St Andrews by the Sea Feeding Homeless

Pacific Beach —

Wayne Flanders can claim some credit for helping to bring back hot dinners to 150 people who, like himself, are homeless.

Two Pacific Beach churches recently had to stop preparing meals for the homeless after the county received complaints that they didn't have health permits. One of them, Pacific Beach United Methodist Church, is already back in business.

The church resorted to serving the homeless ready-to-eat food while it worked to get the necessary permit from San Diego County to prepare meals in its commercial kitchen.

Flanders, who is 71 and sleeps in a Pacific Beach alley, was one of the people who volunteered to meticulously scrub the church's kitchen to make sure it was up to health standards.

"It's a job, and it's one that keeps this place open for cooking," he said Wednesday night as volunteers served up fresh food to the homeless.

After a follow-up inspection by the county, the church scored 97 percent out of 100, received its permit and was able to resume its regular operations on Wednesday.

About 150 people came for a vegan version of sweet and sour pork, beef and broccoli, fried wantons, and egg rolls. They were made by members of the Tsu Chi Foundation, a Buddhist organization that partners with the Methodist church.

The county received complaints last month against four Pacific Beach churches that provide meals to homeless residents. The kitchens at the United Methodist church and at St. Brigid Catholic Church lacked permits. Two other churches, Pacific Beach Christian and St. Andrews by-the-Sea Episcopal, were also inspected but were in proper order, a county official said.

The kitchen at St. Brigid's hasn't received a permit and is serving pre-packaged foods in small amounts, the official said. The Roman Catholic diocese did not return a request for comment, but the parish's website shows it makes meals for the homeless several times a month and regularly provides sack lunches.

The Rev. Bob Rhodes, pastor at Pacific Beach United Methodist, said his church was in the wrong and worked quickly to get the permit. Other services provided to the homeless, including doctor's appointments, dental care and meetings with social workers, were not interrupted, he said.

Rhodes said he suspects the complaints came from someone who sees the meals as lures that bring homeless people into the neighborhood. The church is on Thomas Avenue near Ingraham Street.

"The sense in the community is that we're giving out food to whoever wants it, and we just give to those homeless bums," the pastor said. "But we help connect people with services so they can get out of homelessness. Our goal, our ultimate goal, is not to have enough people to serve."

The complaints filed with the county Department of Environmental Health redact who filed them, but each one references the meals being served to the homeless. No other issues were detailed.

Beth Rhodes, executive director at Shoreline Community Services, talks with Paul Arnold, a regular at the Pacific Beach United Methodist Church's weekly dinners for the homeless.

(K.C. Alfred / San Diego Union-Tribune)

The Methodist church has been feeding the homeless for 20 years, but the program was in jeopardy once before when San Diego neighborhood code enforcement officers in 2007 said it was illegal. The church sued the city in federal court, claiming its religious freedom rights were being violated. The city settled with the church and the meals were allowed to continue.

The Wednesday night meals at the church's hall are a good chance to feel safe and relax, said Paul Arnold, a regular at the dinners. But he said the experience changed after the complaint was filed.

"I'd say it was subdued. Kind of a little depressed, maybe," Arnold said as he ate a slice of birthday cake. He turns 61 this month.

He said it seemed like the churches were targeted, making for another item in a long list of challenges homeless people face in Pacific Beach.

"There are opposing sets of groups," Arnold said. "One is trying to make a bridge between the homeless, and the other is trying to eliminate the homeless. And I feel the latter group is winning."

As hundreds of homeless — mostly men — ate dinner this past Wednesday, doctors, dentists and social workers were in other areas of the church providing care to the needy.

Dr. Natalie Rodriguez, a physician from UC San Diego who runs a clinic with medical students, said most of the people are not living on the street. They are bouncing from from place to place. Many have chronic illnesses such as diabetes, high-blood pressure and asthma, Rodriguez said.

At the clinic, they can receive treatment and schedule appointments, and pharmacists are there to provide prescription medicines.

Down two flights of stairs from the medical clinic, Don Phillips, an adjunct professor at the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, prepared a room to give as many as 20 people acupuncture sessions, in part to relieve stress.

"The mental and emotional side of homelessness is probably one of the biggest things we treat in people," Phillips said.

Across the hall from him is a dental clinic, complete with an X-ray machine.

While these are important services, the meals — and the good company around the dinner table — are what help the most, Arnold said as the crowd began to thin out.

"We always know what we're going to get. The food is pretty good, and the people are nice," he said.

Twitter: @jptstewart

joshua.stewart@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1841

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Source: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/homelessness/sd-me-church-homeless-20170610-story.html

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