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Yahoo!Life is not always peaceful when you’re at the helm of Santa Barbara County’s largest homeless shelter and the better part of your clients have an addiction or mental illness or both. Casa Esperanza’s executive director, Mike Foley, a bold and savvy San Diego native, is up to the challenge — and then some. In fact, Foley’s taken on the entire issue of homelessness in Santa Barbara as no other single individual has dared to since hobos first began stepping off trains here. Foley lives and breathes it, say colleagues who receive his evening and weekend calls. He comes at it from a multitude of angles. His goal, he says, is to make Casa Esperanza a model for how small communities deal with their homeless. Judging from his first two years on the job, he may just pull it off.
“I think Mike Foley is fabulous,” said Santa Barbara City Councilmember Helene Schneider. “He has a wonderful way of taking responsibility for complex issues. He keeps public policy figures’ feet to the fire.” Case in point: the Cabrillo ball fields, she said, which have been a hot spot for illegal activity and the chronically homeless. Foley actively pursued the issue with Schneider, and they’ve been working with police, park rangers, and shelter outreach workers to clean up the area.
When you first meet Foley, expect him to look you in the eye pointedly, shake your hand firmly, and smile. After all, this is the guy who ran a Character Counts campaign from his Channel Islands YMCA office for three years. One senses he attends to the finer points of human interaction. In his crisp suit and tie and neat goatee, he projects an air of formality that makes you want to sit up straight and mind your grammar.
But beneath surface impressions, Foley is a man of big ideas and strong opinions, with energy and confidence to burn. That confidence is a big part of his success, giving him the wherewithal to pursue sensitive issues like the plethora of liquor licenses on Milpas Street (not a boon to shelter residents struggling with sobriety), the size of the city’s narcotics squad (he thinks it’s too small), and most recently, the perceived need to overhaul the County’s Alcohol, Drug & Mental Health Services (ADMHS) department.
‘To me, the question is why would I be passionate about cutting $1.7 million in services to the mentally ill? Because people will die as a result, and it’s our staff that’s going to know that person.' - Mike Foley
“You have to understand, he’s a guy of vision and [he feels] there has to be a new way of addressing people with mental illness,” said Roger Heroux, Santa Barbara County’s Homeless Coordinator. “Some people might interpret that as arrogance.” If a portion of his confidence is perhaps too certain, even critics acknowledge the process will probably teach him what he needs to know.
When Barry Schoer, director of Sanctuary Psychiatric, heard Foley speak for the first time at an emergency meeting of community-based organizations, he was struck by his energy and commitment. He told him later, “You remind me of me 20 years ago. I think back then, I could push people’s buttons easily.”
To understand Foley’s breadth of ambition on this issue, you have to factor in the magnitude of changes that homeless advocates — including Heroux and John Buttny, who was former Supervisor Gail Marshall’s administrative assistant — are pursuing under the umbrella of Santa Barbara’s 10-Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness. This initiative from the United States’ Interagency Council on Homelessness and the Bush administration, in which cities and towns around the country are urged to create detailed, comprehensive campaigns to end chronic homelessness in 10 years, is unfunded. But any community that doesn’t enact one will lose Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding.
At the time Foley was applying for the job at Casa Esperanza, Heroux and other organization heads were laying out the beginnings of Santa Barbara’s 10-year plan. Whoever was picked to head the shelter, they knew, would be intimately involved in implementing the forthcoming plan. Foley ended up helping shape it. In the six months during which the plan was created in Solvang, with the input and participation of roughly 100 service providers, government officials, and mental health and recovery professionals from throughout the county, Foley attended all but two subcommittee meetings. Today, Casa Esperanza is the fiduciary agent of the 10-year plan, and pretty much every decision made in regard to shelter policy has its proposed reforms and changes in mind.
An only child, Foley was set on going into politics at age 22 and was even working on a congressional campaign when the candidate sent him off to get volunteer experience. Foley picked a YMCA runaway shelter and stayed there for five years. After that, he continued working at nonprofits — mostly YMCAs, but also at residential treatment facilities for young kids and the Foundation for the Junior Blind. In the process, he learned the art of grant writing and is using it to the benefit of Casa Esperanza. Since 2005, he’s doubled the shelter’s staff and, at the same time, infused it with self-help and psychological strategies from his YMCA days, everything from satisfaction surveys to the requirement that shelter guests — called “members” now — help with cleaning chores. He even invokes the late psychologist Carl Rogers when he says the homeless need “unconditional high regard.”
“When we’re helping someone who’s homeless, we want them to have a sense of hope. But we also have to inspire them to that,” Foley said. “So part of our job is getting [them] to the point where they believe in it, that ‘Yeah, I’m going to be housed. Yeah, I’m going to experience recovery.’”
At a November meeting of the Homeless Advisory Committee, Foley asked then-acting ADHMS head Doug Barton to give the committee a copy of the department’s budget. ADHMS was reporting a large deficit and warning of funding cuts to the shelter and other organizations serving the mentally ill. The committee wanted numbers in black-and-white. But when Barton hesitated, Foley showed steel, repeating the question. “Will you release the budget to this committee?” Let’s put it this way, the committee got what it wanted.
Foley said if people perceive him as confrontational rather than passionate, he’s going to have to adjust his style. But 10 minutes later he fine-tuned his response: “To me, the question is why would I be passionate about cutting $1.7 million in services to the mentally ill? Because people will die as a result, and it’s our staff that’s going to know that person … And when they fall apart because they lost their housing because no one was there to be with them, they’re going to come here and everyone’s going to expect us to help them.”
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Mr. Foley is in the same boat as all of the County mental health community based organizations and partner agencies; such as Juvenile Probation, CAC, CALM, SAFTY, FSA, et al. He makes it sound as if ADMHS is picking on him and the homeless, when in reality the budget crisis will leave a lot of our community struggling to find help for their equally worthy issues. Would he rather the county cut children's mental health services out completely so that Casa Esperanza can be funded in full? Heartbreakingly, the budget shortfall is affecting everyone, Mr. Foley, not just those who think their Vision and Passion are unique.
SecretShopper (anonymous profile)
February 7, 2008 at 4:58 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What bothers me is that he is working under a Bush directive.
Is this guy really a "good" guy??
He talks the talk, but I am not convinced.
loonpt (anonymous profile)
February 8, 2008 at 8:13 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The problem with homeless in Santa Barbara and Mike Foley is that as a community they want us to take care of every homeless person and the majority are from other areas. SB is well known for being a haven for homeless from all over America. All those kids on State St... they are from another State, mostly from back east. The older healthy looking bums... same thing. Next time you see them and they appear approachable have a conversation with them. Ask them where they come from. I can quarntee you they are not local. Ask them why they came to SB, they will tell you it is becasue of all the homeless shelters, abundant handouts, and free food. SB is well known along with some select few other cities as being very homeless friendly. With it's good weather it gets even better for them. All that Foley is doing is sucking money from other important social services and trying to solve a National problem with local money. A conservative estimate is that 95% of these people are not from SB and only came here after they started living on the streets. And ask Schneider why she is trying to waste our tax money on these people who do nothing to contribute to society while gang violence is still out of control?
InTheKnow (anonymous profile)
February 8, 2008 at 8:37 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Maybe if the City were more pro-La Entrada-esque projects instead of lice contaminated addict attractions...there would be more money to pay for their pet programs.
lovechop (anonymous profile)
February 8, 2008 at 10:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Wow, the homeless finally have a real voice through Mr. Foley, a man who has embraced passionately such a monumental challenge and appears to have the ideas and commitment to make real change, and all our "locals" can do is complain. Shame on you. Why is it that whenever the city wants to spend money on something ridiculous, such as turning street lamps on Milpas St. into gawdy, Disneyland style corn husks; or putting distracting, cheesy looking metal figurines above the FREEWAY on a foot bridge (nice distraction for drivers); or painting a blue line from here to wherever...(sorry Marty, I like you, but c'mon!) there's plenty of money, and little complaining from the likes of the above posters. But when social programs crucial to our populous (local or not) come for theirs, suddenly we have a budget crisis!? And on that note, the argument that most homeless aren't local is preposterous! Most people who live here that aren't homeless are not from Santa Barbara. This is not a locals only social service Casa Esperanza is providing. It is a HUMAN service. If it weren't for Casa, a dear friend of mine who succumbed to cirrhosis at the too-early age of 39, would have died in the bushes somewhere here in town. Instead, she was given a sense of dignity prior to her death, was reunited with her family with Casa's help, and died in her mother's arms. They had not spoken in 5 years. These are not animals you shoo away. These are people with special needs and all sorts of backgrounds. YOU could end up one of them, believe it or not! My friend was head of HR at Sansum, a UCSB graduate, and a homeowner before she lost her battle with drugs and alcohol. The saddest part was that she spent the last 5 YEARS of her life on the street, unbeknownst to her longtime friends (me included). I spent her last 9 months with her, visiting her at Casa Esperanza, bringing her clothes and taking her to get her prescriptions. I got to know for the first time our homeless population and the staff at Casa Esperanza. It was hard stepping out of my comfort zone like that, but it was the most rewarding experience of my life. Bravo Mr. Foley, keep beating that drum. And you complainers, why don't you just spend a day volunteering down there at Casa. Maybe it'll open your eyes AND your heart!
crissyslucky7 (anonymous profile)
February 10, 2008 at 1:04 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I agree with " in The Know's" comments 100 %! And Crissyslucky7, I hear where you're coming from as well. I live downtown. I don't need to spend a day volunteering at Casa to know firsthand, the MAJORITY of the kids bumming around on State St., camping out on every available bench, all day long, are physically & mentally capable of working. Most of them are wanna-be hippie runaways. And why wouldn't they stay in Santa Barbara? They know they won't get hassled by the police & can make a good profit begging to all the tourists on State St. As long as it's tolerated, they are here to stay. I am, however, aware of the actual "needy" people, that may not be mentally & physically capable to be active citizens. I greatly sympathize with thier situations and support lending them a hand. Everyone deserves a second chance and help when needed, as long as they are willing to follow the neccessary channels. We need to send a message that Santa Barbara helps it's needy citizens, (people who live here!), not transient runaways. There's a big difference between Homeless and Jobless!!
downtownresident (anonymous profile)
February 12, 2008 at 4:10 p.m. (Suggest removal)
While I appreciate downtown's post, it still seems as though none of the above posters actually read the article, or didn't understand what Foley's mission is. In general, Casa Esperanza doesn't house the homeless youth we see on State St. The requirements to enter Casa are clear and strictly enforced, i.e. the residents are not allowed to drink or do drugs while their in Casa's care. And they CHECK! The whole idea behind Casa is to help people GET OFF of the streets, to help them conquer their addictions, and to get them back into society as functioning citizens. Those with mental health issues that make them unable to function are helped there, too. As for the homeless youth, go to ANY town on the west coast, from San Diego to Crescent City, on up through Oregon and Washington, and you'll find them. It's very sad and unfortunate, but they are not just drawn to Santa Barbara, and because of their rights, they can go wherever they please. This is a very difficult issue to deal with. Wouldn't we rather have someone in charge who's aggressively pursuing change and bringing ideas to the table? I ask the posters above; what alternative do you propose? Closing our shelters and posting "No Homeless Allowed" signs isn't going to work. But actually DOING something about it, such as helping those that will accept help, and making it harder for the others to congregate in areas such as the baseball field at Cabrillo, these steps can and will bring change. While you're out driving around town, notice that many of the overgrown areas where the homeless congregate are being cleaned up. This is progress, and exactly what Foley is pushing for. I don't know this man, but I do appreciate his passion and vision, and I believe it'll take someone like him at the helm for us to see change in this city. Give it time, this cannot be solved overnight and there are many complexities to this problem. Cutting Casa's funding would NOT solve the problem!
crissyslucky7 (anonymous profile)
February 13, 2008 at 11:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
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