Monterey police helps out homeless couple with 6-month-old

A homeless couple got a hand from Monterey police this week after living in a tent at a Seaside park with their two children.

Families love to come to Laguna Grande Regional Park to enjoy a sunny day out, but behind the beautiful scenery, there is a more somber reality about living on the Monterey Peninsula.

62-year-old homeless resident Martin says it is tough to find work at his age.

“I’m looking for work, but when I’m looking for work, somebody says…no he needs a young man, you know?” he said.

The high cost of living, legal issues and addiction can all contribute to ending up on the streets. Families with children are not spared either, and that is exactly what a social support team comprised of a Monterey police officer, a support services program director and a social worker saw after residents heard children crying in a homeless tent at Laguna Grande Park.

“It wasn’t an ideal living situation right? So if we can come up with a long term solution to help the family, then that’s the better plan, that’s the goal,” said Sgt. Jake Pinkas, who is part of the Monterey Police Department Community Action Team.

It was a mom and a dad, with a two-year-old and a six-month-old. They are on a fixed income and were pushed out of a hotel when the U.S. Open raised prices.

Gathering for Women, a support services group in Monterey, says many of the almost 500 women they have served this year struggle with spikes in rent.

“And that’s most of the women that come here with their children, it’s just too expensive for them to… especially like Thomas said, they’re on a fixed income, they’re not making enough money to be able to get into permanent housing,” said Evangelina Ochoa, the program director for Gathering for Women.

Luckily for this family, the team provided them with diapers, toys and gift cards and sent them to a hotel with the help of a local faith community.

Montage Health social worker Thomas Muir says there is a mix of homeless who want help and who want to stay where they are at. But the help is ready and waiting.

“If someone wants to get into a place and they want to work with us, we can usually make it happen within a couple of months,” said Muir.

“I brought a single mom with two little girls to Evangelina’s door without calling her, brought them right here,” said Sgt. Pinkas. “And within a day, they were in temporary housing, off the street. And now the mom has a full-time job and they moved down south and they’re doing great.”

The three say what makes all this work is a team effort, multiple organizations working together for the common good. The best way you can help is to donate your time and money if you can, so more families can get the assistance they need.

Organizations you can help include Gathering for Women, Community Human Services, the Veteran Transition Center and The Bridge Restoration Ministry.

The team tells KION they are looking to place the family in more permanent housing very soon where they can hopefully get back on their feet.