The drunkards of Walnut Creek? Or rather, just some chatty, friendly homeless guys hanging out in front of the former Sunrise Cafe and Bakery

Last week, I was on a lunch break and driving back to work along California Boulevard, passing Trader Joe's, when I saw three scruffy, homeless guys sitting at the picnic tables in front of the former Sunrise Cafe and Bakery.

This is the former popular eatery where suburbanites sat outside, at those picnic tables, at all hours of the morning and afternoon, eating omelettes, salads, sandwiches, and pastries. Now it, and other commercial spaces in that little strip mall near Newell Avenue (site of the former Pinky's Pizza), stand empty.

And, on a recent  misty, sunless afternoon, a couple of those picnic tables in front of the former Sunrise Cafe was occupied by guys in beards, hats, and dirty old jackets. One was chugging from a bottle wrapped in a white plastic bag.

Curious--and nosy as I am--I pulled into Trader Joe's, got out and started watching the guys. They caught me watching them, and one of them came walking across the four lanes of California Boulevard traffic to me.

This guy, in a green coat, had cuts on his nose and looked and smelled like he hadn't showered or washed his clothes in months. He asked me why I was watching them. I told him: that I'm curious about people who are homeless in Walnut Creek (as evidenced by my interest and support of Fresh Start Walnut Creek, the homeless respite and services center, and of Creek Kids Care, which raises money to support Fresh Start programs).

I also told him about my blog. He introduced himself as Larry. He held out his hand which was caked in dirt. After we shook, he invited me to come over and meet his friends.

So, I crossed the street with Larry and sat, for as long as I could, and enjoyed what was a friendly but somewhat meandering conversation with Larry and his friends, Allen and Keith. The three shared their life stories filled with hard luck and, they admitted, their own bad choices.

Before I go on, I should address my use of the term "drunkard" in this post's headline. Well, first, this term is a reference to blogger friend Claycord.com's "Drunkards of Claycord" series, in which the Mayor has followed the misadventures of 13 men who have been identified by Concord police as chronic homeless who are causing trouble in that community.

As far as I know, Larry, Allen, and Keith have not received any such designation from authorities. But they all admitted to having long-term problems with alcohol.

"All three of us have a drinking problem," said Allen, 50, who smoked a cigarette and whose grizzled face and missing teeth contrasted with the sweetness of the Monterey Bay Aquarium sea otter logo on his jacket. He added: "All three of us have a homelessness problem."

As I sat with them, I didn't smell any alcohol. Just cigarette smoke and the smell of their long unwashed bodies and dirty clothes. They had several shopping bags, and one look liked it contained malt liquor; another a cheap bottle of gin or vodka. But also beside Keith at the table was an unopened package of sushi.

As for whether Larry, Allen, and Keith have caused problems in town, like the the "Claycord" drunkards, Keith, 57, stated:

"We're good guys," said Keith, who said he was awarded a Purple Heart for taking two bullets in the shoulder during service in the Vietnam War. "We don't lie or cheat or steal."

Well, that's not entirely the case. Allen told me that he had a couple cases pending in court. For petty theft: shoplifting from Safeway. He said hunger and desperation drove him to steal food. And desperation for for a drink. One case involved trying to shoplift a bottle of booze.

Allen said he grew up in a family of alcoholics, and the stress and cold of living on the streets makes him need to self-medicate with alcohol."You're out here sleeping in the cold. You can't sleep. It helps." Allen said he had also been asked to leave Trader Joe's.  "I got mad at them. Because of all the frustration. They just said, 'don't come back.'"

Meanwhile, Larry said a family member, who lives in the area, had a restraining order against him. He also said he could no longer visit Fresh Start, so he must have somehow violated their terms of visiting and getting assistance.

As for Keith, who had wire-rim glasses, salt-and-pepper beard and hair, and a name identical to a famous rock star, told me something about having a wife or girlfriend in a program for drinking. He also said he had been hit by cars eight times while crossing the streets of Walnut Creek.

They said they had been hanging out together for about eight months, living in different homeless encampments around town. "We help each other." They all insisted they didn't want to cause trouble for anyone. "I hate violence," Allen insisted.

All three said they just wanted to work. To be given a chance to prove they are worth something.

"Homelessness is not against the law," one of them said. Allen said he worked as a painter, Keith said he had a degree in architecture, and Larry said he had worked as a builder.

I probably could have stayed there many more hours, trying to untangle narrative lines from a sometime wandering converation. Befre I left, Larry asked me whether I thought that by talking to me, and posing for this picture, he and his friends would make people more aware of the challenges confronting Walnut Creek's homeless.

I said I didn't know. But I told him I guessed that some of the things they said might make people mad. This would include other homeless who would say they are trying very hard to play by the rules and not cause trouble for anyone else, like this other guy I know who lives under one of the bridges around town. Or this woman I recently met a Fresh Start who almost became homeless after getting laid off 10 months ago from her marketing job.

I also know of some residents near downtown, particularly whose properties back up to the creeks, who are fed up with tresspassing in their yards and the littering in the creeks. I'm sure some business owners aren't too crazy about some--not all--in the homeless population who commit "quality-of-life" and other crimes, like shoplifting. 

I did suggest that they not sit out on busy California Boulevard, drinking liquor, even if it's wrapped in a plastic bag. This act attracted my attention; I'm sure it attracted the attention of other people driving by.

So that's my chat with Larry, Keith, and Allen: a snapshot of three guys who live in our community, not far from the properous shopping destinations of Whole Foods, Nordstrom, and Tiffany & Co. Three guys who are desperate, admit to being problem drinkers, friendly, sad, bitter... That's the way it is, or was, when I was talking to them.

By the way, I recently asked the question whether Walnut Creek's homeless are members of our community or a blight.

Walnut Creek's homeless: members of our a community or a blight?

At a Christmas party a last week, I ran into an old school friend whose home backs up onto one of Walnut Creek's waterways that has become an unofficial site for campgrounds for some of our homeless residents.

Or instead of the term, "homeless," how about "residentially challenged?" This term was introduced to me by a local homeless guy I once met. It turns out this guy, whom I'll call "Sam" actually went to the same high school, and he grew up about a quarter mile from me. He laughed and called himself "residentially challenged." We ran into each other during one of my visits to Fresh Start Walnut Creek, the respite and services center for the area's homeless at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Trinity Avenue.

The school friend I ran into at the party had bought the house he had grown up in near downtown Walnut Creek from his siblings. During our chat over cocktails and appetizers, this friend complained about some creek campers wandering onto his property, and some other transient-looking guys once wandering up his street in the morning, just as he was leaving for work. He felt like they are casing out his home. Self-employed and needing to meet with clients, this friend was reluctant to leave his home.

At the time time, this friend also spoke in good terms about some of the "regulars" we all see around town.

One is this guy we'll call "Bob." You might yourself be acquainted with Bob. He is a slender 60ish fellow. I often see him near the California Boulevard bridge that crosses over Las Trampas Creek near Trader Joe's.

I've talked to Bob." He's friendly, articulate, forthright. When he and I both get the time, and if he were willing, I'd love to hear his whole story. In passing, he has told me that he's a long-time central Contra Costa resident and has been living on the streets for about 20 years. I gave him some money once--which I had been told is a "no-no" from when I was living in San Francisco, because you don't want to be giving money to a guy who might use it to feed a drug or alcohol habit.

I knew Bob would use it for good purposes. He expressed profound gratitude, saying that the money would help his friend, a disabled woman he looks after. He lives with her in a makeshift structure he built under one of the creek bridges. Without him, she might not survive.

After the holidays, Bob will be getting hip replacement surgery. He's got the surgery all set up through the county's medical services.

"Bob" is also a Fresh Start client, and said he himself was not pleased about some noisy, messy people who had moved in across the creek from him. "Talk about crazy," he said, when I told him that I ran a blog called Crazyinsuburbia. Sam, the Fresh Start client I met on one of my visits there, explained how the homeless always try to police themselves and look after one another in the encampments.

I saw Sam in passing at the Fresh Start Christmas Eve celebration. I have written several articles about Fresh Start. I am admirer of its late founder, Susan Prather, and of Creek Kids Care, the volunteer organization created by Walnut Creek elementary, middle, and high school students who raise money for Fresh Start programs.

I had heard Bob was going to show up at the Christmas Eve celebration as well, but he had not arrived by the time I had to leave. The living room of the house at St. Paul's Episcopal, which has been converted into the Fresh Start headquarters, was crowded with clients and staff. (Below is counselor Andrew Thompson).

They were there to hear a talk by Walnut Creek Police Chief Joel Bryden, and then to feast on a special Fresh Start meal.  Fresh Start counselor Andrew Thompson echoed what I had heard from some Fresh Start clients and staff: that the Walnut Creek officers try to maintain good relations with the organization and help street people who look down and out, instead of automatically busting them for a crime. The chief was pleased to hear some examples of how Fresh Start clients had been treated respectfully by his officers and brought to the center to receive the wide variety of services it offers. However, the chief cautioned that if any street people make problems for businesses and residents--through noise, littering, other behavior that is dangerous, disruptive, and/or illegal--that his department and the city will have to take action.

The chief's visit was quick; he probably had a lot on his calendar for Christmas eve, but he left with clients and staff feeling gratified by the outreach. 

Another thing I have heard is that this sort of more accepting attitude--along with Walnut Creek's central location and concentrated downtown--make it attractive to homeless people. 

That might not be the sort of thing my Christmas Party chum would like to hear. He's concerned that the city doesn't do enough to protect the interests of home and business owners; nor does the county.  He happens to live in an unincorporated section off downtown Walnut Creek.

If you live or work in or near downtown Walnut Creek, what has been your experience with the homeless among us? Good? Bad? 

Home (under the bridge) for the holidays!

A roof over one's head? Well, that's something right? Found one man or woman's retreat under the Ironhorse Trail bridge that crosses Ygnacio Valley Road this morning. A sleeping bag, a pair of shoes ... Maybe someone slept there last night, and will do so again tonight, and tomorrow night, Christmas Eve. Or maybe this denizen of our community, temporary or not, has found another place to stay, has moved on--but left behind some belongings that could still be very the cold nights we're having.

Your jump on holiday shopping Sunday can benefit a great local cause

As we did last year, my family is once again downsizing our Christmas gift giving this year. Actually, this could turn into a permanent arrangement, especially with this one great shopping opportunity Sunday.

Creek Kids Care is once again holding its annual crafts and arts boutique Sunday. Creek Kids Care raises money to benefit Walnut Creek's Fresh Start, the respite and service center in downtown for the working poor, homeless, or those at the risk of becoming homeless.

I'm very sorry, I didn't post this notice sooner. Life, work, and so forth got a bit hectic this week, and not just because of the election.

Anyway, it was at Creek Kids Care's boutique that my husband, son, and I did our Christmas shopping last year for our siblings and nieces and nephews. Creek Kids Care is made up of local elementary, middle and high school kids who spend the year making beautiful, original greeting cards, stationery, knitted items, and other crafts and works of art that they sell, both on their website and at this annual boutique.

That boutique takes place tomorrow, Sunday, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 1924 Trinity Avenue.

Not only are the items beautiful, the prices are excellent, and the proceeds benefit two great causes. Creek Kids Care donates what it earns to help care for our homeless community members of the nonprofit Fresh Start. Last year, Creek Kids Care raised enough from its online sales and other events, like the boutique, to pledge $300 a month to Fresh Start in 2009.

Creek Kids care also fully funds a preschool in Zimbabwe that serves kids who have been orphaned by HIV and AIDS.

If you can't make it to the boutique, you can still order their greeting cards online.

And, perhaps (hint, hint), whatever Creek Kids Care doesn't sell tomorrow it can bring to the Walnut Creek Farmers Market and sell there before the holidays--as it did last year.

WC joining other cities to seek funds to help area's newly homeless, especially homeless families

Walnut Creek is joining with Concord, Pittsburg, and Antioch to apply for $1.2 million in federal Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program funds.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has a $1.5 billion pot of money for this homeless program.

Walnut Creek and the three other Contra Costa cities are jointly applying for these funds and intend to use them to subcontract with private nonprofit agencies to create a coordinated network of homeless prevention counseling and financial assistance programs.

If this four-city application is successful, Walnut Creek would receive up to $300,000 to give to a collaborative of nonprofits to provide counseling and short-term financial assistance for housing for Walnut Creek families who have recently become homeless or are in danger of becoming homeless.

Walnut Creek's housing program manager, in a staff report, is urging the City Council Tuesday night to adopt a resolution to seek these homeless prevention funds.