Tag: homeless

Homelessness complicated by shortage of services Accessing mental health services a challenge for the homeless

photo by Karen Laslo

by Melissa Herzstein & Amy Ballard
guest commentary posted March 18

“I never know what day it is. I only know the time based on whether the sun is out.”

I (Melissa) was alarmed by this statement from an unhoused individual I interviewed as I helped with Butte County’s 2025 Point in Time (PIT) count, the biennial study that measures the number of unhoused persons through observation and response to a survey about their needs. This man was describing the challenges he faced in seeking mental health services at a walk-in facility. He was given an appointment for months out, making it impossible for him to attend because he had no reliable way to tell time. read more

Viewing the world with empathy A first-hand experience with Point-in-Time

photo by Yucheng Tang
Elvert Richardson checks for homeless people or encampments under a bridge near the Chico State campus.

by Yucheng Tang
posted Feb. 4

It was not a normal stroll.

“We need to check the lower part of the slope next to the creek. The homeless always set up their camps there,” Elvert Richardson said to me on a recent sunny Wednesday morning, while we were walking along Big Chico Creek on the north side of Chico State campus.

I was one of the 280 registered volunteers for the Point-in-Time count in Butte County on Jan. 29, there to learn about homelessness as a reporter. Every team, usually consisting of three to four people, was sent out by the Butte County Homeless Continuum of Care (CoC), a local planning body, to count unsheltered people and conduct the survey in an assigned area. read more

Activist shops for empathy at Saturday market Changemaker: Charles Withuhn rolls the boulder uphill

photo by Yucheng Tang
Charles Withuhn is president of the North State Shelter Team.

by Yucheng Tang
posted Jan. 28

Editor’s note: This is the first story in a series called “Changemakers” that ChicoSol will run monthly in an effort to highlight some of the remarkable work underway in our community.

Standing in front of his booth at the Chico Certified Farmers Market, Charles Withuhn greets passersby on this winter Saturday.

He shakes hands with some and passes out newsletters or fliers produced by the North State Shelter Team (NSST). Some people stop to listen and some barely show interest. Even though some people ignore him, Withuhn — like the mythological Sisyphus who relentlessly rolled a boulder up to a mountain top only to have the boulder roll down — just keeps making attempts at conversation. read more

Deaths of unsheltered people continue in 2024 Safe Space opens winter sheltering

photo by Yucheng Tang
The mural on Park Avenue commemorates Chico-area residents who are usually homeless and have died on the streets or in other public spaces.

by Yucheng Tang & Leslie Layton
posted Dec. 16

A march to commemorate the unhoused who have passed away in a public space will begin at Children’s Park at 4:40 p.m. Dec 21 and conclude at the Our Hands sculpture where a memorial will take place. And Safe Space, the nonprofit that operates seasonal nighttime sheltering, restarted its winter program Dec. 15.

Dec. 21 — the day that has the longest night in a year — is nationwide Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day. The first Annual Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day was commemorated in 1990, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless, in order to remember those who have died while experiencing homelessness. There have been between 10 and 18 such deaths in Chico in 2024. read more

Blue trailer delivers to the homeless: Hot showers, clean clothes, hope The Oroville-based Haven of Hope on Wheels now has five trailer units

photo by Karen Laslo
Earl Lewis, who runs on-site operations at the shower-and-laundry unit Haven of Hope on Wheels, discussed his work in a recent November interview.

by Yucheng Tang
posted Dec. 2

“135?” someone calls out from in front of the blue trailer.

“Here,” says a man in a green jacket and blue jeans, who then takes charge of his freshly-packed laundry bag labelled “135.”

The man puts the bag in his arm and walks toward the shopping cart filled with his other belongings.

Suddenly, he lowers his head and leans toward the plastic bag, smelling his freshly washed and dried clothes as if he was smelling the fragrance of flowers. Then, he smiles, illuminated by warm sunlight. read more

Safe Space works to overcome hurdles to intake Unhoused people may be stranded during storm

photo by Karen Laslo
Safe Space volunteers checked in people who needed shelter during an intake held near the municipal center last winter.

by Leslie Layton & Natalie Hanson
posted Nov. 20

The nonprofit organization Safe Space is working to get emergency night-time sheltering available by Christmas Day as unhoused people struggle with this week’s downpour.

Forecasts were indicating that up to 10 inches of rain were possible in Chico between today and the end of the week, as well as localized flooding. Safe Space Executive Director Hilary Crosby said outreach teams were on the streets handing out tarps and making sure homeless community members “knew about the storm coming through.” read more