“There was this one family that I actually tried to help get food stamps,” Veronica Medina says, “and as soon as they got them, they were evicted.”


SCHOOL, AND NEAR HOMELESSNESS NEAR THE BORDER


eronica Medina sits in an office over- flowing with blankets, shoes, and donated school supplies. A native of San Ysidro, she


has a perennial smile and wears pink lipstick that accents her jolly laugh. She doesn’t spend much of her workday in the San Ysidro School District offices. Instead, she takes me to the parking lot and jumps into her F-150 Ford truck. This is how she transports donated refrigerators, microwaves, and


mattresses to “her families.” The truck also comes in handy for the places she sometimes has to go: the off-road shelters inhabited by San Ysidro’s homeless students. For the past 11 years, Medina has been the


homeless liaison for approximately 1400 students, or 29 percent of the 4800 total enrolled in the district. It is the largest number of homeless students, per- centage-wise, in San Diego County. While Medina’s


PHOTOS BY ANDY BOYD


title has changed over the years — she is now the student and family services manager — her work has never changed. Medina says she personally reaches out to at least 1000 of her homeless students every year. “It’s always trying to get those resources for our


children. Getting them enrolled in schools, espe- cially when they don’t have receipts or any proof of residency. I go out and do the home visits so I


16 San Diego Reader February 23, 2017


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