William Rentie sat at the northeastern 16th Street BART plaza smoking a cigarette on a recent Thursday, thinking about a special Christmas.
It was 47 years ago when he left two cookies, an orange and an apple out for Santa. He was 9, and waiting until morning seemed like an eternity, so he got up in the middle of the night to take a peak.
Young Rentie was not disappointed by what he saw.
“I seen my father under the Christmas tree, getting it ready and putting presents under it,” he said.
The next morning, he said, “I asked my sister if my father was Santa Claus’s helper. She said, ‘No, fool. He is Santa Claus.’”
“That’s probably one of the best Christmases I’ve ever had,” he said. He recalled the feeling of his mother and father kissing him goodnight, and tucking him into bed. That year, Rentie got the present he’d wanted for a long time: A popular ride at the time called the “Green Machine.”
This year, he hasn’t made any plans for Christmas, but he hopes to see his mother and sister here in the city. After all, Christmas should be all about family, he said.
That’s a widely-shared view around the BART plaza. With Christmas only a few days away, traditional holiday cheer is scarce among the people whose lives have led them to these streets. Still, there’s plenty of nostalgia for Christmases past — and vague yearnings for miracles that would bring back the good times.
A few feet from Rentie, Sara Schneider described her favorite Christmas memory: “Going to my grandparents’ house, eating dinner and spending time with my family.” They always ate turkey, cranberry sauce and stuffing, she recalled.
With tears in her eyes, Schneider said she misses her grandparents, who died a few years ago. A Sacramento native, she and her husband ended up on San Francisco’s streets after they lost their house, their dog (who was like a son) and her mother-in-law in the span of two months, about two and a half years ago.
Schneider said that if she could work a Christmas miracle, she would get her old life back.
A couple of blocks away on Julian Avenue between 14th and 15th streets, Marcos Antonio stood alone. He was high, leaning so far forward he almost touched his toes. The 27-year-old Oakland native has been living on the streets and using drugs for five or six years, since he lost his housing.
Antonio’s favorite Christmas memory was three years ago, opening presents with his daughter, Jenesis, a 3-year-old at the time. He said he hasn’t been able to see her “in a little minute,” and that pains him.
His Christmas miracle? “To have some money and go back to my daughter, get out of here,” said Antonio. He said he wants to get off the streets, recover and move to Vallejo, where his daughter lives with her mom.
“I’m missing her everyday,” he said.
Nearby, Megan Nickerson took in the sun by herself. The 61-year-old grew up in Mountain View, and has been using drugs since she was 17, when a boyfriend introduced her to heroin.
Nickerson, who now uses meth and fentanyl, plans to call her 16-year-old daughter, who lives in Windsor with her foster mom, on Christmas. The two haven’t been together in five years, and Nickerson wants to change that.
“I keep saying I want to be clean for my daughter, but it’s so hard to get out of it,” said Nickerson, crying. “I think about her all the time. Christmas brings all that up: Memories of your family, and what it meant to you, and what you did for Christmas and stuff. It’s hard.”
A favorite Christmas memory, Nickerson said, was how her mom used to tell her that when the sky turned pink, it was Santa Claus making candy. As for a Christmas miracle, she said, she wants “not to look homeless.”
Across the street, Colby H. rested against a building.
“Today’s my birthday,” he said. “I’m turning 38.”
Colby grew up in Wyoming, but moved to the Bay Area 15 years ago after he left a badly-paying job repairing windshields in Orange County. He has been on the streets most of his time here.
Life on the streets has become harder since the city started to crack down more aggressively on drug use and dealing, he said. Recently, he’s started to take methadone and has stopped using fentanyl. As for plans for his birthday and Christmas, he said he hoped to meet up with his girlfriend.
More than anything what he wants is a place he can call home, where he can spend time with his girlfriend, he said.
And, just as people’s wishes mostly came full circle, so I returned to the BART plaza, where Rentie was sitting. What would he want for a Christmas miracle? I asked.
“To dance with my dad again,” he said. His father died several years ago.
“What song?” I asked.
He didn’t hesitate: “‘’Dance with My Father‘ by Luther Vandross.”
So none of them are from here??
Having been born and raised in the mission and still living in the city, I would say 90 % of the folks are not from here. I’ve talked to many of them, and for what ever reason they came here, the result is the same. The streets will eat you up.
This is hella sad bro.
Brings tears to my eyes
The honesty to tell these stories is truly inspiring
Just 1 mistake or hardship can derail our lives
God bless all of earths angels
Sad stuff for the holidays. It’s interesting how many people come to our city and become the worst versions of themselves. Easy access to cheap drugs is only detrimental. Colby’s story—“life on the streets has become harder since the city started to crack down”—actually highlights how this approach may be working. He’s off fentanyl now and on methadone. Now there’s a miracle for the holidays. Hopefully he can continue moving in the right direction.
Your best work, Oscar,
I work around this population every day picking up trash with my critter, Skippy.
All morning as School starts next door at 8am til anywhere from 10am til noon depending on how rocking the previous night was which can be figured kinda like when I owned a big bar is how much broken glass you have to clean up and, of course, how deep the shit is.
I’ve been advocating building 4 KOA level RV/Tent campgrounds inside City limits where these folks can stay and face it, AI will shortly end these kinds of living situations one way or another and soon.
Put the first SF Safety Net park next to the VA Medical Complex by taking half of Lincoln Golf Course which the City owns and I’m betting there are plenty of Homeless Vets to fill it and they have all of their medical needs as taken care of next door.
One thing that amazes me is what hard work being Homeless is.
If the City’s numbers are near correct then 40% of 8,000 Homeless are addicts and a third of them die yearly only to be replenished as a byproduct of ‘Moloch, whose eyes are a thousand blind windows’ as Allen Ginsburg wrote.
It’s an easy move, Mr. Mayor and you should spend a night at a KOA just to check it out.
Go Niners !!
h.
Thank you for writing this.
This took some courage to report. Well done.
We need to see more articles like this! The People’s voice will be heard!
“Love is a discipline.”