The Suburbs: The New Face of Bay Area Homelessness

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William Ware looks at his reflection in a broken shard of mirrored glass in an empty field near downtown Antioch. Homelessness has grown by about a third in Antioch, according to Contra Costa County Point-in-Time homelessness count in 2016. Photo by Devin Katayama/KQED

By Devin Katayama, KQED News Fix/The California Report
William Ware sits in a large empty field along the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, shaving his face using a broken mirror. He found himself here after a waterskiing accident in 2009 led to painkiller addiction, and a downward spiral ensued.

Ware lost his five-bedroom house in Brentwood, the cars and the boat. Losing his family hurt the most, he said. The names of his two kids — Michael and Alyssa — are tattooed on his arms. They no longer talk to him. His wife left him. Ware has been homeless in Antioch for about two years.

Read the complete story at KQED News Fix/The California Report.

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