‘Eat. Drink. Local.’ The Festival Helping Homeless Students

“New Way SCV” is scheduled to host Eat. Drink. Local. a festival that hopes to bring the community together to help the hundreds of homeless students attending the William S. Hart School District for one day at Central Park.

The 503c nonprofit “New Way SCV” is scheduled to host the Eat. Drink. Local. festival, formerly known as the Veg Fest SCV, on Saturday, June 1. All proceeds will benefit students currently experiencing homelessness.

“In 2019, there were just over 300 ( homeless students) in the district,” said Jess Guidroz, founder of The New Way SCV. “In 2022, there were over 900. We haven’t gotten 2023 statistics yet, but we’re assuming it’s right around 1000 in the district.”

The free event is set to highlight the “Local” in its name by featuring local food trucks, local breweries and wineries, local bands, and local small businesses. The festival is also anticipated to have kids’ activities, pickleball, carnival-style games, among other activities.

After working at La Mesa Jr. High School in the William S. Hart School District for ten years, Guidroz has seen first-hand the number of students experiencing homelessness and the lack of resources for them.

“One of my favorite students that I’ve ever had was getting made fun of for how fast he was eating. He said ‘I haven’t eaten in a couple days’ and he was really embarrassed,” recounted Guidroz.

The student told Guidroz that his two siblings and parents were living out of a car and did not always have food readily available.

At the time, Guidroz reached out to a social worker for assistance only to be told that there were 71 other students experiencing the same issue at La Mesa Jr. High alone. The students were given free or reduced lunch and provided with a laptop. Guidroz wanted to take further action to provide resources to the families. The very next day, he began laying the groundwork for The New Way SCV nonprofit.

“My dad was a minister. My mom was a teacher. Just kind of growing up, really aware, hyper aware of these kinds of issues,” said Guidroz. “So when the issue was put right in front of me, the inevitable step was just to try to do something about it.”

The New Way SCV aims to break the cycle of homelessness among students and pave the way for a brighter future, according to the nonprofit’s website.

The free Eat. Drink. Local. Festival is scheduled for June 1 from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Central Park. More information about the event can be found here . For more information on The New Way SCV, click here .

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