EXCLUSIVE: Non-Profit Steps In For Santa Barbara Woman on Brink of Eviction
SANTA BARBARA, CALIF. (KEYT) - A Santa Barbara woman who rebuilt her life after homelessness is now just days away from losing the home she worked years to secure — after an injury set off a financial spiral she couldn’t recover from in time.
Shawn Hernandez starts each morning walking her small dog, Oliver, through her neighborhood — a routine she says represents stability she once thought she might never have again.
“I worked really hard to get here,” Hernandez said. “I was on the streets before this.”
Her apartment now holds the markers of that recovery: a sofa, a television, and a workspace where she creates Betty Boop artwork. For a while, she said, life finally felt steady.
Then an unexpected injury kept her from working.
Hernandez said the loss of income quickly pushed her behind on rent. Although she returned to work, she said it wasn’t enough to catch up.
By the time she sought assistance, she was already in crisis.
“We kept seeing people right on the edge with nowhere to turn,” said Al Ortiz, who now leads a new non-profit focused on preventing eviction before it happens. “If we step in early, we can keep someone housed.”
Ortiz, a former outreach worker in Santa Barbara, said the goal is to intervene during what he calls a critical window — before housing is lost and recovery becomes far more difficult.
City officials say Hernandez’s situation reflects a broader gap in the system. Some residents are at risk of losing housing but don’t qualify for assistance until it’s too late to prevent eviction.
“There are people at risk who don’t qualify for help until it’s too late,” said Deputy City Administrator Anthony Valdez.
Hernandez now has until April 30th to resolve her rent arrears and keep her apartment.
She says leaving would mean starting over again.
“I don’t want to go back,” she said.
For now, the door remains open — but time is running out.
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