Share the Spirit 2019 stories of help and hope.
Options Recovery Services offers sober living, treatment in East Bay
Photo: Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group Tom Gorham entered a sober-living facility in Berkeley in 1998 after a decade of homelessness because of alcoholism and drug addiction. He never left. Now he’s the facility’s executive director. After his own treatment, ...
Young East Bay woman goes from homelessness to bright future
Photo: Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group Ranisha Evans’ adult life started off as a nightmare: At 18, her family was evicted from their home, and with nowhere to go, she ended up sleeping in her car. At the time, Evans’ ...
Opportunity Junction delivers careers
(Photo: Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) Jackie Gerstenberger has been a hard worker all her life, first stepping in to raise her six siblings, then working for a grocery store for 17 years, and then spending 14 years as a ...
Green Life helps San Quentin inmates learn about climate change
(Photo: Dylan Bouscher/Bay Area News Group) A two-hour discussion about the dangers of climate change might not sound like the most exciting way to spend every Saturday night. But for a few dozen inmates in San Quentin State Prison who ...
Finding a new job, and home, with the help of Shelter Inc.
(Photo: Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) Michael Thompson always thought life was meant to be simple. Do some time in the military. Get married. Go to work. Raise a family. Simple plans. Simple things. But, sometimes, even the simplest ...
Assistance League takes ‘Show on the Road’ to assisted living facilities
(Photo: Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) It’s a swirl of activity at Assistance League of Diablo Valley headquarters in Walnut Creek, as actors rehearse the new original play “Dorothy Revisits the Land of Oz.” It’s a fun update on ...
New program helps LGBTQ youth find stability, housing
Photo: Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group Just a few months ago, Marie Watson was homeless, shuffling between friends’ couches or guest rooms and sleeping some nights in her car. She was about to turn 24 and wanted to die. But ...
West Contra Costa Salesian Boys & Girls Club offers a safe place for kids in Richmond
(Photo: Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) RICHMOND — In February 2012, Steve Alameda decided it was time to hang up his whistle after more than 37 years coaching and teaching in West Contra Costa County schools. He was looking forward ...
East Bay garden lays groundwork for learning, sharing produce for needy
(Photo: Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group) LIVERMORE — Brenda Kusler may not look like the typical farmer — there are no dust-covered working boots, plaid shirts or wide-brimmed hats in sight. Instead, her long hair is loose down her back ...
Bay Area Rescue Mission focuses on food — and transforming lives
(Photo: Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group) RICHMOND — Seven years ago, Joe Quario came to the Bay Area Rescue Mission — homeless, with only the two suitcases that had everything he owned. “I worked for the post office for nearly ...
