“They are kids who have just enough money to pay tuition for an expensive school like UCLA, but don’t have any other money. They are gay kids thrown out of their homes. They are kids without papers. They are kids who come from single parents. Some of them are foreign students who run out of money,” Pastor Eric Shafer said.
By EDUARDO GARCÍA
EL NUEVO SOL | ETHNIC MEDIA SERVICES
When the founder of the Bruin Shelter approached nearly 50 congregations for support to establish a shelter for homeless people, only one responded: Senior Pastor Eric Shafer of the Mount Olive Lutheran Church. That was 16 years ago. Within a matter of months, they worked together to establish a shelter to house homeless college students.
To Shafer, the decision was simple. The church had the space and was committed to serving its community.
“So why wouldn’t we say yes?” Shafer said. “We’re actually an ideal location because the number 8 bus that stops right here on the corner goes straight to the UCLA campus. And we’re within blocks of the Santa Monica College campus.”
The Bruin Shelter, now formally known as Students 4 Students, opened in the fall of 2005. Shafer said it was the first shelter to serve homeless college students and the second shelter to be student-run in the United States.
Shafer said that before the pandemic, the shelter was open between 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. and provided ten beds. Student volunteers would check residents in each evening and share a meal, depending on the resident’s schedule. By 10:00 p.m., the various groups that would meet at Mount Olive Lutheran Church would be gone. The residents would be in Parish Hall studying or doing other things.
“So they study, sleep, get a nice dinner and get breakfast as they leave,” Shafer said. “And they’re out of here by seven [in the morning], because we have a preschool here that opens at 7:30 [a.m.]. That’s the normal schedule [between] seven to seven: two meals, study space, sleeping space and a safe space.”
Shafer said the requirements for the residents are no smoking, no alcohol, no drugs and no firearms. Other than that, he said that the team welcomes all those who need a place to stay.
“They are kids who have just enough money to pay tuition for an expensive school like UCLA, but don’t have any other money. They are gay kids thrown out of their homes. They are kids without papers. They are kids who come from single parents. Some of them are foreign students who run out of money,” Shafer said.
Senior Pastor Eric Shafer sits on a pew and poses for a photo at Mount Olive Lutheran Church on Oct. 23, 2020. Photo by Eduardo García | El Nuevo Sol.
With time, a second shelter, the Trojan Shelter, was opened at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Koreatown. It is also student-run and has six beds.
But then in September 2020, the Bruin Shelter hit a pause due to COVID rules. As a result, its opening has been restricted.
“Our students went home and the residents had no home to go to,” Shafer said. “So we employed [paid] students as resident assistants to help rather than volunteers. And we let the students stay here during the day because they had no other place to go.”
Now, instead of there being six beds, the Trojan Shelter offers only three to account for social distancing. It also offers a space where a resident can quarantine him or herself if needed.
Shafer hopes that the Bruin Shelter can open in January. But he also said that due to the increase of COVID cases, its opening is unlikely to happen.
Shafer also said that once the pandemic ends, he hopes both shelters are open at full capacity.
The Trojan shelter is led by its co-presidents, Hannah Mulroe and Cathy Wang. Our team sat down with Mulroe to see how the shelter and its residents are doing under the pandemic. To learn more about the Trojan Shelter, go to our story in this series.
A previous version of the story had the last name of Pastor Shafer spelled incorrectly.
About the author:
Eduardo García is a Mexican-American bilingual journalist majoring in broadcast journalism and minoring in Spanish-language journalism. He enjoys reporting on politics and on the Latinx community. In his free time, you can find him reading, watching YouTube videos on personal development and socializing with friends.
Tags: Bruin Center college Homeless homeless students housing insecurity Pastor Eric Shafer UCLA
