Happiness in a two-stall trailer – how a San Diego charity helps homeless people get showers

Third Avenue Charitable Organization Director Lorena Galligan outside of the organization s shower trailer Photo by James Miller Times of San Diego More than people gathered in the courtyard behind First Lutheran Church in Cortez Hill this week for coffee and breakfast sandwiches provided by the Third Avenue Charitable Organization In addition to providing food on weekdays the organization gives out clothes charges devices and holds mail for people without addresses Every other Wednesday though there s something extra showers offered out of a silver two-stall trailer Lorena Galligan TACO s director mentioned she hopes to offer showers to clients every Wednesday but the organization has been short on participants About people are able to shower each day the organization brings out the trailer She mentioned that for about three months TACO which is separate from the church s ministry has used the trailer a gift from Think Dignity another homeless system provider It s clear to Galligan homeless people feel better about themselves when they are clean You re already unsheltered she reported People are already making judgments about you because you re on the street Marine veteran Rafael Peralta commented he has showered in TACO s trailer and at a shelter run by Father Joe s According to Peralta the showers are transformative for people like him Look at the happiness when they come out Peralta announced They leave knowing that at least TACO was able to provide a shower Each person entering the trailer receives a towel hygiene kit and fresh clothes They are given minutes in a stall which is sanitized after each use One of the stalls in the Third Avenue Charitable Organization s shower trailer Photo by James Miller Times of San Diego Galligan increasingly has met seniors at TACO meals who are experiencing homelessness for the first time often living in their cars after their apartment buildings are sold and remodeled She s determined that seniors rarely want to tell their relatives they ve become homeless Galligan encourages them to reach out but they often decline They re like No all good I m living in my car I ll save money ' she declared And I m just like Yeah but that s really hard ' Paul Engels a retired nurse who has volunteered distributing food at TACO for the past five years mentioned the number of homeless at the organization s Wednesday breakfasts grow to around people towards the end of each month as people run out of Social Precaution and EBT credits A communal Friday meal in the Third Avenue Charitable Organization s courtyard Courtesy of Lorena Galligan Engels disclosed that the organization s Monday dinners and Friday breakfasts draw the largest crowds up to people at the end of the month The meals are communal and they re a way for Engels to serve his population The city and the church have done so much for me Engels noted It s just a way for me to give back certain of what I get from my ecosystem