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Somewhere in Hollister, some high school students are grappling with the pressure of graduation while carrying a burden that their peers do not have: homelessness. For them, as well as other unhoused young adults between 18 and 24 years old, the federally funded Avenida program offers not just a doorway to housing but also help in finding a job and accessing healthcare.
Youth Alliance, the only non-county agency to provide this type of service, helps clients negotiate with landlords to secure leases and offers assistance with building credit history, securing deposits, setting up utilities and helping with moving in.
Through the program, the alliance also offers resume workshops, mock interviews, help with work clothes, transit vouchers and enrollment assistance for dental care, Medi-Cal and CalFresh benefits.
“When I started this program, I was not aware of the huge need that there is in this county,” Program Coordinator Jennifer Garcia said. “Usually, when we think of the unhoused, they are older adults or parents with minors, not our transitional-age youth.”
Youth Advocate Vanessa Buelna said young adults in the county who become unhoused or get by through couch surfing are put in that position for a number of reasons.
“Many are fleeing unhealthy relationships, whether that’s from a partner or a parent,” she said. “Some are fleeing unsafe homes, situations that they’re not happy in, or to get away from gang affiliations.”
Buelna described the situation of being young and homeless as “carrying the weight of the world,” out of concern for what their friends or the adults around them would think if they knew the truth.
“They’re struggling,” she said, “because of the pressure of keeping this big secret. They’re in a different circumstance than what their peers are experiencing, wondering where they’re going to sleep that night or if there’s a timeline for when they have to be out of a certain place.”
Buelna said that being unhoused comes with the stigma of having to ask for services and being prepared to be let down by other systems or agencies.
“Whether here or outside of the county,” she said, “they are told or promised that they will be connected to the service, only to find funding was cut off, funding has been exhausted, or they no longer qualify because of their aging out.”
The process for getting assistance is as simple as walking through Youth Alliance’s door with a form of identification and a desire for help. They do not need to be a U.S. citizen, but they must reside in San Benito County, be between the ages of 18 and 24, and be unhoused. If they meet those three qualifications, they’re eligible for the program.
During intake, Garcia said staff assess the client’s needs and wants. Then they sign up for county benefits. In a follow-up appointment they can enroll in services such as Medi-Cal and CalFresh.
“We do emphasize that we’re not an emergency service provider,” Garcia said. “We don’t have access to immediate housing. We don’t offer rental assistance. But we can connect them to an emergency shelter, such as the Home Resource Center here in Hollister.”
Those found during intake to lack certain necessities receive undergarments, socks, sweaters, sweatshirts, sweats, hygiene products and food from a well-stocked pantry.
The most important part of the program, Garcia said, is the case management she leads with Buelna. This includes helping clients further their education by re-enrolling in high school and earning their GED. It also includes job interview skills workshops and providing transportation as they hunt for jobs.
Finding housing, she said, is a more complicated process.
“It’s really just applying to every housing program that we’re aware of,” Garcia said. “Some housing programs require employment, and some don’t. We take the chance and see where things land for them. But we always are proactively working with them.”
Buelna said it often comes down to persistence to achieve breakthroughs in helping clients.
“Our job is to advocate, and that’s exactly what we do,” she said. “And even if we hear ‘no,’ because we’ve gotten ‘no’s’ before, it’s going back and saying, ‘Would you reconsider?’ It’s things like that, just to go the extra mile and not just settle for a no.”
That extra mile includes helping with a letter of support, vouching for the client, helping with the security deposit and showing the prospective landlord that the client can pay rent on time.
In addition to housing, the program offers life-skills groups focused on being assertive and setting healthy boundaries with others. There is also a twice-a-month drop-in center where clients can come for a prepared hot meal, socialize, connect to Wi-Fi, watch TV or take a nap.
One current client, who preferred not to be named, said she found a job with the program’s help and, though “juggling through my personal problems,” was able to graduate from high school over the summer. She said she also benefited from the program’s more social aspects.
“They help you,” she said. “They have groups if you need to talk to someone. There’s a lot of activity you can do to feel better. It’s the conversation, everyone just talking, caring about one another, and trying to involve and help each other.”
The program has served 42 youths so far this year and logged a 92% success rate for clients who successfully stabilize, secure employment and transition to long-term housing. Some former clients have even been hired by Youth Alliance as advocates, turning their experiences into mentorship.
“We play a role in finishing raising someone else’s kids in the best possible way,” Buelna said. “I genuinely love it. It gives us space to welcome them and share what we’ve learned from our own experiences. They can feel like family, which is something that they come in here lacking.”
For more information about the Avenida program, contact the Youth Alliance at (831) 636-2853 or visit the center weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at 310 Fourth Street in Hollister.
BenitoLink reporter Noe Magaña contributed to this article.
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