A reason for celebration

Jennifer Kho

COSTA MESA -- The Orange Coast Interfaith Shelter, one of only two

emergency shelters in the county, celebrated its 20th anniversary

Tuesday.

The shelter provides emergency housing and transitional programs for

the homeless.

“This was the first family shelter in Orange County and the first of a

series of interfaith shelters that are not faith-based,” said Sheri

Barrios, the shelter’s executive director. “It started because there was

a need. When it first started, we thought it would be out of business by

now. Instead, there’s more of a need than there ever was.”

The shelter has become more complete over the years, with many

programs that try to change the conditions that cause people to be

homeless, Barrios said.

Linda Lefler, one of many who have used the shelter since it opened,

said she became homeless when the place she worked at closed and she lost

her job.

“The shelter helped me by giving me a stable place to live instead of

moving from motel to motel,” Lefler said. “I have a 15-year-old, and we

were going from motel to motel. Now he is able to go to one school. It

really gave me the stability I was looking for. Not having to worry about

where we were going to go next gave me time to look for a place to live

and a job. We spent about two months in the shelter and, right after I

moved, I got called for a job I applied to while I was here. It will be a

year in June since we moved out of here.”

Current shelter residents said they expect the shelter to be in place

for years to come.

John Gasco, who is living at the shelter with his three children, said

the program is helping him organize his life.

“It’s helped me a lot -- emotionally, financially and just giving me

structure in my life,” Gasco said. “I’ve been in the program for a month,

and I’m trying to find a job. I don’t know what I would have done without

them. I’m a single father, and I needed help for me and my kids. They are

giving me that chance. Sometimes you want to give up, but they haven’t

given up on me, and they won’t let me give up.”

Barrios said many in the community have been very supportive

throughout the years.

About 200 people attended the celebration, which included a barbecue,

tours of the shelter, music and raffles, and served as a way for the

shelter to say thank you, she said.

“We invited the community in to see what we’re doing and to give our

thanks for all that they’ve done for us as well,” she said. “We wanted to

provide this as a thank-you to all our volunteers and the organizations

we work with. And I hope it will be an educational experience for members

of the community.”