By Miriam Raftery

Photos, top left to bottom right:  Homeless people camped in Lemon Grove and their stories: Erika, a diabetic unable to drive; Christopher, a widower and carpenter seeking work; Elijah, who says his unemployment payments were stolen, Cardell, a nurse whose family died, and Kimberly, 78, who says she has lung cancer and a fractured skull; she has been sheltering in a rancid storm drain after her tent burned.

July 2, 2024 (Lemon Grove)-- Kimberly, 78, is frail, petite, and in desperate need. She  struggles to push a shopping cart laden with rumpled belongings on a scorching July afternoon. The elderly woman, her wrinkled skin tanned and leathery, coughs frequently. An edge of fear underlies her soft voice.

”I have lung cancer,” she says.  Kimberly tells us that she suffered a fall recently in a nearby parking lot. “I’ve got a fractured skull right now.”   “Nobody’s helping me,” she says sadly.

Kimberly is one of 293 homeless people in Lemon Grove who might be helped if the County approves funds to build 60-70 sleeping cabins in Lemon Grove at Troy and Sweetwater on land owned by Caltrans.  On July 18at 6 p.m. a public hearing on this issue at the Lemon Grove Community Center, 3146 School  Lane, Lemon Grove, Supervisor Monica Montgomery-Steppe has announced.