Beyond Homeless: Finding Hope
World Premiere of the New Documentary
Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Beyond Homeless: Finding Hope is the Independent Institute's award-winning, 38-minute documentary that contrasts the current tragic conditions of San Francisco’s unhoused with a successful community-wide solution called Haven for Hope of Bexar County, located in San Antonio, TX. The film is also the companion to an in-depth Independent Policy Report, Beyond Homeless: Good Intentions, Bad Outcomes, Transformative Solutions..
Starting with numbers of homeless similar to San Francisco’s, Bexar County, thanks to Haven’s remarkable collaboration, involving virtually every cross-sector of the community—including police and fire departments, emergency services, hospitals, psychiatric providers, and all other homeless service providers—has achieved an 11% decline in homelessness, with a 77% decline in downtown San Antonio unsheltered homelessness.
Over the same period, San Francisco’s homelessness has increased 80%, while spending has grown more than 100%.
The film is followed by panel of experts to discuss the root causes of homelessness and how to mobilize communities to enact solutions.
The panel is moderated by Heather Knight, award-winning columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle, and includes a diverse group of individuals featured in the film.
Featuring
David J. Theroux is Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Independent Institute and Publisher of its quarterly journal, The Independent Review: A Journal of Political Economy. He received his B.S., A.B., and M.S. from the University of California, Berkeley, and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. A member of the Mont Pelerin Society, he has been a director of eight corporations and four foundations, and he has been a member of the Nominating Committee for the Heinz Awards, William I. Koch Crime Commission, Prison Advisory Board for the California Little Hoover Commission, Board of Advisors of the Libertarian Christian Institute, and Executive Committee for the Templeton Collegiate Honor Rolls for Education in a Free Society.
Heather Knight is an award-winning columnist with the San Francisco Chronicle, and who has written extensively on homelessness, including a recent poignant profile of a man she had followed for three years who recently and tragically succumbed to a drug overdose. She is Co-Founder of #49MileMakeover and Co-Host of the Chronicle's “TotalSF” podcast and Co-Founder of its #TotalSF program to highlight the upbeat, whimsical side of San Francisco.
Scott Ackerson, a Licensed Master Social Worker, is Executive Vice President of Prospera Housing Community Services and former Principal at Health Management Associates, Inc., and former Vice President of Strategic Relationships for Haven for Hope in San Antonio, Texas. He is an Adjunct Professor of Social Work and serves on several non-profit boards. Previously, he served as Chief Program Officer for SAM Ministries, as Vice President of Residential Services for The Children’s Shelter and as Community Program Director with Casey Family Programs.
Gabriel Baldinucci is Co-Founder, CEO and Chairman of the Urban Vision Alliance, who has over 20 years previous experience building start-ups, including serving as Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Director of SU Labs at Singularity University. and Vice President of Strategy and New Venture Development at the Virgin Group, where he led the strategy and development of Virgin Voyages. He holds a B.A. in economics from Duke University and an M.B.A. from Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
Theo Ellington is Director of Homelessness Initiatives and Community Development at the San Francisco Salvation Army, where he leads the strategy and implementation of the Army’s redevelopment of its properties to realize “The Way Out” initiative. He has served as a Commissioner for the Southeast Community Facility Commission and San Francisco Office of Community Investment and Infrastructure. He received a B.A. in political science from Notre Dame de Namur University and M.A. in urban affairs from the University of San Francisco.
Adam B. Summers is a Research Fellow at the Independent Institute and editor of the Independent Policy Report, Beyond Homeless: Good Intentions, Bad Outcomes, Transformative Solutions. He previously worked as an editorial writer and columnist at the Orange County Register and its ten sister newspapers in the Southern California News Group, and a Senior Policy Analyst at the Reason Foundation. He holds an M.A. in economics from George Mason University and a B.A. with a double-major in economics and political science from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Mary L. G. Theroux is Senior Vice President of the Independent Institute and Executive Director of Independent's Beyond Homeless initiative. Having received her A.B. in economics from Stanford University, Ms. Theroux is Managing Director of Lightning Ventures, L.P., and Vice President of the C.S. Lewis Society of California. She is former Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Alameda County Salvation Army; former Chairman and current member of the San Francisco Salvation Army Advisory Board, and also serves on the National Advisory Board of The Salvation Army. Ms. Theroux was also Chairman of Garvey International, Inc., and Co-Founder, President, and CEO of San Francisco Grocery Express, Ltd. Articles on Ms. Theroux have appeared in Business Week, Forbes, Savvy, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and other publications.
Paul C. Webster is Executive Director of the Los Angeles Alliance for Human Rights and Founder and Director the Hope Street Coalition, with a special focus on homelessness, mental illness, and addiction. He served as Senior Policy Advisor in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, with a specific focus on homelessness assistance programs. Former President and CEO of Pacific Cancer Fitness, he received his MPA from the University of Southern California.
Thomas Wolf was formerly homeless in the Tenderloin of San Francisco, and as a now recovering heroin addict, he has become a strong advocate for a new approach to the homeless and drug crises in San Francisco and beyond. An independent consultant, he a former Case Manager for the San Francisco Salvation Army's Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center.
