the Opening of La Ramona Family Interim Housing Community
November 4, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
In partnership with Los Angeles County, the State of California, and the Coalition for Responsible Community Development, St. Joseph Center opens its first owned housing site in South Los Angeles through Project Homekey.
Los Angeles, CA – St. Joseph Center proudly announces the official opening of La Ramona Family Interim Housing Community, a newly transformed facility in the heart of South Los Angeles’s historic Jefferson Park neighborhood. Developed as part of California’s Project Homekey initiative, this site represents St. Joseph Center’s first-ever fully owned housing facility. It offers a safe and supportive transitional environment designed for families experiencing homelessness. La Ramona will provide a vital resource for permanent housing and stability, with nearly 20 units designed specifically for children and families.
Read More: https://conta.cc/48wPbNP
L.A. County's Homelessness Initiative is Also About Seeing Black People
October 29, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
By Erin Aubry Kaplan
One-third of the region’s unhoused are Black. Funding services could be a start to investing in the equality we all need, instead of seeing it as a luxury we can’t afford — or some don’t deserve.
Read More:
https://capitalandmain.com/l-a-countys-homelessness-initiative-is-also-about-seeing-black-people
Housing for All: Philanthropies, Nonprofits Look to Get People Off the Streets
October 21, 2024
Los Angeles, CA
By Sherry Karabin
The year was 2021, and the Covid-19 pandemic was raging across the world.
In Los Angeles County, homelessness was continuing to increase, as officials and outreach workers looked to find solutions to the encampments that were lining various parts of the city of L.A. One of the largest, on Venice Beach, contained more than 200 people.
Its size and location made it hard to ignore, setting the stage the successful six-week effort known as the Ocean Front Walk (OFW) Encampment to Home Project. This resulted in the majority of those individuals living in permanent housing.
Modeled after the 2018 Encampment to Home pilot, which focused on two South L.A. communities, the effort was led by the Venice-based nonprofit
St. Joseph Center, which serves as the Coordinated Entry System lead agency for Service Planning Area 5 (SPA 5) on the west side of the county.
St. Joseph Center works with local and national media to share news about our mission to address homelessness and poverty in the community. If you are interested in conducting media coverage of St. Joseph Center, please get in touch with us at publicrelations@stjosephctr.org