The notorious Skid Row is an epicenter of homelessness located in downtown Los Angeles. It’s also where one former gang member has chosen to change his ways by devoting himself to helping those in need.
Michael Lopez of Huntington Park in South L.A. had been to prison five different times for offenses related to gang activity. Because of his criminal background and substance abuse issues, he found himself homeless on top of that.
The first step on his road to recovery was to get an education, one very different from what he learned on the streets. Attending Argosy University, Lopez graduated in 2014, having earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in forensic psychology.
As for his next steps, Lopez wanted to give something back.
“I never forgot about the people who are still struggling,” Lopez said. “I asked God: ‘clean me up, clean me up and I'll do what you want me to do.’”
Lopez started working as a school psychologist at the El Rancho Charter School in Orange County (ECHO), helping students stay on the straight and narrow.
On a typical day, Lopez and volunteers from other community organizations, such as the Boyle Heights Bridge Runners, are busy helping the many homeless in Los Angeles, handing out clothing, food, and other necessities.
One single mother who has benefited from ECHO shared, “I’m not so fortunate to go and buy any and everything [my kids] want. This is making the kids happy.”
For Lopez, it has been an opportunity not only to turn his life around but also to make up for his past mistakes.
“We can change, people can change. You have to want it, you have to do the footwork,” Lopez says. “It brings me to tears sometimes because I wish my mom was here to see it.”
