Over his 23 years, Marsai Turbin hasn’t often enjoyed the smoothest of life paths.
Nor has he had the best of luck.
An Oakland resident, Turbin spent much of his childhood in the foster care system. As an adult, he has endured stretches of homelessness and bouts of depression and has had little contact with his biological mother.
Recently, Turbin was the victim of a freakish double-whammy. First, he was struck by a hit-and-run driver while crossing a street — an incident that left him with minor injuries. As Turbin lay on the pavement, the driver rushed over, stuffed $200 in his pants and then sped off.
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Just a few weeks later, misfortune struck again as he strolled from his apartment to a corner store. Nearby, two people were arguing. A gun was fired and Turbin was hit in his upper left leg by a stray bullet.
“I’ve had some hard luck,” admits Turbin, who was hospitalized and temporarily had difficulty walking after the shooting. “But I’m not a hater. I do my best to stick it out and stay positive.”
Supporting him in that quest is the Rainbow Community Center of Contra Costa County, a Concord-based nonprofit that serves the LGBTQI+ community by offering, among other services, counseling, clinical needs, training and social programs for youth and seniors.
“We work with folks who are marginalized — folks who can’t catch a break,” says Rasheedah S. Blake, the director of Rainbow’s Youth Housing Program. “Marsai is a victim of circumstances and, unfortunately, his environment.”
Earlier this year, Blake helped Turbin secure an apartment as part of Rainbow’s Homeless Transitional Youth Program. At the time, Turbin explains, he “was sleeping here and there, and worried about catching coronavirus.”
Rainbow Community Center has received funding this year from Share the Spirit, an annual holiday campaign that serves disadvantaged residents in the East Bay. Donations will help support 41 nonprofit agencies in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. The grant will be used in part to provide food and gift cards for clients and to deliver hot meals during the holidays to the center’s most vulnerable seniors and those living in youth housing.
The organization’s Homeless Transitional Youth Program provides hotel vouchers, furniture, transportation, relocation funds, food, clothing, medication and other services to support homeless clients between ages 18 and 24. As of late October, there were 28 participants in the program and Blake said most have been victims of crime and some form of bullying.
“We have one guy who witnessed a person being shot and killed just a few feet away from him,” she says. “He’ll be traumatized for a long, long time.”
In some cases, Blake’s clients have been asked by their families to move out because they can’t accept their gender, or deal with their traumatic experiences. It’s her mission to place young clients in affordable housing — not always an easy task in the Bay Area’s expensive housing market.
This year, she points out, the program has been needed more than ever because local shelters are at capacity and/or are limiting who they accept amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The center typically places youths in hotels for 31 days, while assisting them in the search for permanent housing. Rainbow also assists youths with move-in costs and provides them with furniture donated by a Walnut Creek church.
Kiku Johnson, executive director of the Rainbow Community Center, said the coronavirus crisis has made it all the more imperative for the organization to be there for its clients.
“We have heard a lot of talk about the isolation they’re feeling,” he said. “They sometimes find themselves in spaces that aren’t really safe and healthy for them. … We want to provide them with spaces that are affirming and reflect who they are in the community. Being queer in the world shouldn’t be something to be afraid of.”
Johnson says the Rainbow staff invariably refers to their younger clients as “youths,” even when they’re well into their 20s. That’s because their social development and “emotional IQ” often was stunted as they struggled to find their way in the world. Indeed, Blake refers to the 6-foot-5 Turbin as “such a sweet child.”
Like others in her line of work, Blake spends extremely long hours advocating for — and worrying about — the welfare of those involved in the program. With Turbin, she’ll often check in to see if he’s eating well, or connect with him on the phone to encourage him when he’s feeling down.
“What motivates me is having someone go from Point A to Point Z and watching their growth over time,” she says.
As for Turbin, he’s thrilled to have Blake in his corner.
“She looks at me like a grandson,” he says. “She’s always there for me when life gets rough. … I think she sees something in me that others might not.”
Share the Spirit
The Share the Spirit holiday campaign, sponsored by the Bay Area News Group, funds nonprofit holiday and outreach programs in Alameda and Contra Costa counties.
To make a tax-deductible contribution, clip the coupon accompanying this story or go to www.sharethespiriteastbay.org/donate. Readers with questions, and individuals or businesses interested in making grants or contributions, may contact the Share the Spirit program at 925-472-5760 or sharethespirit@crisis-center.org.
