Council begins long-term effort to address homelessness in Stanislaus County

A council of community leaders convened Monday for what’s expected to be a long-haul prevention effort, which will focus on homelessness and attempt to tackle other social problems in Stanislaus County.

The effort also will try to mobilize community assets to strengthen families, invest in children and youths, and break cycles of crime, with an overall goal of improving the quality of life for residents.

County Board Chairman Terry Withrow said the initiative has no hidden agenda but is designed to spark dialogue and initiate early intervention and prevention programs involving 10 different sectors of the community.

County Chief Executive Officer Stan Risen referenced a Christian-based model for community transformation and also said the Focus on Prevention campaign won’t redesign the Band-Aids on social problems but will strive to get ahead of problems such as addiction. The initiative is supposed to continue for 10 years or more.

The 20-member Stewardship Council, which will oversee the Focus on Prevention effort, includes church groups such as City Ministry Network and the Pinnacle Forum, combined with representatives from business, the arts, entertainment and sports, education, the media, local government, neighborhoods, nonprofit groups, health care and philanthropy.

John Ott, the consultant hired to facilitate the process, said the initial focus on homelessness came from folks telling the county something needed to be done about the issue. “There was a lot of heat and energy around it,” Ott said.

Though the council is similar to an advisory committee, county officials have considered closing the meetings to the public, but will let the council decide. Ott recommended that the next Stewardship Council meeting on July 31 be open to the public.

Eight people, including representatives from the Gospel Mission in Modesto, Golden Valley Health Centers and other groups, sat in the public section for Monday’s 3 1/2-hour meeting at Greens restaurant in downtown Modesto.

Ott explained the goals of Focus on Prevention and led the council members in group discussion. He said council members will need to invest 16 hours a month to the effort.

For the initiative to succeed, participants said homeless people can’t be isolated in the category of “others,” and they shared additional ideas Monday that were sympathetic to the county’s homeless population. Data is being processed to create benchmarks for measuring progress on reducing homelessness.

A 60-member action council also is working to identify causes of homelessness and will mobilize local groups behind prevention projects. People from the different sectors will participate in a daylong Focus on Prevention convening Oct. 1 at Modesto Centre Plaza.

According to reports, the Stewardship Council will recommend projects to the county chief executive office. The county has budgeted $1 million for prevention efforts thus far; any expenditures will require approval from the Board of Supervisors, officials have said.

John Kitchell, a retired physician’s assistant who serves the homeless in a clinic at Modesto Gospel Mission, attended Monday’s meeting and was optimistic about the four goals of Focus on Prevention. “They are all good goals to be pushing,” Kitchell said. “I would like to see the meetings stay open.”

Though the county is spearheading the initiative, the Stewardship Council includes representatives from three hospitals in Modesto, the city manager of Modesto and Turlock’s police chief, as the impacts of homelessness are a challenge for cities as well.

Modesto City Manager Jim Holgersson said he expects Focus on Prevention will create program models that can work in all of the cities.

This story was originally published June 1, 2015 at 3:52 PM with the headline "Council begins long-term effort to address homelessness in Stanislaus County."