One out of every six people in our country struggle with overcoming substance use. If you’ve ever tried to quit smoking, drinking alcohol or another substance, you may know how difficult it can be even when you have access to care to help guide you through withdrawal and towards future sobriety.
For people who also experience homelessness, quitting substances may be the last thing on their mind. Their days are often spent struggling to find food and a safe place to sleep at night. Sudden withdrawal from a substance may be life-threatening without proper medical care. Many people may even turn to certain substances to stay awake at night so that they can protect themselves, their children and their pets.
When they try to seek help, resources are few and far between. Treatment centers may cost thousands of dollars per stay. Or there may simply not be enough beds. In 2024, there were only 78 detox beds within our county for Medi-Cal-enrolled individuals, and only two within the city of San Diego, none of which were designed for people experiencing homelessness.
This lack of available resources has deadly consequences. Overdose remains one of the leading causes of death among our neighbors experiencing homelessness. And too often, society’s response to substance use is punitive versus referring individuals to the treatment they need.
This is the reality for thousands of San Diegans experiencing both homelessness and substance use. It is the need Father Joe’ Villages met last year by opening our RISE sober living shelter and our detox program.
People experiencing both homelessness and substance use can now take that courageous first step of seeking the help they need. Perhaps this involves enrolling in our detox center where, for a period of days or even weeks, they receive medication and counseling to reduce and then abstain from substance use. Then, when the time is right, they enroll in our 248 bed RISE sober living shelter, where they find a judgement-free space to recover, rest and work towards leaving homelessness behind for good.
We’ve already seen the impact in such a short span of time. 4,152 people utilized one of our transformative recovery services last year, which includes our detox center and our sober living shelter, as well as counseling and medical care.
Yet we cannot solve this alone. Addressing substance use for our neighbors, especially those who live on our streets, is a responsibility for our entire community to share.
We call upon our legislators, federal, state and local representatives, to invest more into substance use treatment programs, especially those programs that support people who are also experiencing homelessness.
Our housed neighbors can do their part as well, through volunteering or financial gifts. Such gifts made the opening of our RISE sober living shelter possible, which is entirely donor-funded.
San Diego can give our houseless neighbors the support they need to overcome substance use. Through this very support, people emerge from life on the streets sober and secure. Perhaps they now have a place of their own. Or, they are well on their way towards finding one. It is all because they had the courage to seek help, and that services were made available when they were needed most. Now, today, substance use is simply a part of their past, not a daily reality.
This is the life hundreds of our neighbors now have, thanks to the continued support our city, our county, our donors and our staff have given. And it is the life thousands more will have over these coming years, as they take the first steps on their recovery journeys.
Deacon Jim Vargas is president and CEO of Father Joe’s Villages.
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