Another forty-six people died “without fixed abode” in Orange County in January, 2024. Their names are:
Lauren DEMARAY who died on January 1st in Orange
Brandi GRETZ who died on January 2nd in Anaheim
Robert ANAYA JR. who died on January 3rd in Garden Grove
Jennifer WINNERS who died on January 3rd in Westminster
Francisco CHAVEZ who died on January 3rd in Westminster
Miguel FLORES-LUARTE who died on January 4th in Costa Mesa
Judith RUIZ who died on January 5th in Anaheim
Stephen SMALLWOOD who died on January 5th in Westminster
Ronald NAILOR who died on January 5th in Anaheim
Mai DANG who died on January 5th in Fountain Valley
Judith STANFORD who died on January 5th in Orange
Tommy MARTIN who died on January 6th in Costa Mesa
Roberto GOMEZ who died on January 8th in Anaheim
Joe TORRES who died on January 9th in Orange
Rey FELIX-TORRES who died on January 10th in Santa Ana
Luis DE LOS SANTOS-CANO who died on January 10th in Fountain Valley
Samuel MATA who died on January 10th in Orange
Peter GALITZEN who died on January 12th in Laguna Hills
Donald MAGNUSON who died on January 14th in Costa Mesa
Mark SINKINSON who died on January 14th in Anaheim
James WATILO who died on January 14th in Santa Ana
Emily WIESE who died on January 15th in Garden Grove
Chantrell VARKARIS who died on January 15th in Orange
Alejandro CARACHURE TREJO who died on January 15th in Santa Ana
William RHOADS who died on January 15th in Anaheim
Joseph CALVANI who died on January 17th in Mission Viejo
Gregory CANO who died on January 17th in Orange
Carlos LANUZA who died on January 18th in Garden Grove
Bill KOSAREFF who died on January 18th in Orange
Larry BURNETT who died on January 19th in Orange
Carlos JAX who died on January 20th in Orange
Cynthia CORNTASSEL who died on January 20th in Buena Park
Jeffrey KENDALL who died on January 20th in Orange
Darrin SMITH who died on January 22nd in Huntington Beach
John KEFFALAS who died on January 23rd in Lake Forest
John HANNA who died on January 23rd in Santa Ana
Kennedy GONZALEZ who died on January 24th in Anaheim
Anthony LAUBER who died on January 25th in Anaheim
Frederick SCHONDER who died on January 25th in Fountain Valley
Donald ROGERS who died on January 26th in Fountain Valley
Michael EID who died on January 26th in Irvine
Daniel LUGO who died on January 26th in Anaheim
William PAREDES who died on January 27th in Orange
Alyssa STAUDINGER who died on January 27th in Lake Forest
Michael YOUNG JR. who died on January 27th in Santa Ana
Sean BRYANT who died on January 28th in Fullerton
Andres CARRILLO who died on January 28th in Orange
Alejandro VALENZO who died on January 29th in Tustin
Additionally we remember
Jesse CAMU who died on December 2nd in Orange
whose name was released some days into the month of January and is only remember now.
The addition of Jesse Camu’s name to the list of those who died “without fixed abode” in 2023 raises the number of people who died without fixed abode in 2023 to exactly 500.
The 46 who died then in January 2024 equal exactly the same number as those who died the year previous, this despite both some apparent improvements on the homeless front in OC as well a significant step back.
Improvements included actions by Supervisors Sarmiento and Chafee to assist families both already homeless or in danger of becoming homeless in their districts.
Further, anecdotally, we were pleasantly surprised here at St. Philip Benizi church by a wave of about 4-5 people who had slept on our grounds 2018-19 coming to ask us to complete forms for them to certify that they had, in fact, slept on our grounds at that time. Several of those who made this request have since been placed in apartments.
That good news is tempered however by the reality that we are now in 2024, meaning that these people had to wait 5 even 6 years to be placed into said apartments.
Additionally, our own Tri-Parish Collaborative was happy to announce that it placed its first homeless family (of seven) into an apartment through our Michael Clements Miniloan Program which we began this summer. The program is directed at homeless families in our (northern) part of OC, who have are employed and/or have sufficient social security / disability income to be in an apartment but have found it difficult to collect the $6,000-10,000 “move-in expenses” required (first month, last month and deposit) to get back into one. Our hope is to get 3-4-5 families off the street in this way a year.
The bad news this month has been that the County and its constituent cities were unable to put up emergency shelters this winter. January proved to be relatively dry and the homeless death rate was the same as the previous year. February has proven significantly wetter, so one has to assume that the death rate will spike again.
Finally, that it took more than five years to get people sleeping on our streets in northern OC into housing is something that county’s residents really ought to contemplate: Does it serve anybody’s interest to keep people on our streets for so long?
Homelessness is certainly a tragedy for those who find themselves without places to go, but diminishes the quality of life of everyone.
Conversely putting a roof over the head of everyone who needs it improves the lives of everyone.
So the goal must be to seek to do better.
Fr. Dennis Kriz, OSM, Pastor St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Fullerton.
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