healtheocean
Source: Heal the Ocean
Another abandoned homeless camp got cleaned out – a big one at Haskell’s Beach near the Bacara Resort. This time the operation involved an unusual combination of talent: Bacara Resort official Mitch Vargas and Santa Barbara County Sheriff Ben Sandu, who is also the Community Resource Deputy for the City of Goleta, who contacted Heal the Ocean, who contacted Brian Borgatello of MarBorg Industries – and finally the most unusual participant of all in this project is a former resident of the camp who is now living with a roof over his head, and who now cleans up every piece of junk he can get his hands on.
This is Andrew Velikanje (pronounced “Vela-can-JEE”), who, in the end of the Haskell’s project, got tired of waiting for everyone to get it together, and on a recent day, went out to the camp and bagged it up himself for easy pickup by MarBorg today, Tuesday, July 13, 2021.
Andrew is a Hands Across Montecito protégé, and he now spends his days cleaning up shorelines, roadsides, beaches, the Bird Refuge – and even Highway 154. He has cleaned up the shoreline of Lake Cachuma so many times the powers that be at Lake Cachuma are considering giving him a permanent pass to be there as much as he wants. He has formed a new business, Earthcomb, with videos he posts on YouTube. (This live link shows him cleaning up Highway 154 before hitting the Haskell’s camp (at film marker 1:26). Andrew hauls hundreds of pounds of trash per day from everywhere and anywhere.
For Andrew, to beautify the former spot where he used to camp outdoors with others is truly the definition of Coming Full Circle.
Thank you, Andrew…And also, thank you Sheriff Ben Sandu, and Brian Borgatello!
Uhhh, grreat.
So…the unhoused people were assigned homes? Their personal belongings were respected and not thrown in the trash? I’m not quite ready to join the chorus of celebrants here until I am reassured that the persons “evicted” from public lands are receiving social services.
It sounds like uncompassionate fascism to me.
Well, for me,
(housed 6mos now), it was all about sacrifice.
I had a 3bd house in a private community, a business
( S.B. Chumash tour), nice cars & money…then cancer (from time in Army) .
I lost everything & ended up living my car to recover.
It took 5 years to regain some degree of health..with no help, no medications, no hotel stays, no cooking facilities (eating raw was better though),..& ptsd.
And keeping my eye on the ball through it all..wanting to quit a thousand times, but being too stubborn to do so..Prior-military Virgo & such.
Again..Sacrifice.
Notice that I did’nt mention prayer & ceremony.
That’s between Kakunupmawa & myself, but, the
Great mystery behind the Sun
sees my offerings.
Thnx for asking.
You are not in the midst of a “massive insane housing crisis”. You are in a failed choice of location for your own housing needs and abilities. Every single house in this entire area is affordable, for the person w ho buys it. They experience no “housing crisis”. Therefore, if you can’t afford housing the market passed you by and you need to do better market research in the future.
“clean” it? you mean take other peoples possessions and surf boards? because they come back for them. lol kinda obvious….and this wasn’t a homeless camp. just like Saj mentioned, this isn’t near downtown or a freeway exit or supermarkets for them to ask for change at. this is remote. this was not nor was ever a homeless camp. Haskulls is a locals only surf spot and beach party spot. it’s remote, away from police and sherrif deputies. its where teens and college kids and locals go to surf. so again, why didn’t i “clean it”? It wasn’t trash those items belong to people and that spot is once again occupied with a few chairs and a boogie board. it’s there now. i was there last night surfing. where were you? oh yeah you don’t go out there.
3 downvotes for LOOSECANNON because he/she showed a little empathy for others? You all are really gross in here.
We will be cleaning up homeless camps FOREVER, unless we do something about getting these people the help they need, and doing something about the massive insane housing crisis that we are in the midst of.