When help is needed, toss the talk and fill a bag.

By Brandon HENSLEY

Tom Provost is a man of many things: he’s an author, screenwriter, blogger and amateur chef. He’s also a man of the streets in the sense that he cares about the people he sees on the streets who are homeless and looking for care.

Not all of them want a place to shelter, he recognizes. He said he knows people who have told him that shelters have strict guidelines, and some homeless would rather stay on the outside. In that case, Provost thought, it still might be good to show a little grace. And use some bags to do it.

Provost is the founder of Bags and Grace, a start-up with currently nine members on the board whose aim is to donate bags with food and sundries to help those on the streets get through a day … or a week.

Provost began this journey a couple of years ago as he drove through the streets of LA noticing that every time he eschewed the freeways and took a new way to and from work, the severity of LA’s homeless population smacked him in the face.

At first, it seemed it was just him who was inspired to help people more than by just giving money.

“I’ve had experience with this stuff before and been told that giving money isn’t the best idea. You know, they’ll spend it on other stuff,” Provost said. “I still wanted to give, but I often found myself out of time or out of food whenever I was approached.”

Provost, who lives in Glendale, sat down and figured out a way to give back. His mission was clear: to provide tangible relief to homeless men and women, especially in a time of a crisis like COVID-19. He started putting together essentials in organic bags and, as he began handing them out around the city, he learned how to modify what to put in them. It couldn’t just be granola bars, after all.

“Just stuff I had in my car … like lip balm, moisturizer. Those kinds of things can go a long way,” he said. Each bag costs around $32. Provost also buys hoodies, which range in price from $12 to $14.

Provost said he learned to individualize each bag. If someone didn’t have many teeth, soft food should be included, not just beef jerky. Socks were also important because of chilly nights in LA.

“There was one man I used to give bags to. I got him an extra large hoodie, and he thanked me because he said no one ever gives him clothes that fit his size,” Provost remembered.

Eventually, Provost’s bag count climbed into the tens and he would go to encampments to hand them out. He also found a partner in Brett Feldman, director of Street Medicine at USC Keck School of Medicine. Together, Provost and the USC team can distribute bags in larger numbers to more people in need.

Provost recalls his upbringing in Galveston, Texas that helped him learn about hospitality.

“I was near the Bayou,” he said, referring to New Orleans. “There are a lot of problems with the South, which I’m not ignoring, but we certainly know how to take care of each other.”

Provost remembered a joke, that in LA if asked for directions and people don’t know, they’ll say sorry and go about their day. If Southerners are asked and they don’t know, they’ll send you to a relative who might know and, if they don’t, you’ll at least get a meal out of it.

Bags and Grace could always use more volunteers. But the goal, Provost said, is to reel in corporate sponsors. That would make life much easier for the team and benefit the community.

Provost started a blog on the website. He wrote about how the team handed out 50 bags in Hollywood. More help is always appreciated, he said.

To learn how to make a difference, visit bagsandgrace.com.

  Brandon Hensley