Other efforts to help Huntington Beach’s homeless

Many churches and groups are doing their part to help the homeless of Huntington Beach.

Marice Supry and Terri Gleason travel around the city to feed the homeless through their nonprofit Terri & Mo Helping HB Homeless Souls.

“The thought of them being on the streets hungry, without shelter, being out in the elements with limited clothing and none of the comforts of a home breaks out hearts, no matter how they ended up there,” said Supry, who with Gleason prepares regular meals like pasta, sandwiches and hot dogs for the people on the streets of Surf City.

Colette’s Children’s Home, a nonprofit shelter for needy women and their children, has been serving the homeless in Huntington Beach since 1998. It also has shelters — two families share one unit — in Fountain Valley, Placentia and Anaheim.

Last year, the group placed 242 women and 327 children in transitional housing and 18 women and 47 children in permanent supportive housing. It also reunited 17 mothers with 30 children.

Many of the women Colette’s comes into contact with are considered “high risk,” meaning they have substance abuse issues or were victims of human trafficking, previously incarcerated or unemployed, said City Councilman Billy O’Connell, who is the founder of the nonprofit.

Huntington Beach police Lt. Kelly Rodriguez said the department has found that many of the homeless people don’t have the life skills to pick themselves up.

“We’ve helped a couple families and we are still active in their lives, meaning a simple decision on how to get their child to school across town when they don’t have a car can be very complicated,” she said. “Instead of moving the child closer, they just don’t send the child to school. [The Homeless Task Force is] making those extra efforts to help the people make good decisions.”

The department has also started working with mentors to help the formerly homeless get back on their feet and learn how to do things like care for their children and budget their money.

In addition, the Police Department has hired a part-time liaison to coordinate with nonprofits for resources.