Hawkes Home, Inc.

We aim to change lives for the better by breaking the cycle of recidivism rampant in California. Our approach is to provide previously incarcerated men with the tools and support they need so they can emerge to live sober productive lives in society.

The lives we change are not only those of the men who come to us; it is their families' lives as well because incarceration and substance abuse have far-reaching negative effects. By helping one man, we are also helping his entire family.

Peripherally, we also seek to help men in prison who want to change their lives. These men learn of our clients' accomplishments and want to do the same. Word travels fast in prison and when Harley (our Executive Director) visits Donovan prison each Wednesday, men often ask him to hold a space for them at Hawkes Home.

Our goals for 2018 are to strengthen our program by making our House Manager a full-time paid position, adding professional counseling services, and adding therapeutic activities (chicken coop, greenhouse and treadmill).

Our long-term goals are to help as many men as possible. To this end, our goal is to open a second home in 2018.

Creating change is always difficult, but we have found strategies that produce success in helping previously incarcerated men turn their lives around:

To begin, we accept only men serious about changing their lives. The reasons for this are twofold:
1) a limited number of beds in the house
2) the need for a positive atmosphere in the house

To show this serious intent, before entering Hawkes Home, each client must sign off on our House Guidelines which serve as a binding agreement.

Due to the overwhelming problem of substance abuse within prisons/jails, virtually all of the men at Hawkes Home are also dealing with maintaining sobriety. Most come to us from a rehabilitation program which was a condition for their release from prison. For many, substance abuse was the underlying reason that they went to prison/jail in the first place. So clean living is an important element of our Program. We have zero tolerance for drugs and all clients know this. They have one chance at Hawkes Home and if they use, they lose that chance forever. (We will still do whatever we can to help that person, but he will never be allowed back into Hawkes Home.)

Upon admittance to Hawkes Home, we give each new client whatever they need—bus ticket, clothing, etc.

Our fees are purposely lower than other housing in the area so that our clients have money left for restitution, another element that we stress in our Program.

All rooms are shared so that no one is left alone. If any man begins to waver, someone knows and help is given immediately.

We provide coaching to our clients in the areas of computer proficiency, job search techniques, financial literacy, health maintenance, independent living, workforce development, and life skills.

We develop the men's social skills through group activities such as going out to breakfast, the movies, and bowling.

We use a peer-based counseling support model. The living situation is family-like where all members contribute to the household and feel a sense of responsibility. While living in this supportive group environment, each man transitions independently.

We hold two open house fundraisers per year that allow our clients to feel a sense of ownership by showing the house and sharing their personal stories with guests. It is also a time when alumni and their families return to share their successes, showing the current clients what is possible. Proceeds of our open houses go toward our operating expenses.

Our goal for 2019 is to raise funds for a second house. To this end, we are pursuing all avenues including grants, community groups that may hold fundraising events, and charitable donors who support our cause. And we are three-quarters of the way to our $800,000 goal, but as of November 2019 we have $150,000 still to raise.

The value of the services provided at Hawkes Home greatly exceeds what its budget reflects.

Founders, Joyce and Harley Noel have over 25 years of experience in the nonprofit world. They ran a hospital in Africa for two years, then started and ran McIntyre House—a successful rehabilitation facility in Los Angeles—before starting Hawkes Home where they oversee all operations. Both have backgrounds in finance and accounting, they ran a successful for-profit business prior to entering the nonprofit area, and are well connected in the North County area of San Diego.

Our Managers live at Hawkes Home so they can oversee and guide all house activity. They keep all clients on the path to productivity, giving them a gentle nudge as needed to continue progress. Bruce Disheneau, our Manager, and his two Assistant Managers were all previously incarcerated themselves. All three are also recovering addicts. Because they have walked the same path as our clients, they have firsthand understanding of what our clients are going through. Having managers at Hawkes Home with these insights and understanding as to what the men are going through allows them to relate to the men in a unique way and recognize when someone is in trouble and needs help. The managers also serve as a daily reminder to the men of someone like themselves who has been able to turn his life around, and so provide hope and inspiration to our clients.

We encourage our clients to get their GED and offer them scholarships to do so. We also offer scholarships to anyone interested in pursuing vocational or technical training that will help them achieve their career objectives and have partnered with Mira Costa

We provide food staples for the men--bread, eggs, peanut butter, and milk. They are responsible for any other food items and for its preparation (which we teach them to do).

We have accomplished what we intended: created a safe place for previously incarcerated men to go where they can learn life skills so they can live on the outside, in society. This includes how to find a job so that they can leave us to be economically self-sufficient, productive, and successful.

We seek $50,000 in grants to strengthen Hawkes Home in 2018; in particular to make the Manager a full time position, add professional counseling (to supplement the AA/NA mandatory sessions all clients attend), grounds expansion to include a chicken coop and green house (both of which serve as group construction activities and then therapeutic chores upon completion), and a treadmill to provide a cardio vascular vehicle (documented as an aide in recovery).

We also seek to purchase a second house in order to help more men. The need for our Program is great but Hawkes Home is limited to 15 beds. We would love to reach more men, to change more lives. Founder/Executive Director Harley Noel's mantra is: "If I had another house today, I could fill it tomorrow!" Hawkes Home receives so many requests and has to turn so many men away that Harley knows this is true. We need to raise $200,000 to purchase a second home.