Probing the panhandling dilemma in Sonoma County

Kathleen Pozzi used to feel the urge to give when she saw needy-looking people standing on the curb with compelling signs like, “Will work for food.” But when one man rebuffed her offer of a McDonald’s meal with the complaint, “I am tired of McDonald’s,” her open-wallet policy was put to the test.

“Then we witnessed a fella head to the liquor store with a fist full of dollars. Surely our dollar was one of them,” said Pozzi.

As head of the Sonoma County Public Defender’s office, Pozzi is no pushover. She has represented some of society’s toughest citizens, including murderers. But she also is compassionate.

Pozzi came up with a different strategy so she can continue to give in a way she sees as more constructive. She now hands out $1 gift certificates to fast-food restaurants or bags of nuts.

To give or not to give to panhandlers? For some the answer is clear.

There are those like Sebastopol Police Chief Jeff Weaver who refuse to give to beggars. He said he was convinced after watching a good Samaritan pass a bag of McDonald’s takeout to a panhandler who proceeded to dump it, uneaten, in the garbage behind the restaurant.

“What I do, unless they’re aggressive or threatening, is to say hello when I walk by them or say good evening,” Weaver said. “My charity is my church. And as a police chief I get solicited to go to events where they raise money for The Boy Scouts or Red Cross. I always contribute to those when I’m there.”

There are others like David Goodman, executive director of the Redwood Empire Food Bank, who make it a policy to always dig into their pockets or purses for a little something. Goodman said the highest level of giving in the Jewish faith is giving without strings or expectation, giving because it’s the right thing to do to help people.

He calls it a “fool’s errand” to ruminate over how people may spend the dollars you give them. While giving to organizations is a good thing, he added that people have small individual needs that may not be covered by social services.

“I know there are organizations that have strong opinions about not giving to individuals,” Goodman said. “Give to us. I get that. But I guess I’d rather put it back on the donor and say, ‘Can you do more? Is it possible to do both?’ There is a tyranny of the either/or. It’s like a false choice. You can either give to a charity or give to individuals.

“I love the idea that people put together kits, say a little bag with Power Bars and a bus pass. They’re engaged. They want to help on a regular basis, and they’ve established a method for healing that feels good to them.”

For many people, the question of whether or not to give, and what to give, remains a vexation. Is the person legitimately in need or taking advantage? Will he or she really use the money for a bus ticket or something to eat, or will it finance booze or drugs? Is it better to give food or useful goods like socks and toiletries instead of cash?

Homeless displaced

Officials estimate that about 2,000 people are living without permanent shelter in Sonoma County, a rate higher than San Francisco and three times the national average. And while they say the overall numbers have gone down, efforts to clean up creek areas and clear areas along the railroad tracks for the new SMART train have displaced many homeless people from their encampments. A recent explosion in housing costs also is threatening to leave many without a roof over their heads, including the working poor.

“It’s an unbelievable crisis we’re facing,” said Jeff Gilman, executive director for the Redwood Gospel Mission, one of the chief providers of services to the homeless in Sonoma County. When confronted by someone on the street, most people decide whether or not to give money based on the need to assuage their guilt rather than on the needs of the homeless person. “We don’t know what their needs are until we sit down and talk with them, and that is hard to do in a walk-by conversation with someone who is panhandling.”

Gilman said The Redwood Gospel Mission provides a “menu” of ways to help the homeless, including a Real Change Certificate that includes information on resources available for more sustained assistance. It can be printed out from the mission’s website and offered to people on the street.

Rather than handing over cash to panhandlers, Sgt. Ryan Corcoran of the Santa Rosa Police Department prefers that people donate to organizations serving the homeless like the Redwood Gospel Mission, Catholic Charities, The St. Vincent de Paul Society, Petaluma’s Committee on the Shelterless or The Redwood Empire Food Bank.

“They can put the money where it’s most needed,” said Corcoran, who oversees the police department’s Downtown Enforcement Team. “It’s the only way to guarantee money will be spent in the best way and not on drugs or alcohol. I just think we as a society get a better payoff if it goes through an effort that is more focused on the whole and not on the individual.”

Not illegal

Panhandling in Santa Rosa is not illegal and is generally recognized as a protected First Amendment right. But the city does prohibit begging near ATM machines and within five feet of a doorway. Aggressive panhandling aimed at intimidating is also forbidden.

“There is really no way to know who is being sincere,” said Corcoran. “But in our experience people who are panhandling are using it for whatever they choose to use it for, so you can’t be guaranteed they’re using it for food, shelter or clothing.”

Sgt. Cecile Focha, with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office, said she doesn’t give money but keeps little bags of personal care items in her car - things like toothpaste, shampoo, a toothbrush, feminine care products, deodorant and soap.

“It’s an alternative to giving money because, if you’re hungry, you might not tend to other needs. This is an opportunity to give people something personal that they might not have otherwise. What we take as basic is a luxury to them.”

She said she also has left gently worn shoes in places where she knows they’ll be found by people who could use them. She knows of other law enforcement officers who make their used but still serviceable boots available to the homeless, and knows of fellow deputies who buy meals and bottles of water for people on the street.

Danika O’Leary of Rohnert Park says she can’t afford to give money right now. She’s working two jobs as a hairdresser and a phlebotomist to save money for a down payment on a house. But she regularly gives free haircuts to the homeless in Juilliard Park. She also makes peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and has in her trunk small hygiene bags with sunblock, lip balm, socks and other sundries.

“Quite a few homeless hang out in front of Starbucks. I pre-load a Starbucks card, and I’ll buy them a cup of coffee. Or I’ll buy them something to eat if they have a look of hunger. Usually they’re really excited to receive it.”

The Rev. Sally Hanes Hubbell of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Healdsburg says she doesn’t give to panhandlers, mainly because she pours her resources into her church’s charity. For a quarter of a century, St. Paul’s has maintained a community “shower ministry for the homeless, which takes a lot of resources to man and maintain,” she said.

“Personally, there’s something that doesn’t feel effective about panhandling. It feels like putting a very small amount of money toward something that’s not going to change the situation. The only way that things can change is having relationships with people and more contact than a few bucks and moving on.”

Every now and then she buys 10 or 20 grocery cards to hand out, or cans of tuna, snack crackers and socks.

Sue Hicks, a retired nurse from Santa Rosa, said she and her husband, James, make it a practice to buy $10 gift cards from Safeway during the holidays. They enclose them in a Christmas card with a message of support and caring and give them to the panhandlers.

Sheana Davis, a chef from Sonoma, said she also gives out gift cards, but only to places that don’t sell alcohol or cigarettes. Favorites are Subway and Little Caesar’s, where a family can get a full meal that is filling and nutritious.

“Also ice cream shops when I see kids with the parents, and Dollar Store cards so people can get anything from food to socks.”

Long-term programs

Jennielynn Holmes, director for shelter and housing for Catholic Charities, said her agency runs many service programs for the homeless and is committed to getting them integrated into longer-term intervention programs.

“We’re about ending homelessness,” she said. “What we prefer is to engage with people with outreach. We have little ‘Need Help’ cards we encourage people to give out so the homeless can find out about our services. A lot of people who are panhandling might not know about what we offer.”

She said Catholic Charities has been working with the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce’s Downtown Advisory Board to examine how other communities deal with panhandling. She said one idea under serious consideration is taking old-school parking meters and placing them in areas with heavy panhandling. Painted brightly as public art, they could be identified as places where people could insert their contributions rather than giving them directly to panhandlers. Proceeds would go to organizations that serve the homeless.

Other communities like Denver, Atlanta and San Luis Obispo reported great success, with Denver raising about $100,000 a year for charities while reporting an 80 percent reduction in panhandling.

Matt Martin, executive director of Social Advocates for Youth, said even if someone is not inclined or able to give money, everyone can make eye contact with another human being and offer a smile. His organization provides services to young people, including many who are struggling on the streets.

“At the end of the day,” he said, “any response that is from the heart and shows compassion goes a long way toward making a homeless person feel not so disconnected.”