Maria Zavala, 37, keeps her family’s life in the corner of a hospital room. There are toys and yogurt cups and juice boxes. A small black duffel of clothes and a pair of flip flops sit near the visitor’s chair. For nearly three months, Zavala and her 7-year-old daughter Samara have been sleeping here instead of at home. They do not have one.
Since 2023, Zavala and her family have lived outside on the street, slept in their car and bounced from one hotel to the next before finally moving into the Salvation Army Harbor House a year ago. Now with Samara in the hospital, a new fight has begun.
Samara suffers from CLIPPERS syndrome, a rare inflammatory disease of the brain and spinal cord. Since June, she has endured three major spinal surgeries. The last one required implants and a halo crown, a metal frame screwed into her skull to keep her spine stable. Each day she pushes through therapy, walking a few steps or bending for a toy while her mother watches with pride and hope.
But outside the hospital walls, Zavala is battling another crisis. She says the city’s point system called Coordinated Entry, has denied her family permanent supportive housing multiple times without offering enough additional resources, despite two of her three children living with disabilities…