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Kyle Perez-Robinson was crowned the 2016 Miss Gilroy Garlic Festival Queen at the annual scholarship pageant held on May 1. Queen Kyle and her court will represent the 38th annual Gilroy Garlic Festival at numerous pre-festival activities as well as during the fest, which runs July 29-31. A graduate of Christopher High School, Kyle is currently a sophomore studying Human Biology at Stanford University. In her spare time, she is actively involved in musical theater as both a performer and staff member. She hopes to pursue a master’s degree in Community Health and Preventative Research and has the long-term goal of attending medical school to pursue an M.D.

The people who run Gilroy’s cold weather shelter are changing direction, making the center a refuge that provides services, rather than a place for quick stops. Jan Bernstein Chargin, who runs the Compassion Center, explains why this could help and what other new services will be available. 1. What is the new admittance policy at the Gilroy Armory Cold Weather Shelter? Why did that come about and what are the aims of the change?A: Through this winter, the Gilroy Armory Cold Weather Shelter has been "first come, first serve" each night. People would leave in the morning not knowing if they would have a place to sleep the following night. In order to ensure getting a space, therefore, people had to line up early, and carry all of their belongings with them, every day. This makes it hard to look for work, go to school, or work on long-term solutions. We have asked that, starting next year, the shelter be operated on a case management basis -- with associated day services and a referral process. Once admitted, individuals will know they have their spot assured for the season, and will be able to work towards their goals for stability, jobs, and housing. Another change we have requested is that homeless individuals from South County be given preference for the spaces at the shelter. This year, for the first time, the North County shelter was operated on a referral basis, only accepting referrals from North County agencies. That left the Gilroy shelter as the only one in the county operating as a first-come, first-serve countywide shelter. The police department believes this had detrimental impacts on the community.2. How could "tiny homes" be used to address home insecurity in Gilroy? What are the challenges in implementing such an initiative? What is the status of "tiny homes" in Gilroy?A: Communities around the nation are starting to consider and develop "tiny homes" as one of the ways of addressing homelessness. The benefits are that they can be used for short-term shelter or longer-term housing at a much lower cost than traditional construction. They can offer the privacy and autonomy that is impossible in a typical "shelter" configuration, as well as an attractive community setting. The challenge is to identify and get through all of the regulatory obstacles. Because this is such a new approach, our codes and ordinances have not yet caught up with it. The City of Fresno has recently adopted an ordinance addressing Tiny Homes that could be a starting point for Gilroy. We are planning an open house for our prototype Tiny Home (see photos on our Facebook page) [ https://www.facebook.com/gilroycompassioncenter/ ]Gilroy Compassion Center. (Date to be announced.) The Gilroy Housing Advisory Committee ( I am a member) has asked if we could bring the Tiny Home (currently located at Los Banos RV, where it was built) for the May 16 City Council meeting. I am working to see if this will be possible. This first Tiny Home is funded by Santa Clara County.3. Please provide a comment on the Compassion Center moving to a new location in June. Do you expect to provide similar services?A: We are hoping to be able to announce our new location very shortly. We are indebted to Jim Currier, owner of Flowstar, for his generosity in providing us a building to use rent-free for the first five years of our existence. Without Jim, there would be no Gilroy Compassion Center. However, now that he is selling the building, we are looking towards the future in a new location. We hope to be able to provide most of the current services: mail and message center, HMIS (County database), referrals, transportation assistance, clothing, hygiene supplies, bathrooms, daytime respite from the streets.4. We always hear that localities up north are "transporting" or "bussing" or in some way, migrating homeless folks to south county and Gilroy, especially. What do you say to this? How does closing a shelter in San Jose or clearing a homeless encampment in another jurisdiction impact homeless populations in Gilroy?A: The majority of people who are homeless in Gilroy at any point in time are long term residents, formerly HOUSED in Gilroy. Many of them grew up here, went to school here, had businesses here! The second-largest group is from Morgan Hill / San Martin. That being said, in the winter when the armory has been open, we have often seen many individuals who come to Gilroy to access the armory.However, it should also be remembered that homeless Gilroy residents also go to San Jose and Morgan Hill to access shelter, housing, transitional housing, and other services. There is no year-round shelter in Gilroy, no women's shelter, no year-round family shelter,-- for these services our residents must often go to other cities.5. I was told at Destination:Home that there are currently new housing projects underway in San Jose, as adding new housing units is critical in addressing homelessness in the region. Do you expect that new housing being constructed north of the county will impact homeless populations here in Gilroy? Do you know of any plans to construct new housing for the home insecure here in Gilroy?A: Disclosure - I am a board member for Destination: Home. Our Community Plan to End Homelessness calls for the construction of 5,000 additional units of affordable housing. We know that the best way to END homelessness is with permanent housing. In order to succeed, we need every community to participate. San Jose has made a strong commitment and is getting started on several new projects. Although Gilroy has several low-income projects in the pipeline, they will still be too expensive for most of the people who are homeless. We need a lot more housing that is affordable for people at the lowest end of the income scale -- what is called Extremely Low Income. These are households whose primary source of income is SSI, other benefits, or minimum wage. The need is so great that it will take years of construction before we "see" an impact -- however, we know how much it means to our clients when they get housing, and we have certainly seen people housed in San Jose when units have become available.6. What are the needs of the Compassion Center? I see that a golf tournament is coming up in June -- how do you stand in donations? How much support do you receive from the city of Gilroy?A: Money! We gratefully accept donations and encourage friends and supporters to support our first Golf tournament on June 24. Money is an ongoing need, so that we can keep the doors open. We have two grants from the City of Gilroy -- one from the Housing Trust Fund and one through CDBG ( Community Development Block Grant). Together these will provide roughly $48K for the Day Center next year. The Day Center operates with just one paid staff member, our Program Director Daleen Pearce -- all the rest are volunteers.We have also received grants from Santa Clara County  -- $10K for the Tiny Home, and roughly $90K this past winter to help 21 homeless families with motel vouchers and case management. We were also recently granted a contract to put together a proposal for Nontraditional Housing -- we will be really working through the plan to create a Tiny Homes Village in Gilroy (and also one farther north.)Needs include volunteers, both in the trenches and on the Board of Directors and Advisory Board, and donation of the supplies we use every day.7. I see a gofundme.com fundraising campaign for tents for the homeless in Gilroy. What are the merits in this type of activity? The county rejected a proposal last year to extend stays in county parks for the homeless, with supervisor Wasserman publicly saying the parks intended use was for recreation - not housing.A: The Almost Home Camping program began as a pilot project in 2014-- Due to the cost and logistics it is a very small program -- two to four campsites at a time (there are hundreds of campsites in the county park system so the impact is negligible.) Many people don't realize that staying in campgrounds is a strategy often used by homeless people whether or not the Compassion Center is involved. Our campers have provided referrals for help to many of the homeless they have met at the campgrounds. Because there is no year-round shelter in South County, and it is illegal to camp outside of the campgrounds, there really are not many better options yet.Although the request for extended stays was rejected, we are still able to help people use the campgrounds under the same criteria and cost as any other camper -- no more than 14 days at any one park within a 45 day period, and no more than 14 days at any one park between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The moves are frequent, and the situation is far from ideal, but it provides access to showers and sanitation, a safe and legal place to sleep, and transportation to jobs and appointments in town. Through this program, children have been able to attend school, people have been able to seek and maintain employment, and make other progress towards self-sufficiency. Some of our campers have moved on to permanent housing while others have upgraded to RV's and private campground memberships. The program is funded privately by individuals and churches, and the money, (many thousands of dollars), has gone to the County Parks in the form of camping fees. We continue to seek land to develop a dedicated campground  -- if that happens, we will no longer need to use the park campgrounds.8. Anything else you'd like to add.A: As we move forward, looking at alternatives, like campgrounds, Tiny Homes, shelter operations, I am hoping that we can keep the conversation compassionate and respectful. When we talk about homeless people we are talking about mothers, fathers, children, sisters, brothers, daughters and sons. People who are homeless have family members and friends who are not homeless.  Children who are homeless attend local schools. In any gathering, at any meeting, and certainly on any social media page, there are people who have been homeless, or who have loved ones who are or who have been homeless.  Hateful language makes it difficult for people to speak from their experience, and to work together on solutions.

A group created to campaign for the Measure E school bond question on the June ballot lists an assistant superintendent of schools’ home as its address.The group, which includes the highest-ranking school district administrators and school board members, has received donations of more than $30,000, mostly from five companies that do business with the district and possibly some that could reap big profits from E’s passage.The pro-E group calls itself Friends of Gilroy Unified School District Supporting Measure E. It’s registered with the state and has a tax ID number.Member and longtime school trustee Jaime Rosso said Wednesday that everything the group does is above board and that it keeps its advocacy activities and fundraising separate from those of GUSD.It’s making the best use of resources available to promote the bond issue, which is sorely needed to meet the communities needs, he said, adding there is nothing unusual about the involvement of elected school trustees.“What we do as school board members is no different from any other community when school bond measures come up,” he said.If passed, the $170 million in bonds would pay for a new elementary school, fix two aging middle schools, upgrade classroom technology and lab equipment and fund other needed facility improvements.According to the district, failure of the measure will mean overcrowded schools and continued deterioration of facilities.The pro-E group last week sent a bulk mailing to voters urging passage. It also has a website and Facebook page promoting the benefits of E, the largest bond measure in district history and the third since 2002.None of the group’s media platforms mentions who’s behind the organization, who funds it or that of the 175 supporters it lists, more than one-third are district employees, school board members and their families.In at least one case, a listed endorser’s $104,000-a-year district job managing bond projects depends on E passing—as do the jobs of at least three other GUSD employees whose positions are paid by bonds in the combined amount of nearly $500,000 a year.The only identifying information on the mailer is an address listed as its headquarters, 1969 St. Andrew’s Circle, Gilroy.That is the address of assistant schools superintendent Alvaro Meza. It’s located in Gilroy’s Eagle Ridge golf club community of $1 million-plus homes in the western foothills.Meza also serves as GUSD’s chief business officer, and is the district administrator who oversees financial dealings with contractors and architects, including the support group’s major donors, all of whom contract with the district, some for projects funded by past bond measures.Measure P in 2008 helped pay for the $158 million Christopher High School. Cost overruns during construction prevented the athletic fields and a theater from being built. The fields were completed with donations, mostly from the Christopher family.Measure E bonds and interest would be paid off over 30 years and cost taxpayers annually up to an additional $60 per $100,000 of assessed valuation on residential, commercial and industrial property.That would be added to property taxes already being paid to retire Measures I and P bonds totaling $219 million plus $122 million in interest.Meza acknowledged Monday that campaigning for Measure E on district time would violate election law. He said his work and that of others in the pro-E group, including school trustees, is not done on district time, uses no GUSD resources and is work they undertake as private citizens.He said that’s “absolutely allowable” and involves nothing “disingenuous.” He agreed to be interviewed about the support group and provide information, but only after work hours and via his private phone line and email address.“Every citizen in the United States has a right to do this on their own time. We live in Gilroy, we care about our schools and we want (Measure E) to be successful,” Meza said.He said the support group includes his boss, schools superintendent Debbie Flores, and school board members, some of whom have walked the city precincts urging voters to pass Measure E. He said board members James Pace and Jaime Rosso are involved.Rosso said trustee Pat Midtgaard also is a member of the group. Some school trustees are not members, he said.The ones involved, are “acting as citizens,” and not in their capacity as elected school trustees, according to Meza.At the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission, spokesman Jay Wierenga said citizens have a free speech right to campaign on their own time.The only way to determine if election law has been violated is for the FPPC to launch a formal investigation. That would be trigged by a formal complaint, which anyone can file, he said.Meza said five private companies are “major donors” to the support group. With the amounts given, they are: Irvine-based LPA, Inc. Architects, $5,000; Artik Art & Architecture of San Jose, $5,000; Bay Area law firm Garcia, Hernandez, Sawhney & Bermudez, the district’s general counsel, $5,000; school food vendor Sodexo, $5,000; and SLS, or Seward L. Schreder, Construction, Inc., of Redding, $10,000.Rosso confirmed that all have contracts with GUSD and that board members vote on the contracts.The contract approval process is rigorous and includes legal requirements, according to Rosso.Asked about possible perceptions that big donors to the pro-E group might get special treatment, Rosso said, “It’s a transparent process, we are above board in how we award contracts.”Two weeks ago, GUSD sent out a Measure E informational mailer to district property owners at a cost of nearly $5,000.It failed to mention the district salaries paid from bond proceeds and that the district will get millions in matching state funds described in the mailer only if a $9 billion state school bond measure passes in September. The Friends committee mailer also mentions neither.Meza said the law allows such salaries for bond administration. When bond money is all spent the positions end, he said.The GUSD and pro-E group’s mailings used the same nonprofit organization bulk mail permit. According to the U.S. Postal Service in San Jose, the permit belongs to a mailing company and can be used by the firm for its nonprofit clients’ bulk mail.

Dazed, Not Confused

Inspired by messages in nature, local artist, Laurie Barmore tells her truth through art. Barmore is an award-winning painter and member of the local Valle del Sur Art Guild. She travels from her home in Gilroy to her part-time job at Valley Medical Center in San Jose, where she has worked as a nurse for 28 years—first in critical care and now in recovery. For Barmore, painting in the abstract with acrylics on canvas permits her to express what words often cannot.

A mural at South Valley Middle School has got back its tiger and a local family’s story has come full circle.Twenty-four years ago, middle school student James Lopez sketched out a vibrant outdoor scene filled with wild animals for a mural on the school’s C-Wing.Painted over a series of weekends and lunch breaks, Lopez, along with a team of student artists, all of whom are still friends today, created a lasting public art piece that has survived unscathed.Over the years, thousands of students have passed by the mural, called “Whispers of Wilderness” with its jubilant deer, rabbits and raccoons frolicking against a sea of blue.The mural covers two classroom doors, and when one of the doors had to be replaced, leaving a plain green rectangle in the middle of the nature scene, Lopez’s son Josiah, an eighth-grader at the school, volunteered to fill the empty space with a tiger, the school’s mascot.“I was very excited to restore the mural,” said Josiah. He is a sketcher like his dad, but had recently taken a hiatus from art to pursue sports. Painting the tiger and completing the mural helped rekindle his artistic side.“This brought me back to art,” he said.   

Trickle down doesn’t work, but trickle up does.