Eating at Soup Kitchens to Pay the Rent

The homeless in the community were serving are not what people normally assume, said Marlon Mendieta, program director for the Dolores Housing Program. A large proportion are day laborers, or are working in regular jobs in a store or a caf and just dont make enough to pay rent.

The Dolores Housing Program operates the only two homeless shelters located in the Mission District. One location with 28 beds is leased from St. Peters Church at 2909-24th St., and space for another 57 beds is leased from the Iglesia de Santa Maria y Santa Marta at 1050 S. Van Ness Ave.

Mendieta said the Dolores Housing Program is in its 26th year. It started in response to the political unrest in Central America at the time. People were seeking asylum from violence and civil wars, and there was a call for churches to give sanctuary, he said.

Today, the programs shelters are part of an effort to help immigrants and others who have been impacted by the failing economy, to get off the streets and back into the workforce.

We see the value of what were doing and how it impacts peoples lives, Mendieta said. This is life-changing for immigrants trying to make a better life, and people whove fallen through the cracks in the safety net.

Read More