Nonprofit helps flood victims replace necessary medical items

Good Morning, I’m John Carroll, in for Debbie Cruz….it’s Monday, March 11th.

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A local nonprofit is helping victims of the January storms replace lifesaving items lost in the floods.

More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

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A few Amtrak Pacific Surfliner passenger trains are running through San Clemente once again… after a landslide halted passenger train service between San Diego and Orange County in late January.

Puja Thomas Patel with the LOSSAN rail corridor agency says construction has been underway on a barrier wall at the site of the landslide for the past few weeks.

“So we have started two trains in the morning and two trains in the evening. We are still paused during the midday to allow them to complete construction of the wall.”

The Orange County Transit Authority is now proposing a 200 million dollar solution to try to prevent future rail closures in sensitive areas around the beachside city.

Full passenger service between San Diego and Orange County is expected to resume early next month.

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The county's unemployment rate increased nearly a half percentage point to 4-point-7-percent last month.

San Diego county is still faring better than the state though which is seeing 5-point-7-percent unemployment.

Still, the county’s unemployment rate is much higher now than a year ago at this time, when it was only 3-point-7-percent.

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It’s going to feel a bit more like spring this week… with sunny and slightly warmer temperatures expected.

Today’s forecast has temperatures at the inland and coastal areas in the low to mid 60s.

In the deserts, it will be in the high 70s, and in the mountains, the low 50s.

And hopefully you remembered to spring forward, we can also expect later sunset times, now that Daylight Saving Time is in effect.

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From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

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Many victims of the January flooding lost their homes and possessions, including medical items that keep them alive and healthy.

Reporter Melissa Mae tells us about a local nonprofit helping victims replace those lifesaving items.

MM: When the floods hit in January,  Mountain View Resident Robert Banks lost his home… but that wasn’t all he lost. RB “I was a whole month without my CPAP machine. You can die in your sleep without a CPAP machine. MM: He now has a new machine, thanks to a mobile clinic that runs well-being events in his community. RB “I lost my CPAP machine, they got me one. I lost my blood pressure monitor, they got me one.” MM: “They” are JIREH Providers. JIREH stands for Joint Initiatives for Racial Equity in Health. MM: JIREH will be holding wellbeing events in the Mountain View neighborhood through the end of March and then plans to reassess their efforts and help another neighborhood affected by the floods. Melissa Mae KPBS News.

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When a recruit enters boot camp, the Marine corps controls virtually all aspects of their life… including, for many, where they bank.

A KPBS investigation found the Marine Corps systematically enrolls thousands of new recruits each year into Oceanside-based Frontwave Credit Union.

Investigative reporter Scott Rodd reports the credit union reaps millions when young marines run out of money.

I’m hanging out at Dorothy's Military Shop in downtown Oceanside…and the place is bustling. Young Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton cycle through the shop…buying military gear and picking up their dry-cleaned uniforms. Among them is 22-year-old Jesse Leonard. Jesse Leonard “I’ve been in the Marine Corps for four years.” Leonard is a regular at Dorothy’s. In fact, he bought a new pair of pants here just the other day. He needed to look crisp and clean ahead of an important meeting. Jesse Leonard “I had to go to this quarterly promotion board just to see if I'm recommended for promotion.” The good news: Leonard was recommended for sergeant. The bad news? The pants cost him way more than expected. The purchase overdrew his Frontwave Credit Union checking account…resulting in a $20 overdraft fee. By the time Leonard realized what had happened, his checking account was negative nearly $200. He understands his finances are ultimately his responsibility…but he would’ve preferred if Frontwave simply denied the purchases. Jesse Leonard_1  “I got into the Marine Corps right after high school. I did not have a lot of life skills that I was taught…[3:12] I'm trying to be better financially…[6:22] If I would have known that I was overdrafting my account, I would’ve switched over to my other card that had the money in it, you know.” But for Frontwave…these fees are built into their business. The credit union has more than 120,000 members…and the majority are Marines and their family members. A KPBS investigation found Frontwave has an exclusive agreement with the Marine Corps that funnels recruits into the credit union when they go through boot camp in San Diego. Frontwave then handles their direct deposits during training. And when a young Marine runs out of money…Frontwave profits. The credit union collected nearly $8 million in overdraft fees in 2022, according to the most recent data gathered by the state. That represented 12 percent of the company’s overall revenue that year…which is significantly higher compared to other credit unions in California. Frontwave defends its overdraft policy. Meanwhile, the Marine Corps declined multiple interview requests….but in an email, a spokesperson said recruits can use an existing bank account when they enter bootcamp. But that’s not what we heard from the Marines we talked to. ANDREW “They kind of sit you in a room…and they make you fill out all this paperwork and they don't really tell you what it's for.” Andrew…another Marine I met outside of Dorothy’s Military Shop…asked that KPBS only use his first name. He says he wasn’t able to use his existing bank account. ANDREW “After a week or so, you get your Frontwave card and they're like, ‘This is the account you're gonna use.’…They kind of force you into that account.” Roughly 21,000 recruits come through bootcamp in San Diego every year. The Marine Corps couldn’t provide data on exactly how many are enrolled into Frontwave. But KPBS spoke to three former Frontwave employees who said the systematic signup of Marine recruits was essential for the credit union. WV “Without the recruits coming in, I don't know how well the credit union could survive.” This former Frontwave employee agreed to sit down with KPBS…but requested we conceal her identity due to fear of professional consequences for speaking out. WV “A lot of times the younger Marines would spend money and not realize how many fees they could rack up. They'd be three or four hundred dollars in the hole…WV  “We needed the money that was brought in by their overdraft fees.” Our investigation found Frontwave has collected more than $33 million in overdraft fees since 2017. The former employee said she started working at Frontwave because she wanted to help members of the Marines. But over time, she saw the credit union stray from that mission. WV “I don't think they're doing a great service for the military anymore.” Frontwave’s CEO Bill Birnie acknowledges that overdraft fees are an important source of income to the company… BUT he bristles at any suggestion that Frontwave is taking advantage of Marines. BIRNIE “I'm a retired marine sergeant major. I love Marines. There's no way that we would ever get involved in being predatory when it comes to those people that dedicate their lives to serving our country.” Birnie notes that the Marines enrolled in Frontwave are typically younger and lower income…but he says the credit union provides them financial counseling during their training. Moreover, he argues the company’s overdraft program is a benefit. It allows them to buy essentials if they run out of money before their next payday. BIRNIE “We call it a service. We don't call it a fee. It's not a junk fee… Some people — many people actually — are using this as a bridge…” Yet, some experts who study personal finance in the military say Frontwave’s overdraft practices may fit a troubling historical pattern. Military service members have long been targeted by payday lenders and unfair banking practices. WEINSTOCK “A lot of these folks are young. This may be their first checking account. They may not really understand how these things work.” Susan Weinstock is the CEO of the Consumer Federation of America. She previously studied the negative impacts of overdraft fees on members of the military…and found the penalties weigh heavily on the most vulnerable soldiers. WEINSTOCK “We want to see our service members treated well…The idea that we would take advantage of them is just painful.” SOC.

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The last payments went out in a guaranteed income pilot program, run by Jewish family service, called San Diego for Every Child.

Reporter Katie Hyson spoke with a recipient whose story is similar to others unfolding across the country.

$500 cash. Every month. For two years. To 150 randomly selected low-income applicants from four neighborhoods – National City, Paradise Hills, San Ysidro and Encanto. No strings attached. My husband and I were watching the news, and they announced it. That’s 53-year-old Gabriela Aguilar, who says she lives in one rented room in San Ysidro with her husband, 17 year old son and 13 year old daughter. Her husband figured they’d never be selected. But Aguilar filled out an application, along with 35-hundred other people. I'm like, hey, you never know what God has for us. At the time, she says her husband was earning about two thousand dollars a month driving for Uber. Aguilar didn’t work – she didn’t want to leave her kids alone. And says she was very sick. Depressed and having regular panic attacks. She’s asthmatic and diabetic, too, and says her blood sugar levels were elevated from stress. Their debts – owed for things like rent, food, and the car  –  had piled up. She says she later started using a food pantry, but didn’t know at the time the service existed. She gets emotional remembering her children not having enough. There was a time when we didn't have anything to eat, and a sister from church gave us a can of beans, chili beans. We ate that for a week. She applied for Calfresh, California’s food assistance program, an experience she says was humiliating. They were on the brink of homelessness when they were told they’d been selected for the guaranteed income pilot program. Her husband, newly a U.S. resident, thought it was a scam. He's like, no, maybe it's immigration or something, you know? But it was real. They put the money first toward rent. Then they paid off their debts, one by one, freeing up their budget. Aguilar says she started a business delivering retail goods. It brought in a little extra income, and she did something she says was a first – she took her son to the store to buy new shoes. We couldn't do that before. You got hand-me-downs and let's see and pray and hopes that it fits you, you know? She says within months, her panic attacks went away and her blood sugar stabilized. She started sleeping at night. Aguilar’s experience is similar to other participants in the pilot program and dozens like it across the country. Most recipients spend no-strings cash on food. Basic retail items like backpacks, shoes and haircuts. And transportation. Participants report not just their happiness improving, but their relationships, too. Khea Pollard, San Diego for Every Child director, says programs like this are scalable. Taxpayers are already spending the money. On child welfare, on prison . . . all of these systems that are connected to people just experiencing poverty . . . and it's quite expensive. Existing safety net systems could be reimagined, too, she says. Like distributing Calfresh as flexible cash. Guaranteed income allows families to use the money for whatever they need most. And  they don’t have to keep their income low to retain the benefit. Pollard says it’s a myth that direct payment recipients don’t continue to work. The majority of them are working already  . . . and as a result of this program have sought new opportunities. Now on track to becoming debt-free, Aguilar’s family has money, and hope, to invest in their futures. Still driving, her husband dreams of starting a dessert business, she says. Her son now plans to go to college, instead of straight to work. That got her daughter thinking about college for the first time, too. And herself. I'm like, you know what? Samuel goes to college. I go to college, too. He's like, ‘Yeah, mom, we're going to both go to college! . . . Pollard’s team is promoting the results of the pilot program with the hope of creating support for more like it. Katie Hyson, KPBS News.

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The Blue Water Film Festival returns for its fifth year on March 21st.

The four-day event encourages attendees to think about how climate change affects our planet.

Film critic reporter Beth Accomando has this preview.

Blue Water Film Festival will showcase the documentary Canary about Lonnie Thompson, a scientist who has been studying glaciers for half a century. These glaciers are our canary in a coal mine, our early warning system for the planet, and they're telling us there's serious danger here. Thompson is also a canary because he was one of the first people to witness the changing glaciers. Filmmaker Alex Rivest found the science and Thompson himself fascinating. ALEX RIVEST If you drill into the top of a glacier, straight down and get a cylinder of ice, you are basically looking back in time. Lonnie has ice from Tibet, which may go back as far as one to 1.5 million years, which contains an entire history of what the atmosphere was like in that part of the planet. A lot of us talk about climate change and what it's going to do to our future. And one of the things you realize is, with the melting glaciers, these records of our past are also disappearing. Canary is just one of a dozen environmentally conscious features and more than two dozens shorts screening at Blue Water Film Festival March 21st through 24th at multiple venues. Beth Accomando, KPBS News.
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That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Join us again tomorrow for the day’s top stories. I’m John Carroll. Thanks for listening and have a great Monday.