Glendale police officer Mark Newborg came into contact with Matthew Pop in June 2019. Pop was homeless and had been living on the streets with his dog Buddy near Western Avenue and Flower Street.

Over the next several months, Officer Newborg learned that Pop had been in Glendale since the ’90s and used to work in the film industry doing studio lighting. Pop’s mother was diagnosed with heart disease and shortly after diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and needed 24-hour medical care. Pop hired a caregiver and cut his work hours to devote most of his time caring for his mother over the next 10 years. Sadly, in the early 2000s his mother passed away. Pop tried to return to the film industry, but was not able to find employment through his old connections. Eventually his family home was repossessed and he became homeless. Pop fell into a deep state of depression and struggled with substance abuse for the next 18 years.

After his initial contact with Pop, Officer Newborg continually met up with him over the next several months and offered him assistance through homeless outreach programs. Pop eventually decided to make some life changes and agreed to attend therapy. Officer Newborg drove Pop to his weekly therapy sessions at Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services. Staff at Didi Hirsch noticed that Pop was continuing to make progress in his sessions. They noted what a “pleasure” it was to work with Pop and that he added camaraderie to the group therapy sessions. During this time, Pop was hired to do maintenance work at a studio in Glendale. Pop’s employer was happy with his performance and regularly reported how well he was doing.

Pop was eventually provided with temporary housing at a shelter hosted by Hope of the Valley. After continued advocacy by Officer Newborg, a housing voucher became available for Pop. With this voucher in early May, after being homeless for 18 years, Pop was able to rent an apartment in the City of Glendale – not far from where he had been living on the streets.

Thanks are extended to Ascencia, Continuum of Care and Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services for working with Glendale officers in getting Pop the help he needed and in finding him a home.