_An Edhat Reader
By Hope Village
Santa Maria’s Asa Jacobo-Anaya has always had the desire to help others. At only 8-years old, he is constantly trying to give away his allowance money, food, snacks and anything he can think of to the local unhoused individuals he sees around town.
Aware of her son’s passion for helping people experiencing homelessness, Ana Jacobo-Anaya proposed Asa’s 4-H program participate in the Hope Village Adopt-A-Room campaign by local nonprofit DignityMoves, an organization that provides interim housing and supportive services for Santa Barbara County’s unhoused population with the goal of transitioning them to more permanent housing.
Hope Village is a 94-room interim supportive housing unit located at 2131 Southside Parkway, Santa Maria, CA providing services to four populations including transitional age youth, recuperative/respite care, veterans and unsheltered individuals.
However, when the Jabobo-Anaya family learned there were still a considerable amount of Hope Village rooms without sponsorship, they wanted to do more.
“My husband and I talked to both our kids Asa and Avie about Hope Village and we all put our heads together to figure out what else we could do to help,“ says Ana Jacobo-Anaya.
Together, they came up with the idea to organize a supply drive for DignityMoves’ Hope Village.
They set their plan in motion and spread the word at Asa and Avie’s school as well as Ana’s workplace. Asa and Avie made a video that was shared on Instagram for family and friends and created flyers to help spread the word to the community. The Jacobo-Anaya family also set up a phone number designated to coordinate donations.
Asa says he wants to “help people have a nice safe space to sleep.”
“We’re super proud of him and his little sister Avie for putting themselves out there and working on this together,” says Ana Jacobo-Anaya.
The supply drive is collecting the following items:
- Fitted sheets (twin)
- Flat sheets (twin)
- Sleeping pillows
- Duvet covers (twin)
- Duvet inserts (twin)
- Throw blankets
- Fleece blankets
- Shower towels
- Hand towels
- Bathrobes
- Command hooks
- Shower caddies
- Toiletries
- Shampoo
- Lotion
- Toothbrushes
- Toothpaste
- Deodorants
- Razors/Shaving cream
- Feminine hygiene products
To coordinate a drop-off or pick-up for the supply drive, please call or text 805-621-6177.
For more information about Hope Village and DignityMoves, go to https://dignitymoves.org/.
About Hope Village
Hope Village is located in the City of Santa Maria at the intersection of Centerpoint Parkway, Lakeside Parkway and Southside Parkway. The purpose of the project is to provide dignified, safe housing for unhoused individuals, bridging the gap between living on the streets and qualifying for permanent housing. With 24/7 staffing by Good Samaritan, an organization that connects clients with mental health care, addiction services, job placement resources, stable housing and more, the location is a promising step towards ending homelessness in Santa Barbara County.
About DignityMoves
DignityMoves works to end unsheltered street homelessness in communities through the construction of Interim Supportive Housing as a rapid, cost-effective, scalable solution. Using innovative approaches such as prefabricated materials and modular housing, DignityMoves takes advantage of vacant parking lots or other underutilized sites to build temporary “pop-up” communities which can be relocated, as necessary. DignityMoves also develops permanent sites such as those funded by California’s Project Homekey program. For information on bringing a DignityMoves community to your city, or to donate to this work, please visit www.dignitymoves.org
