8 West/ Urban Street Angels

8 West is a sustainable program with a foundation based on the simple premise of “hope”. When you restore hope, the human spirit becomes indomitable. We not only help homeless youth re-discover what it means to have hope, but the long-term impact of our “homeless to hopeful” model also results in positive, deeply recursive effects throughout the community.

Services:

(1) Supportive Housing and Transitional Employment:Through our 8 West program, a social enterprise startup, we provide transitional employment and supportive housing opportunities to homeless youth. The youth are employed by 8 West to make soap, candles, and other items, all while learning valuable life and job skills along the way. They also live in our supportive housing units and receive weekly therapy, secure rides to school/work, engage in team building activities with their fellow house-mates, and are responsible for paying a small amount of rent that is then escrowed and given back to them upon completion of the 18-month program. (2) Overnight Shelter: We provide an overnight shelter each Tuesday night for 20-25 homeless youth. Our shelter is located at Mission Gathering Church in North Park, with more locations and nights expected to open soon. This shelter provides a much needed act of love and support for San Diego’s homeless youth, and a large majority of our supportive housing/transitional employment program members originated here where they learned to trust what Urban Street Angels stands for. (3) Weekly Outreach: We still provide basic human services, including nourishing meals, water, hygiene supplies, clothing, and more on a weekly basis to homeless individuals of all ages in the Ocean Beach neighborhood. This allows us to build relationships with the homeless youth in the area, with the goal of helping them move up to our other programs over time.