HomeAid Orange County Raises Over $360,000 at Annual Doorways for Hope Gala

From left to right, rear:  Ron Howarth, Bill Balfour, Tara Balfour, Jody Chapman, Don Chapman, Debra Guthrie

From left to right, front:  Camille Howarth, Rob Guthrie

 HomeAid Orange County Raises Over $360,000 at 

Annual Doorways for Hope Gala

Irvine, California, December 2, 2014 – On Friday, November 7, 2014, HomeAid Orange County’s year-long celebration of its 25th anniversary culminated with a Silver Masquerade Ball at the beautiful Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach. This year’s theme for the annual Doorways for Hope gala Unmasking the Faces of Homelessness lent itself well to demonstrate HomeAid’s commitment to its mission of ending homelessness since its inception in 1989.

For 25 years, HomeAid Orange County has sought to end homelessness through advocacy, development and service. In 1989, HomeAid was established by the Orange County Chapter of the Building Industry Association of Southern California. HomeAid acts as a liaison between service providers and community volunteers, as well as builders and specialty contractors.

Bill Balfour, Senior Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Banking at Bank of America and board president of HomeAid OC states, “Bank of America is proud to be an ongoing sponsor for HomeAid’s gala and is pleased to continue supporting HomeAid and its’ mission of ending homelessness in Orange County.”

This year, special thanks went out to Valeant Pharmaceuticals International for joining HomeAid’s efforts to end homelessness by coming on board as the gala Title Sponsor. Valeant was also recognized for supporting Homeless Awareness Month as its’ lead sponsor during the month of November.

At the event, HomeAid was proud to announce the addition of four new Legacy Board members. Mike Lennon who served as the original CEO in 1989, Jay Blakslee, who also started on the board its first year in 1989, Les Thomas, former president of Shea Homes, who also served as board president, served on the board starting in 1998, and Dick Hunsaker of Hunsaker & Associates whose contributions as a board member started in 2002. All deserving of continued gratitude for helping HomeAid house over 50,000 homeless over the past 25 years.

Tara Morenc, Director of Purchasing at William Lyon Homes, this year’s event co-chair, expressed that “HomeAid has been working to unmask the faces of homelessness to build awareness that housing is needed not only for those individuals you see on the streets, but also for those you don’t see – the families with young children who are sleeping in different shelters at night struggling to ensure their children get enough to eat, a warm place to sleep and are able to get an education. The faces of homelessness go far beyond what most people see on a day to day basis, especially here in Orange County.”

As guests entered the Doorways for Hope gala, they walked through large doorways that adorned the hallway. When approached about the doors, John Racunas, Senior Vice President with Orion Risk Management and Co-Chair for the Doorways for Hope Gala responded that “Doors represent a home, hope and new opportunities, which is what we’re providing to the homeless community and why we have them here at the event. We want HomeAid’s supporters to fully understand and appreciate that by attending the event, they are doing more than giving money to a good cause, they are helping to build doorways for hope.”

HomeAid Orange County’s vision to end homelessness starts at the core – where does someone go when they suddenly find themselves without a home? HomeAid gives children and their parents, along with individuals, the opportunity to move from benches to beds to self-sufficiency. HomeAid achieves its mission of building new lives for homeless families and individuals through housing and community outreach through advocacy, development of shelters and service. To learn more and get involved, visit www.homeaidoc.org.

HomeAid OC and Michael Chang Team Up to Celebrate 25 Years at 2014 Tennis Charity Tournament

 HomeAid Orange County and Michael Chang Team Up to

Celebrate 25 Years at 2014 Tennis Charity Tournament

July 2, 2014 – Irvine, CA: Southern California tennis players have begun to sign up for the fourth annual Michael Chang Tennis Classic (MCTC), which will take place the weekend of July 25^th- 27^th at the Newport Beach Tennis Club.

The MCTC is a one-of-a-kind charity tennis tournament hosted annually and this year, partial proceeds from the MCTC will benefit HomeAid Orange County, a nonprofit organization with a mission to end homelessness by building new lives for homeless families and individuals through advocacy, development of shelters and service. This year marks a milestone year for both Michael Chang and HomeAid as both are commemorating their 25^th year of accomplishments at the tennis classic.

Michael Chang set numerous "youngest player records," turning pro at just 15 years of age. In 1987, he was the youngest player to win a main draw match at the U.S. Open and the youngest to reach a Tour semifinal. Becoming the youngest French Open / Grand Slam Champion ever in 1989, he then became the youngest to rank in the Top 5. This same year, 1989, HomeAid was launched by the Building Industry Association of Orange County to help develop shelters for the homeless. Over the years, Michael Chang channeled his talents and success into helping others through his foundation. Over the years, HomeAid Orange County has developed 50 shelters and helped over 50,000 homeless. Twenty-five years in the making, Michael Chang and HomeAid pair up to celebrate 25 years of accomplishments and raise much-needed funds for the work yet to be done.

The annual charity tennis tournament is expected to fill the courts with competitors in all categories from 3.5 to the Open. The popularity of the tennis tournament is compounded every year due to the well-run event being consolidated into a single weekend.  As one player said last year, “The tournament itself is outstanding; one of the best tournaments I’ve played.”

In addition to bringing in financial sponsors, MCTC will be holding its first silent auction, including a few exciting autographed sports memorabilia items, the weekend prior to the sanctioned tournament. The auction will open July 19^th at the annual public tennis clinic hosted by Michael Chang and other world class tennis pros for the first 125 people who sign up. The auction will remain open through an evening exhibition match that will include Michael Chang on center court. 

The non-sanctioned high school division of MCTC will be back at Irvine Valley College with the Sunday finals at the Newport Beach Tennis Club.  This year’s high school finalists and champions will not only be receiving trophies, but also gift cards and other prizes. 

Registration for the tennis clinic and the three day tennis tournament is now open. Many returning finalists and champions have already committed to play.  Sign-ups can be done through the USTA website or by going to www.changtennis.com. 

For more information on HomeAid Orange County, please visit www.homeaidoc.org.

7^th Annual Essentials for Young Lives Donation Drive Delivers

Orange County Campaign Collects over 1.2 Million Essential Items for Homeless Families

May 29, 2014 (Irvine, CA) – Today HomeAid Orange County, in partnership with the Children and Families Commission of Orange County, delivered over 1.2 million essential items to 17 facilities serving homeless families with children.  The 7^th Annual Essentials for Young Lives donation drive was the most successful drive in HomeAid Orange County history, surpassing the 2013 drive by almost 200,000 items!

“We are absolutely thrilled with the results of this year’s Essentials campaign.  It is the compassion and support of the community that continues to make this donation drive so successful,” said Scott Larson, Executive Director of HomeAid Orange County.  “Families represent the highest percentage of those living in shelters throughout Orange County, and being able to provide over 1.2 million essential items, the majority of which are diapers, to support them is incredible.  We would especially like to thank our corporate sponsors, The Vons Foundation, UPS, and the Automobile Club of Southern California for their support of this campaign.  Our partners understand how important this donation drive is for homeless mothers and their children in our community.”

The items collected through the Essentials campaign will be distributed to transitional housing facilities that were built with the assistance of HomeAid Orange County.  These diapers and other essential items that were donated enable recipient agencies to save the funds normally spent on baby supplies for use on programs that help their clients achieve self-sufficiency and lead productive, independent lives. 

“The Commission’s 13-year partnership with HomeAid Orange County has successfully increased the capacity at shelters ensuring that children have a safe and secure place to live,” said Sandra Barry, chair of the Children and Families Commission of Orange County. “The Essentials campaign has alleviated the burden on homeless mothers to purchase diapers and allows them to focus on parenting.”

The Orange County Essentials for Young Lives campaign was first launched in 2008 and has collected over 3.4 million essential baby items.  The donations collected go directly to meet the critical needs of homeless children and families in Orange County. 

“I am humbled to see that our community, once again, showed enormous generosity to meet the needs of the most vulnerable in our community,” said Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens, Honorary Chair.  “It has truly been a privilege for the men and women of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department to participate in the Essentials for Young Lives donation drive.  We see every day how important transitional housing can be to so many Orange County families.  By joining with HomeAid and the Children and Families Commission on the Essentials drive and helping to support our homeless families, we know that we can remove some stress and anxiety that comes with a temporary living situation.”

For more information, please visit http://www.homeaidessentials.org.

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HomeAid Orange County

HomeAid Orange County is the founding chapter of a national non-profit organization with the vision and purpose to end homelessness.  Through its mission of building new lives for homeless families and individuals through housing and community outreach, HomeAid, develops housing, advocates and provides service in the community to the homeless.

Since 1989, HomeAid Orange County – founded by the Building Industry Association of Southern California's Orange County Chapter, has developed 50 shelters, adding more than 1,000 shelter beds throughout Orange County.  HomeAid acts as the housing developer and liaison between services providers, community volunteers, builders and specialty contractors. Tragically thousands are still in need of shelter each and every day.  To help solve this social crisis, new housing developments are being planned and constructed throughout Orange County.For more information, please visit www.homeaidoc.org.​

Children and Families Commission of Orange County

The Children and Families Commission of Orange County oversees the allocation of funds from Proposition 10, which added a 50-cent tax on tobacco products sold in California. Funds help pay for education, health care and child development programs for children from birth to five and their families.  The Commission’s goal is to ensure all children are healthy and ready to learn when they enter school. For more information, please visit www.occhildrenandfamilies.com.

HOMEAID ORANGE COUNTY TO CELEBRATE ITS 25TH ANNIVERSARY WITH DEDICATION OF ITS 50TH HOMELESS SHELTER

Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony on May 20^th to Mark Final Expansion

Of Pathways of Hope Campus in Fullerton

Fullerton, CA, -- On May 20^th, HomeAid Orange County will celebrate two significant milestones: the 25^th anniversary of its efforts to end homelessness through advocacy, development and service in Orange County and the completion of its 50^th homeless shelter. The occasion will be commemorated with a ribbon-cutting at 11:30 a.m. at 504-506 West Amerige Avenue in Fullerton, which is operated by the nonprofit organization Pathways of Hope.

This latest HomeAid project, built by Shea Homes, completes the Pathways of Hope campus, which now accommodates up to 82 parents and their children. The new addition features two apartment buildings that each encompass four residential units, including studio, two- and three-bedroom configurations, which will house up to 36 residents. This comes on top of 1,054 beds in HomeAid shelters that have provided accommodations to more than 50,000 people who have found themselves homeless since 1989.

Bert Silva, president of Builder Captain Shea Homes, commented, “Our partnership with HomeAid and Pathways of Hope brings together three great organizations that are dedicated to supporting and enriching our local communities. We are honored to be a part of this important effort, providing interim housing when it is needed the most, because caring about the people in our community is always first on our list of priorities.”

“This latest expansion of Pathways of Hope will enable us to continue providing the assistance that has already served more than 1,025 Orange County families since the first home on the campus was opened in 1986,” said Barbara Jennings, President of the Board of Directors for Pathways of Hope. “Every step of the way, HomeAid Orange County has been a valuable partner, helping us develop, renovate and maintain the campus, which has become a significant resource for services that benefit the homeless community.”

“Developments like these play a key role in ending the cycle of homelessness,” stated Scott Larson, executive director of HomeAid Orange County. “HomeAid is  proud to bring together the resources of the local homebuilding industry to help organizations like Pathways of Hope provide both housing and services to the homeless community in Orange County, and we are grateful to the participation of Shea Homes and our many other builder members, who have made HomeAid a remarkable success.”

About HomeAid Orange County

HomeAid Orange County is the founding chapter of a national nonprofit organization with the purpose to end homelessness through advocacy, development and service. Through their mission to build new lives for homeless families and individuals through housing and community outreach.  Founded in 1989 by the Orange County Chapter of the Building Industry Association of Southern California, HomeAid acts as the housing developer and liaison between services providers, community volunteers, builders and specialty contractors.

To date the organization has completed 50 developments that serve victims of domestic violence, pregnant homeless women, abused and abandoned children, homeless adults living with HIV/AIDS and homeless families. For more information, please visit www.homeaidoc.org.

About Pathways of Hope

For nearly 40 years, the goal of Pathways of Hope has been to place families and individuals into permanent housing as quickly as possible. Its Prevention and Outreach programs (such as grocery, rental assistance and friendship program) help to strengthen households and prevent homelessness. Its Housing programs (Via Esperanza, New Vista, ISN, Interim Housing and rapid re-housing) provide several options that are tailored to ending homelessness one household at a time.

The nonprofit organization’s newest Interim Housing program offers an option to families who are making the incredible leap from the crisis of homelessness to the security of long-term housing stability. This program provides apartments for families who need additional time to complete milestones that will lead to greater long-term stability. These milestones may include completing school or a vocational program and addressing poor credit history. During this time, participants have access to the services offered at the New Vista campus while also being responsible for their own housing costs. Services include career development, budgeting, counseling and case management that allows participants to focus on long-term change in a supportive environment.

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