海角大神

Clay Collins:聽Welcome to Rethinking the News, from 海角大神. I鈥檓 Clay Collins, one of its editors. Here鈥檚 another episode of People Making a Difference, an audio extension of the Monitor鈥檚 long-running聽series about individuals and organizations working to advance progress. You鈥檒l hear the backstories of some of the people you may have read about in the Monitor 鈥� and the stories of others you haven鈥檛 yet met. These episodes are hosted by Dave Scott, the Monitor鈥檚 audience engagement editor.

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Dave Scott:聽The hygiene Kris Kepler is talking about is a nice hot shower. That鈥檚 something the homeless rarely have. And it鈥檚 what her California-based organization, , is providing to thousands living on the streets of Oakland, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. But LavaMae, which [sounds like lavame,] Spanish for 鈥渨ash me,鈥澛� isn鈥檛 just about hot showers. Yes, they have these cool, custom-built shower trucks, which are set up to handle several private showers at a time. But there鈥檚 more. When a shower truck or a shower trailer shows up in a neighborhood, there are also tables manned by people providing haircuts, job interviews, medical care, meals, legal aid, housing services, and even live music. The mobile shower has become a hub of what LavaMaeX calls Pop-up Care Villages.

Another thing that takes this beyond a simple shower is what LavaMaeX calls, 鈥渞adical hospitality.鈥� It鈥檚 a mentality of forming a relationship with a guest rather than simply making a transaction.

Welcome to 鈥淧eople Making a Difference,鈥� a podcast about people who are, step-by-step making a better world.聽

I鈥檓 Dave Scott.

Welcome, Kris.

Dave Scott: Thanks for being here. So Kris, when the pandemic started to shut everything down last year, most unhoused people stayed in their encampments. They worried that they risked infection if they sought a shower or went to a shelter. How have you been able to practice your trademark radical hospitality when people are trying to keep their distance from you?

Dave Scott: That鈥檚 great. And I read somewhere that you actually included notes of love and support within those kits as well.

Dave Scott: So, what did you learn from your response to the pandemic this past year? Are there lessons that your team is carrying forward? You mentioned innovation. But are there other lessons that you鈥檝e learned聽 this year?

Dave Scott:聽These Do-It-Yourself hand-washing stations were more than just little squirt bottles setup on tables. Since large hand-washing stations were in short supply or on back order or cost thousands of dollars to rent or buy, the LavaMaeX team went to work inventing their own low-cost model. The result? Thirty-two gallon trash cans filled with soap solution and a hand pump.

And that, Kris told me, was one of the lessons of this past year: Stay nimble and innovate and collaborate. I asked her what she learned about partnering with other organizations. She mentioned working with the University of California, San Francisco, or UCSF.

Dave Scott: In 2019, shortly after the Monitor wrote about LavaMae, the organization added in X to their name to symbolize a shift. They decided to emphasize teaching others about radical hospitality for the unhoused. They started by creating a hygiene toolkit to help others. And I asked Kris about what prompted that shift.

Dave Scott: So when you鈥檙e teaching radical hospitality 鈥� and even the nuts and bolts of setting up a mobile shower 鈥� what are some of the most important lessons that you鈥檙e sharing?

Dave Scott:聽I want to pick up on that gateway idea too, because, essentially a shower seems like an act of compassion. It鈥檚 about dignity, but it鈥檚 also sort of a band-aid. I read on your website that the mobile showers help people 鈥渕oving through homelessness.鈥� And I love that phrasing because the statement just connotes hope, it assumes progress. So talk about that gateway. And how does your organization support moving through or even out of homelessness?

Dave Scott: That makes total sense. So you鈥檙e teaching and partnering with organizations around this country and, ultimately, around the world. But you鈥檙e still maintaining on-the-ground work in three cities in California. Why is that on the ground effort so important?

Dave Scott:聽That sounds really smart. You and your team are constantly witnessing great human hardship, and progress can be slow. So how do you personally stay inspired when you鈥檙e facing these kinds of things?

Dave Scott:聽You spend a lot of time with people who are unhoused. What advice would you give to listeners when they encounter someone experiencing homelessness? What do you think would be most helpful in that sort of situation?

Dave Scott: When I asked Kris what her organization is planning for the year ahead. She said they鈥檝e started working on designing a pop-up shower, innovating and iterating on a simple, inexpensive shower that can be quickly set up in a homeless encampment or at a disaster recovery site. And she talked about a new section of the LavaMaeX website, a platform where some 400 organizations have already signed up to partner and work together.

Dave Scott: Thank you, Kris. This has been great. I really appreciate it. I really appreciate the work you鈥檙e doing too.

Dave Scott: Our guest today was Kris Kepler, CEO of What struck me about the work Kris and her team are doing is their emphasis on radical hospitality 鈥� that is, treating everyone, especially those without a roof over their heads, with compassion, empathy, and dignity.

And here鈥檚 this week鈥檚 challenge: Say hello to someone who鈥檚 experiencing homelessness. You don鈥檛 have to give them money, just your attention. As Kris said, 鈥淭reat them with respect,鈥� and a touch of empathy. Talk to them. And listen. Then, call me and tell me how it went. Call me at (617) 450-2410 and leave me a voice message about what happened. That鈥檚 (617) 450-2410.

Thanks for listening to 鈥淧eople Making a Difference,鈥� a podcast about people who are, step-by-step, making a better world.

Produced by 海角大神. Copyright 2021.

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