Homelessness in Riverside County rose, yet so did efforts for stability within hope, healing and community. Faith-based organizations stepped up to provide not only resources but also restoration. From food pantries run by churches to formerly homeless individuals leading outreach efforts, faith and wellness intertwined in the recovery journey.
Crossroads Christian Church, located in Corona, Calif., served those in need through its local outreach teams. The church helped stabilize individuals within these teams while showing God’s love, care and compassion. Joey Vargas, pastor of local outreach at Crossroads Church, worked closely with local communities.
To serve the community best, Crossroads adopted a partnership model. It partnered with experts in areas such as foster care and homelessness to best serve those in need. Vargas expressed how the church worked in a communal approach toward its service.
“We call it a wraparound approach. We have a partner with Path of Life out in Riverside; they help people move into apartments. What we do is we help them by supporting them with team members when they need it, as well as resources,” Vargas said.
Along with physically helping the community, speaking the word of God to those struggling helped many make the necessary decisions to get out of their situation. Presenting hope that God was with all and that there was forgiveness with Him helped many find sustainability in their lives.
Angela Hair, who once experienced homelessness and addiction, found freedom through her faith in God. With help from Crossroads and God, Hair and her husband saw the light at the end of the tunnel and launched a nonprofit called Angels Over Cliffs.
Hair recalled a night when she cried out to Jesus, sparking the start of her attending the Crossroads Church food pantry.
“The volunteers at that food pantry were loving us right where we were, in our mess and all. They started praying for us and teaching us how to pray,” Hair said.
After the Hairs attended church for the first time on Dec. 1, 2018, they surrendered their hearts to God. With the peace of God, their depression and worry while being lost vanished. Soon after, they found a home. Even amid their homelessness and addiction, they knew they were going to do something to help others in similar situations.
Angela Hair later created Angels Over Cliffs, where the local community worked to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the homeless.
“Since 2019, we’ve connected over 300 people off the streets into housing of some sort. God is doing some amazing things. We have baptized over 60 people since 2019, close to 30 last year. God is using us in big ways,” Hair said.
This faith-based approach to helping those experiencing homelessness shaped and healed many lives. Through the word of God, Vargas, Hair, and others within the church helped people feel loved and experience faith-driven healing.
For California Baptist University students and others locally, there were many ways to help serve people in need. Awareness was key in helping others. Knowing different resources, such as nonprofits and homeless shelters, was beneficial in pointing those in need in the right direction.
Vargas also mentioned that as a faith community, praying was a significant way to get involved in helping the local community.
“Praying for these unhoused friends, saying hi to them. One of the biggest things people don’t realize is that homeless people feel invisible. Just saying hello, asking if they are having a good day—that could make a world of difference for somebody, that human connection,” Vargas said.
Angels Over Cliffs offers volunteer opportunities for those who wanted to help create change within the local community. More information could be found at angelsovercliffs.org.
As Riverside and other local communities continued working toward solutions to homelessness, faith-driven advocates reminded people that real change started not just with resources but with compassion.
