The Orange County Catholic Worker provides meals and other services to the homeless in the city of Santa Ana, California. ¹ It also has been in involved in lawsuits about homeless issues versus various cities in California such as Los Angeles ² and Tustin. ³

Overview

In 1987, Jonathan and Rio Parfrey took their four kids and $20,000 to relocate to Santa Ana and opened the Orange County Catholic Worker Isaiah House. The house is located in Santa Ana’s eastside barrio on Cypress Street. The Isaiah House offers meals, shelter, bags of food, clothing, showers, and emergency assistance to poor and homeless people. ⁴ It also provides food to other soup kitchens and serves about 2,100 hot meals every week. ⁵ The organization is also frequently involved in various legal disputes over the rights of homeless people.

Legal Disputes

The OCCW filed a lawsuit against the city of Tustin and Orange County, California about administrative adjudications regarding the homeless. On October 26, 2018, the parties entered into a settlement agreement. ⁶

The OCCW also filed a lawsuit against the city of Costa Mesa on January 29, 2018. This lawsuit would run until March 4, 2019, when the parties reached a settlement agreement that would result in the city establishing a 50-bed bridge shelter. ⁷ The organization has been involved in other legal disputes on behalf of the homeless with Orange County, ⁸ Los Angeles as an intervenor on behalf of the LA Alliance for Human Rights ⁹ and the city of Laguna Beach. ¹⁰

1. “Orange County Catholic Worker.” Orange County Catholic Worker – Isaiah House. Accessed August 23, 2021. https://www.occatholicworker.org/history.html.
2. Walker, Theresa. “Settlement in Homeless Lawsuit Sets Rules for Help, and Enforcement in North and Central Orange County.” Orange County Register. Last modified July 24, 2019. https://www.ocregister.com/2019/07/23/settlement-in-homeless-lawsuit-sets-rules-for-help-and-enforcement-in-north-and-central-orange-county/.
3. “Dispute Resolution.” Tustin, CA | Official Website. Accessed August 23, 2021. https://www.tustinca.org/1055/Dispute-Resolution.
4. “Orange County Catholic Worker.” Orange County Catholic Worker – Isaiah House. Accessed August 23, 2021. https://www.occatholicworker.org/history.html.
5. “Orange County Catholic Worker – Isaiah House.” Homeless Shelters | Find Homeless Sheltersless Shelter Search. Last modified August 12, 2021. https://www.homelessshelterdirectory.org/shelter/ca_orange-county-catholic-worker-isaiah-house.
6. “Dispute Resolution.” Tustin, CA | Official Website. Accessed August 23, 2021. https://www.tustinca.org/1055/Dispute-Resolution.
7. Sears, Theresa. “Costa Mesa Settles Lawsuit In Orange County Catholic Worker Case.” Voice of OC. Last modified December 8, 2020. https://voiceofoc.org/2019/03/costa-mesa-settles-lawsuit-in-orange-county-catholic-worker-case/.
8. Walker, Theresa. “Settlement in Homeless Lawsuit Sets Rules for Help, and Enforcement in North and Central Orange County.” Orange County Register. Last modified July 24, 2019. https://www.ocregister.com/2019/07/23/settlement-in-homeless-lawsuit-sets-rules-for-help-and-enforcement-in-north-and-central-orange-county/.
9. “UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE CENTRA LDISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA–WESTERN DIVISION.” ShareFile. Last modified March 4, 2021. https://spertuslaw.sharefile.com/share/view/s99db002ce60644948a4c8eadcda1b95d.
10. Nguyen, Lilly. “Laguna Beach Settles with Homeless Advocacy Group, Avoiding Prospective Lawsuit.” Daily Pilot. Last modified September 24, 2019. https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/story/2019-09-23/laguna-beach-settles-with-homeless-advocacy-group-avoiding-prospective-lawsuit.