Los Angeles, California

SUNNY L.A.
Our 2008 Los Angeles service immersion trip got off to a great start... with a day off! Since we arrived on a Sunday, our service sites were closed, so we took off to the mountains to the north, to the Getty Museum to enjoy its great vistas over the whole city. Then down to Venice Beach for some sun, ending up in Santa Monica Beach for entertainment on the Pier, some dinner, and hanging out with the celebs.

STREET PEOPLE IN HOLLYWOOD
Our primary site was Blessed Sacrament Social Services at the Jesuit parish in Hollywood. From 9:00 to 2:30 each day we served its clients, the homeless street people of the Hollywood entertainment strip – by distributing new clothes, scheduling and assisting with showers, preparing and serving meals. We also cleaned and organized the food pantry, kitchen, and clothing supply rooms. By having so much direct interaction with the homeless men and women every day, we got to understand and appreciate their lives and their backgrounds. We also got to know the staff and volunteers, and were amazed and touched by their incredible dedication and commitment.

HOMELESS ABUSED MOTHERS
Afterclean-up, we hopped in the van and drove across town on the 101 to our second site, the House of Ruth, a home for single mothers with children, to put in another couple hours of service. Most of the women are victims of domestic violence or abuse. We got to play with the children in childcare waiting for their mothers to come home from work, talk with some of the moms, and do some maintenance around the house. Then we drove home, bought groceries, cooked dinner, and talked over our experiences of the day; we reflected about what it meant for us and for our own spiritual values and perspectives.

IMMIGRANT WORKERS
On Wednesdays, B. S. Social Services is closed, so we drove downtown for an in-depth tour of Homeboys, Inc., a center that provides social services and employment help for Latino young people hoping to leave gang life behind. Once again we were in awe of the personal story of the young man who lead our tour. After a great lunch at Homegirls Café (staffed by former female gang members), and a walking tour of downtown LA, we ended up at Dolores Mission, a poor parish which offers social services and operates an overnight shelter for homeless men – all Latino immigrants working as day-laborers, many undocumented. The stories we heard there, along with a movie we watched, got us thinking in new ways about the immigration issues so prominent in our national news.

All in all we had experience with three entirely different populations of homeless people – people who are homeless for completely different reasons, and have completely different needs. We learned first-hand that homelessness is not a single phenomenon, but rather a very complex social issue.
Acouple of theLA participants also had the opportunity to attend the National Ignatian Family Teach-In on Immigration March 7-9 hosted at Loyola High School in Los Angeles and sponsored by the Ignatian Solidarity Network.

For more information contact:
Fr. Gary Wright
University Minister/Director
Wrightgr@udmercy.edu
313-993-1560