Vince Depasque
Client Profile: Vince Depasque
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Vincent Depasque has one of the most easily recognizable faces in North Beach. Chances are he has helped you or your neighbor move in or out of your apartment, walked and watched over your dog, cleaned up after a dinner party or festival you’ve attended, or simply smiled at you in Washington Square Park.
Vince arrived in North Beach five years ago after a 20 year stint in Yosemite National Park working as a waiter at the Yosemite Lodge. He has lived in various doorways and SROs (Single Room Occupancies) during his time in North Beach. Recently, though, he found and rented a room he can call his own.
During his time sleeping in doorways, Vince stayed afloat by working all sorts of odd jobs offered to him by other North Beach residents. For his first 3 months in North Beach, he more or less exclusively helped other North Beachers move things from their apartments until one day when a neighborhood dog ran into him when he was reading in Washington Square Park. Unknown to most of the community at this point, the dog’s owner apologized to Vince as she waited for some sort of response. Instead of getting mad at the dog or its owner, Vince started talking to the dog’s owner and by day’s end was watching that very same dog while its owner ran errands around the city. With this meeting, Vince began establishing himself as “the Dogfather of North Beach”.
This introduction to the dog community of North Beach proved critical as it provided Vince with constant employment, several guardian angels, and more pets than anyone in North Beach or Telegraph Hill other than Mark Bittner and his “wild parrots”.
Once established in North Beach, Vince became more and more active in the community. But, he still found it difficult to get off the streets and create a consistent income stream.
Shortly after his initial introduction to NB, Vince had another critical meeting when he attended the monthly dinner for the homeless and housed at Bocce Café and met Kristie Fairchild, the Executive Director of North Beach Citizens. The two talked throughout the event and by the time the dinner ended, Kristie had convinced Vince to come to NBC the next morning. Vince showed up at NBC that next morning and, after an initial period of hesitation, began coming daily, eventually becoming an active and integral member of North Beach Citizens.
However, it wasn’t until Kristie strongly encouraged Vince to get his California I.D. and his social security card that things really started to change. Vince had been in a sort of no man’s land without I.D. unable to rent a room or apply for any government benefits. But, after NBC applied and paid for a copy of his birth certificate, he was able to obtain a CA. I.D.—through NBC’s California I.D. subsidy—and a Social Security card. The combination of these three developments then made it possible for Vince to utilize NBC’s Housing Stabilization Subsidy to rent an SRO, which made him eligible for General Assistance’s full benefit. Since then GA benefits have been discontinued, but he has continued to stay afloat by continually piecing together work. When asked, Vince credits NBC and its persistence for his return to the ranks of the housed: “They pushed me to get I.D. and my Social Security card. And then got me indoors.”
Vince continues to work 20-30 hours a week: “I don’t care what it is. I don’t care if it’s 3 o’clock in the morning.” And, in his spare time, he works on making his new room into a home.
Vincent Depasque slipped through the cracks, but with a little bit of encouragement and aid, he was able to reclaim his life, so much so that he recently contacted his father, mother, and sister for the first time in 14 years.
“It brings tears to my eyes,” said Andrea Kaye, one of Vince’s friends and resident of North Beach, “…watching his transformation. He’s come from living on the streets to putting up a towel rack in his closet…The community should be proud of Vince, itself, and North Beach Citizens.”