WISEPlace - Santa Ana, California

Donna G.

The Wise Place/Safe Place all women's shelter gave me a new start. I will always be grateful to the organization and
the empowerment that they instilled in me giving the strengths to realize I am a strong women to be reckoned with.

Lost C.

If I could I would give Wiseplace 0 stars!! I called twice and left a very detailed voicemail speaking slowly and repeating my number twice. Both times, I never got a call back and my phone and voicemail are working perfectly fine.

Dream C.

I stayed at this place. When I went in, I asked how long I could stay there, after my time was up if I could sign up again and come back, etc. I was told that I could stay up to four months and I could put my name on again for the waitlist.

The time comes toward the end and I have been communicating with my case manager about my extended fourth month. She did not give any indication of any difficulty of getting my fourth month extension. However, about a week before my time was up, I was told that I could not get my fourth month stay. When I requested to be put on the wait list, then, I was told that I could enter into the program only once! I asked if that was only once in a lifetime and my case manager said, "Yea, pretty much." I was so close of filing for a discrimination charge against this agency because there were several ladies who have been in the program previously. I couldn't believe how she would lie through her teeth with a straight face!

Then, there was this other lady who always wanted to give me a hard time of how I spent my money. She liked to say that the site that I was shopping at was as expensive a Nordstrom Rack. But I didn't think Nordstrom Rack was an expensive place to shop at. I really felt like saying, "Listen! I'm at a homeless shelter right now, but you have no idea of how I grew up. Hands off; back off!" Then, things got even worse and one day she asked me how much money I had in my checking account and if I was going to pay my rent via my checking account. I should have told her "None of your damn business!" I told her that I wasn't going to pay my rent via my checking account but my savings account. Then, she wanted to know how much money that I had in my savings account. I told her. Then, she says, "Oh, so you have money to pay for your rent!" Uh, hello? I never said that I didn't have money to pay for my rent?
She ran my credit score and I told her I was really curious about my credit score because I never ran my credit score before. We looked in to my report and she said, "So, you never had any late payments and your credit score is good. I thought you had a reason to be worried!" I was just amazed! Who said that I was worried? I found it amazing how the workers would say that they were homeless too and they understood. But, I thought they were so judgmental. None of the workers had more education than I did, they didn't have better credit scores than I did, and they didn't have more savings/financial management skills than I did. So, I don't know why and on what they were trying to advise me about.

They had job trainings/counseling sessions. They encouraged the residents to go out and apply for jobs in person. I laughed at this. I used to be a manager for a financial management company and retail. We don't take resumes in person anymore. It's the 21st century! When I was working in retail. Some people would insist of leaving their resumes with us. Then, we would take it and shred it. I thought the job training/counseling that they provided was very dated.

The only reason that I give this place a two star is because this was a place I stayed at while I was homeless. However, I was not impressed by the services that they had to provide.

Kelly B.

Highly organized place for women that are homeless and jobless to get a new start. Very clean and lots of counselors for the residents to help them become a healthy individual. I was extremely impressed with the success they have in their program and the dedication of their staff.

Born A.

My review is with the shelter connected with the wise place building. They call it "safe place". I was there, to get shelter, but I wasn't prepared for the awful experiences I had there. Women with attitudes, filthy mouths, drug addicts, alcoholics, thieves, bullies trying to control and manipulate, cots with no personal space or privacy. Breathing fumes from the cleaners(guys)who mixed bleach and fabulosa and right at the bed time at night, when everything is closed up. Staff wasn't enforcing the rules. People were loud and out of control. All most of the women there did there (for months) is lay around, eat, and watch t.v.. Almost every day or night there was an angry outburst of yelling. People who threaten you don't get kicked out. Not a peaceful, safe place.

Tabetha B.

It's been about 8-9 years since I was kicked out of this place for my "non-compliance" of not being able to obtain full time work aka a 40 hr work week. Their expectations, well let alone the location of trying to obtain full time work is damn near next to impossible. The hub of their operation is smack dab in the middle of Santa Ana. If your bilingual and have a vehicle then your chances of not getting kicked out is better. But I was the select few that had a vehicle (not bilingual) and thus my time was up and out I went. The highlight(s) clean establishment, a gently used clothes closet, a decent set of counselors/case managers (at least when I was there) etc. The other highlight was a couple of women I met thru this program, I'm still in contact with them to this day. The number of success stories of getting a full time job, let alone graduating the program is very few and far between. No one during my stay made that happen. And WP gives you a month to get a FT job. A part time job will buy you more stay time which is probably the only reason I lasted a tad bit longer. There program is shifty and not all what it's cracked up to be. I've seen a few women kicked out during the night. I don't recall though, it could've been drug or alcohol related which is an obvious no-brainer for getting AWOL'ED for sure. But other scenarios with mine included were a little more questionable/a bit sketchy or maybe just a total package deal of unrealistic expectations. When I was eventually let go from the program; I slept in my car for the first few weeks in Santa Ana (but not too worry I always had their clothes closet to guide my way). And thus trying to come up with a plan B. There were women that called me shortly after they were kicked out (because I had a vehicle mainly) & asked me to drop them off at another shelter or to...somewhere else? For a few years after, WP would send me invites to their "twice" a year Christmas party. I eventually told them to lose my number and remove me from their email list.

Dylan M.

I was at Wiseplace transitional. No AC so the bedrooms start smelling like B.O. really fast. Bedrooms are small, 2 per room. beds are wonky. Showers are not private and are set up like a gym open shower room. (or prison showers). Dryer was broken for longest time so forced to wear dirty clothes. One meal per day, gross prison style cheap not nutritious. I was always starving there. They combine working residents on same floor as ssi recipients, some of whom are seriously personality disordered and have no boundaries, bully and/or copy you like that movie Single White Female. Alot of fighting in the small kitchen area where you cant cook but theres one microwave. A few of the residents who are black are RACIST and hate white people. Too many of the residents are like mental patient predator types who harass you. One nutty Mexican lady was stalking me and doing Santeria curses out in the parking lot like a total nut job. The chubby white girl with shoulder length black hair and way too short bangs was stalking me Single White Female style. Staff Demona is a bit legalistic. Anna Jackson is nice enough but lets harassment happen or is oblivious and perhaps in Pollyanna denial. My roommate was a nutjob who stayed in bed all day and didnt do anything and then stayed up all night keeping me up playing loud Jumanji drum music and tapping away on her laptop. She would parrot me, another personality disordered whack job. I've seen saner people in an actual mental institution. Also no confidentiality with the mail so whackjob psychopaths have access to your name and can steal your mail. If you like to be violated and harassed, this is the place for you.

Michelle D.

Wiseplace helped me when I was at the worst time of my life. I was homeless, no money and at the point where I wanted to end my life. Life was pointless to me. Wiseplace put me back together little by little. First I found people who cared. Then a place to lay my head for more then a night. After that God gave me a good job that I loved going to. Wiseplace thank you for all you do!