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COURTESY PHOTO W hen Laura Chez arrived in San Diego, she immediately and unexpectedly inherited a homelessness outreach program. It was 2017. Chez was a morning radio personality, coming off a ten-year stint on WBLI FM on Long Island, New York. Along with her husband, Kevin, and three daughters, Chez changed coasts for a job doing mornings on San Diego's ALT 94.9 FM. It was Kevin who first attended the pizza party for about half a dozen unhoused locals. e party operators were moving out of town and asked Kevin to take over. He said yes. Fast forward eight years: Laura is now the executive director of the nonprofit We See You San Diego. e organization has been hosting dinners on a weekly basis for up to 250 members of the homeless community. " ese are lavish dinners where we serve the guests who come," says Chez. While she may be slightly exaggerating the word "lavish," her events are a cut above expectation. e menu always changes. Expect a big dessert tray. ere's a house band. Bicycle techs are on standby for minor repairs. And Chez and her team of volunteers keep spirits up by offering a path for medically assisted detox to anyone suffering from addiction who is ready to commit to a solution. e dinners aren't simply a hand-out. " ey're a way to meet people, gain their trust, and offer them a solution to addiction to fentanyl, meth, opioids, alcohol, or whatever the issue," Chez says. Private funding supports the effort. Governmental bodies — local, state, and federal —haven't yet opened their eyes to the smart solution of chipping away at homelessness by focusing on the chronically addicted. Chez says in 2024 they were able to place 24 people into 10-day detox programs that cost $450 per day. We See You also placed more than 120 people on good "pathways" after being on the streets. e organization's goal for this year is to increase the number of people it can assist with detox by 33 percent. Chez is motivated to help the community in part by her faith in God. She's effusively optimistic, and remained so even while she had to switch the weekly party's location in and around Pacific Beach for the third time in 2024, partly due to a few unsupportive neighbors. e parties paused in early 2025. "One of our guests said, 'It sounds like you're homeless just like we are,'" Chez says. At press time Chez was on the brink of nailing down a new location. Unfortunately, it fell through and the organization is still looking for a home. She's open to offers. Without a weekly party to put on, Chez is keeping busy. She gained access to one of the City of San Diego's safe camping sites in Balboa Park. She threw an introductory event for 500-plus people at what's called " e O Lot," and since has been onsite twice a week for outreach to residents who live in tents at the site. Chez says the introductory party was set up like a farmer's market. ere was gourmet coffee, clothing, hygiene supplies, and lunch of Jersey Mike's subs. "We announced to the crowd about the opportunity we offer — a life-changing pathway out of homelessness," she says. "As always, we do it by addressing root causes of addiction." To close out the party, the house band played the song "Love Train." "Our band is fire," Chez says. "People were dancing. A staff member came up with tears in her eyes and said, 'You guys brought music to this place.'" Homeless people tend to fall into despair. " ey don't believe they're worthy and become hopeless," Chez says. "We believe they're worthy. We're there as life support and to show that we're going to have hope for everybody." e parties serve immediate needs and make connections. Not everyone is ready to kick an addiction — so We See You San Diego is there to find and assist people ready to make the commitment to a long-term solution. weseeyousandiego.com RON DONOHO Nonprofit sows hope and finds solutions for people with chronic addiction Focus philanthropy Seeing Is Believing Laura Chez ranchandcoast.com 40 APRIL 2025 RANCH & COAST MAGAZINE