|
 During
the late 1980s, the organizational structure of the
agency evolved. Originally, the Board consisted of
representatives from each faith-based organization serving
the agency, but as time went by, the agency became more
secular in its leadership. The same core groups that started
Transition House, now joined by new groups, took turns
providing dinner every evening and lending volunteer support
in almost every aspect of the agency’s program. In total, 27
groups worked to serve Santa Barbara’s homeless population
during the Quonset Hut years.
Bill Fox followed Alice Hasler in the Executive Director
position, providing strong, compassionate, and effective
leadership. Bill was described as having a “heart of gold”.
Pamela Allen Jones took over the leadership role from Bill
Fox. Jill Cordover succeeded Pamela as Executive Director of
Transition House in 1992. At the time, the agency was
experiencing financial difficulties. Jill said about her
first months, “It was depressing, yet hopeful. When the
volunteers and families showed up at 5:00, the place came
alive. It became even cozy - with the smell of dinner on the
stove and the sight of children doing art at the dining
tables under the fond supervision of dedicated community
members.” Jill began fundraising and grant writing, setting
the stage for firm financial footing for the future.
The former Children’s Home Society Auxiliary chose
Transition House for its charitable service, establishing
the Transition House Auxiliary, an organization dedicated to
fundraising for the agency.
Following a national trend, family homelessness proved to be
the fastest growing segment of the homeless population and
the Quonset Hut was bursting at the seams. A new home was
found two blocks from the Quonset Hut at 434 E. Cota Street
and purchased thanks to generous loans and significant
funding from the County and City of Santa Barbara. The new
space allowed the capacity to be increased to 70 people, and
provided more administrative space so that meaningful
support programs could be implemented. The renovation of 434
E. Ortega was completed by many volunteers, some of whom
were simultaneously taking a class on construction from
SBCC’s adult education taught by contractor Mark Lurie.
Especially heroic in their construction efforts were Jim
Cappon, Bud Allain, Don Harshorn and Harry Taylor. The
shelter moved without interrupting services.
Transition House adopted a philosophical approach and began
programs to support solutions to poverty. The first of these
programs was infant care—the E.L. Wiegand Childcare Center
was opened onsite. Consistent with the agency’s child and
family centered approach, the after school program was begun
through a collaboration with the Santa Barbara County
Department of Education.
More programs were developed including the HOMES program and
Career Development. The
HOMES program was conceptualized to
address the root cause of homelessness among residents:
poverty. HOMES provided below-market rate or subsidized
housing to families who exhibited extraordinary commitment
to permanently escaping homelessness. In exchange for HOMES
services, the clients signed a contract in which they agreed
to work to be free of all forms of public assistance within
5 years. A partnership with the City of Santa Barbara
Housing Authority made housing subsidies possible.
The Career Development program was launched to aid clients
who were unemployed or underemployed and wanted to increase
their income earning ability. At the time of its inception,
the Career Development program was a three-stage approach
featuring job preparation workshops, individual career goal
development and job search support, and long-term follow-up.
--continue to part 3-- |
