Fresno woman shares journey to homelessness with pastor
FRESNO — Meet Janet. She’s homeless, as the grocery cart filled with her belongs might’ve suggested. And yes, she’s addicted to drugs.
Not the life someone would’ve predicted for her had they’d known Janet just a few years ago.
She used to have a job for more than 10 years, ironically as a drug and alcohol counselor. She owned a home and was married. It was her dream. So how did Janet end up on the streets, addicted to methamphetamine and wandering around Fresno?
As street minister Lance Pearce, who spends his off days from his job as a Selma police officer by reaching out and praying with the homeless, said: “If you’re willing to open your heart, and listen, we all can probably relate — to Janet and other homeless people like her. Because if you’ve ever been broken, you know the pain, the void. It takes just that one moment of weakness, a bad decision, and they fall, and struggle to rebound.”
Pearce shared his interaction with Janet from earlier this month on his Facebook page and generated quite a buzz.
Feel sorry for her? Or feel annoyed that some people want you to feel sorry for her?
On the day Pearce met Janet (who declined to give him her last name), she sat next to an abandoned store near the corner of Shaw and Feland avenues in northwest Fresno.
She was trying to stay out of the rain, eating cookies, with her shopping cart and all of her belongings by her side.
Pearce, as he’s done so with many other homeless people he’s spoken to, asked if he could pray for her.
But Pearce had a few stipulations.
He first wanted to ask a few questions to get to know her, try to find out what led to her demise, and whether she was a believer in Jesus Christ and the power of prayer.
Janet agreed and eventually opened up.
Pearce discovered that Janet wasn’t just addicted to drugs. She said she continues to use meth to help her survive the streets.
“It helps to take away her hunger and keeps her awake, so she doesn’t get hurt,” Pearce wrote in his Facebook post.
There’s pain from her past that Janet likes to block out, too.
But she eventually reveals that she suffered a job-related accident that caused her to be placed on disability. Plus, her once dreamy marriage turned into a nightmare, with Janet’s husband turning physically abusive and using meth.
“It would not be long before he would get her to start using methamphetamines,” Pearce wrote. “At first, she did not care for it. However, after several months she had gotten hooked and it took over.”
Within three years, Janet lost everything.
The domestic violence was too much. She had no one to turn to, and no where to go, except the streets. She’s been there since — four years and counting.
Pearce said he’s optimistic that Janet simply admitting she’s addicted to meth could be a sign she wants to get her life back on track.
But he can see that she’s not ready just yet.
There is comfort in being homeless with others who can relate to her struggles.
“She feels that she is safer living on the streets with her friends, than to live off of the streets and alone where someone can hurt her again,” Pearce said. “But the key is, if they admit the real truth of how their life took that wrong turn, they are recognizing some fault and then they can change it. “That’s what I hope.” At the end of their conversation, Pearce said a prayer for Janet then asked if he could take her photo.
He wanted others to see Janet’s eyes — the pain, the hurt, the hunger, the worry, the struggle with addiction.
It’s part of Pearce’s series of portraits and testimonies of homelessness in the central San Joaquin Valley called “Portraits of Hope.”
Pearce hopes it raises awareness of the homeless, the addicted, and those broken and in need.
“People who aren’t supposed to be victims, sometimes end up becoming victims,” Pearce said. “It’s easy to look with a jaded point of view. Maybe people should realize that they once were like everyone else.”
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Redeemer Lutheran Church will hold an Easter service at 10 a.m. Sunday
Redeemer Lutheran Church is located at 1845 S. Ham Lane, Lodi. For more information, call 209-3682288 or visit
First United Methodist Church
First United Methodist Church will hold Easter worship services at 8 and 10 a.m. Sunday featuring music by the Chancel Choir. Easter brunch will be served at 9 a.m., followed by an Easter egg hunt for children at 9:30 a.m.
The church also offers two senior exercise programs, open to the public, in its fellowship hall.
Energizers, a low-impact aerobic class for active seniors, meets from 9 to 10 a.m., Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with fees of $6 per class or $36 per month.
Pacesetters, an exercise program for seniors who wish to remain seated or standing and exercise at a slower pace, meets on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10:15 to 11 a.m., with fees of $4 per class or $30 per month.
The church also offers two free book clubs, with the afternoon group meeting at 1 p.m. on the fourth Friday of each month in the church library and the evening group meeting the last Monday of each month at an off-site location.
First United Methodist Church is located at 200 W. Oak St., Lodi. For more information, call 209-368-5357 or visit Christian Church is located at 701 S. Hutchins St., Lodi. For more information, call 209-368-1955 or visit
Emanuel Lutheran Church
Emanuel Lutheran Church is now accepting registration for its 2018 Vacation Bible School, which will take place June 11 through 15 from 9 a.m. to noon.
All school-age children from kindergarten to 12 years old are welcome.
To register, contact Tamara Bechthold-Thuotte by phone at 209-334-2130 or by email at
Emanuel Lutheran Church is located at 1540 W. Lodi Ave., Lodi. For more information, call 209-3342130 or visit
Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church
Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church will hold an Easter breakfast at 8:30 a.m. Sunday, followed by festival worship at 10 a.m. and an Easter egg hunt at 11:15 a.m.
The church will also host its Mornings with Mommy program from 10 to 11 a.m. the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month, featuring arts and crafts, songs, stories and snacks for children 5 years old and younger and their parents, grandparents or guardians.
Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church is located at 13009 N. Elderberry Court, Lodi. For more information or to register, call 209-368-6250 or visit
First Baptist Church of Lodi