William Escribana and Candice Chandler were among nearly five dozen people surviving in RVs or recreational vehicles in East Gardena and West Rancho Dominguez who became among the first participants of Los Angeles County’s Pathway Home program.
Pathway Home is a critical component of the County’s comprehensive response to the local emergency on homelessness the Board of Supervisors declared early in 2023. By leveraging emergency powers and partnerships with local jurisdictions, Pathway Home enables people living unsheltered in encampments, including RVs, to come indoors by offering immediately available interim housing paired with a comprehensive suite of supportive services, such as mental and physical health care, to help them regain personal stability and ultimately move into permanent housing.
During the first RV-focused Pathway Home encampment resolution on August 22-24, 2023, William and Candice each accepted the offer of a temporary stay at a hotel operated by the County’s nonprofit service provider, St. Joseph Center. There, they received supportive services, including housing navigation.
Just before Thanksgiving, William and Candice, and their beloved pets, moved into permanent housing. Their journey from encampment to apartment — their Pathway Home — took exactly 90 days