COSTA MESA : Shelter Has Addition to Its Family

The Orange Coast Interfaith Shelter has expanded, adding four new family apartment units that will increase the occupancy from 12 to 20 families.

Families staying in the shelter’s older units will be moved into the new units as soon as the city issues permits, which may be by the end of this week, said Director Cindy Heifner.

The new units are bright and airy, with large open living rooms, dining rooms and kitchen areas. On either side of these areas are two bedrooms and bathrooms designed to house one small family in each room or a large family in two rooms. Kitchens have two of everything--stoves, refrigerators and sinks--so families can share the space but not intrude on each other, Heifner said.

“What we’ve had is one-bedroom apartments with two families per apartment. The new building will give them more privacy,” Heifner said.

In the older part of the shelter, children who have been staying there played in a crowded room staffed by two volunteers who helped them create artworks to hang on bulletin boards. One 5-year-old boy pleaded to be let into a new playroom that is also part of the expansion.

That room was designed by Interior Design Society volunteers who decorated the room with blue, red, green and yellow dinosaurs, some wearing baseball caps and others riding skateboards. Green Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles backpacks, filled with crayons, drawing pads and markers, hang on hooks ready for children to claim.

Volunteers hope to start a daily story hour for the children, most of whom are younger than 12. For school-age children, individual tutors from UC Irvine visit regularly to help with schoolwork.

People can live at the shelter for up to two months, saving 80% of their earnings for future living quarters and working with a counselor on a budget. The facility also offers emergency shelter, meals, laundry, phones, showers and job referrals.

The expansion comes 10 years after the shelter opened in 1981. The yearlong project, estimated to cost $361,416, was funded through a state grant and private donations. Two old buildings had to be demolished to make way for the new units.

As its name indicates, the shelter was founded by a small group of people from different faiths. Several churches consider the shelter their project, raising money and donating labor and materials to the facility.

During construction, Heifner said she was overwhelmed by the volunteers and donations that continue to flow in. “It’s a neat position to be in. What do you need?”

Volunteers teach the children new games, clean out garages and do other chores around the lot. “It’s fun for the kids and it lets the people here know that not everyone out there is looking at them like they’re bums,” she said.