COUNTYWIDE : Poor Reap Fruit of Labor by Homeless

When it comes time to harvest the ripening fruit from the 50 orange trees at his home in Orange, Tom DeRossett usually hires a team of pickers to do the job.

But this year, he wanted to do something different.

To that end, he contacted the Union Rescue Mission in Santa Ana, which in turn sent over some homeless men from the mission’s New Life program to pick the fruit, said Raymond Dunsmore, DeRossett’s business partner.

“It (was) just falling to the ground,” said Dunsmore. “I started calling around for food banks and we got in touch with the (Union) Rescue Mission. They’re really appreciative.”

The oranges will be distributed in the two dozen food boxes the mission gives out daily to the poor, said Joe Furey, church and community relations manager for the mission. They will also be served during mealtime at the mission at 1901 W. Walnut St. in Santa Ana. The rest of the oranges will be sent to a special facility for women and children in Huntington Beach.

“This will be a real blessing for people who can’t afford fresh fruit,” Furey said.

New Life is a one-year job training and rehabilitation program for men and women, often homeless, who have drug and alcohol problems.

The 12 men enrolled in the program perform odd jobs around the mission such as landscaping, laundry and answering phones.

The offer from the orange grove provided a rare opportunity for outside employment.

“It’s unusual, but we’d like to make it a regular occurrence,” Furey said. “We are always looking for those in-kind gifts and our people feel better when they’re doing something to help themselves. They get back into the work ethic.”

Furey also said that more people might be able to offer a variety of items instead of money.

“This is a real good way for people, especially in this recession where money is tight, to donate and impact the poverty situation,” he said.