Budget Advocacy In Sacramento

This past Wednesday, I made a trip to Sacramento with three residents of our Father Alfred Center (FAC) recovery program.  We travelled to Sacramento to talk to lawmakers about the importance of a fair state budget that supports low-income families, people with disabilities, seniors, and people who are working to get back on their feet in the wake of the “great recession”.

Two of advocates had travelled to Sacramento last month to help advocate for a fair budget.  The other advocate, who grew up in Sacramento and whose mother lives only blocks from the Capitol, had never been to the Capitol before.

Our advocates spoke about the  increased numbers of people we’ve seen in our free dining room, medical clinic, and our Tenderloin Technology Lab.  They also talked about the experiences of their brothers in recovery at FAC who are trying very hard to find work but are facing the challenges of being unemployed in a weak economy.  They talked about the importance of having a safety net to help people when times are tough.

After one of our meetings with legislative staff, one of the FAC residents asked me, “do you think those people knew that we’re in a drug and alcohol rehab?”  He was concerned that the legislator’s staff might have written them off because they’re in recovery.  One of the other guys responded, “I’m proud of being in recovery and I don’t care who knows it.  Being in recovery is hard work and it’s something to be proud of.”

It was a pleasure for me to see our advocates supporting each other as they supported a California budget that will help California’s working families, seniors, people with disabilities, and people who have fallen through the cracks in the safety net. I’ve learned from them that one important component of recovery is giving back to the community. Our advocates did a wonderful job of giving back by speaking up on Wednesday.