In Memory of Gary Bouchard: 1948 - 2010
Originally from Caribou, Maine, just south of the Canadian border, Gary Bouchard moved to San Francisco after being stationed there while in the military. He initially worked as a merchant seaman, but a divorce and alcohol problems drove him to the streets for parts of an18-year period between 1971 and 1988.
After completing a rehabilitation program in 1988, the newly sober Bouchard moved to Cupertino to help a friend remodel a large home. He lived in a small trailer at the site for two years. Afterward, Bouchard stayed in the area, earned his general contractor license and worked on his own. But then, poor bookkeeping skills and health issues including a heart attack forced him to give up his trailer and to move into his truck. At the time, he did not know of West Valley Community Services (WVCS) and relied on his wits and previous street experiences to get by. He parked his truck, for instance, at his job sites and used showers in the bathrooms of those sites.
Without a place to live, Bouchard relied on agencies such as the Salvation Army for food, and went to a Veterans Administration hospital when he got sick. For Gary, the hardest thing about being homeless was the uncertainty. Gary became homeless for the second time in his life in 2001, and turned to WVCS for help. WVCS has worked since 1973 to help individuals such as Gary find their way back and in many cases, turning lives like Gary’s into a success story.
After learning of WVCS through a friend, he moved from the streets to a WVCS's Rotating Shelter Program. He then moved into WVCS transitional housing, then to the agency's Vista Village affordable housing complex and lived there for several years eventually becoming their onsite property manager, a job and a home he held onto for 6 years until his retirement in 2009 Gary has been an integral part of the WVCS family and will be truly missed.
[WVCS] have been very, very good to me. I remember when I first arrived, a man named Tom welcomed me, smiled and shook my hand. It made me feel like I had some dignity and was respected. And a smile, it does a lot." - Gary Bouchard