Garry Featherstone, Michael Ridley, and Julian von Loesch founded Homefree on Third and Rose Avenue in Venice Beach, California in October of 2021.

We see ourselves and those experiencing homelessness as a family. As a family, we are working together with the core values of Hope, Wellness, Voice & Choice, Respect, and Collaborative Relationships.

While we may have titles for the purpose of this website, we consider ourselves a group of equals all pursuing the same purpose; to end homelessness.

Garry Featherstone

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Founder and Program Director

Garry is from Venice. When he served home-cooked Christmas meals to those living on Third and Rose in December of 2019, he and Michael Ridley came up with the idea of Homeless Enterprise. Their plan was to sell low priced food (nothing more than $1) as well as serving free food.

The more he spent time on that street, the more he saw how much help was needed. Together with Michael Ridley, he took on the task to work with the homeless to clean up their own street and thus to help create a more healthy and hopeful atmosphere. At times, this entailed acting as a mediator, counselor, security guard, driving people to medical appointments, sweeping, raising money for food, etc.

As he kept hearing about people’s struggles to get services, medical care, and permanent housing, he decided to do something about it.

Michael Ridley

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Founder and Operations Manager

Michael is also from Venice and the co-founder of Homeless Enterprise. He arrived at Third and Rose even before Garry and had already started doing his best to help reduce the clutter, debris, and general chaos that often engulfed the street. Hearing so many heart breaking stories and seeing human tragedies play out in front of him on an almost daily basis, he decided that his involvement needed to go beyond the street and to help people get into permanent housing.

Julian von Loesch, Ph.D.

Founder and Director of Innovation

Having lived in Venice on and off for 19 years, Julian has seen the humanitarian crisis of homelessness in its streets getting worse and worse.

Doing his best to try and understand the situation to determine how to possibly help, he lived in a tent on Hampton Avenue in Venice for almost a year during COVID. It was this experience that led him to what he sees as his life’s calling, to help end homelessness.

It was on Third and Rose that he met Garry and Michael. Together, they founded Homefree to accomplish that goal.

Through his eclectic background and wide variety of experience, he hopes to help bring about innovative and effective solutions to help end this tragedy and to bring hope to the most vulnerable members of our human family ( more about Julian here).