#29: Addiction Recovery, Faith, and Homeless Outreach in California | David Balch

What if your greatest moment of loss became the doorway to your life’s deepest purpose?

In this moving episode of the INNOVAT3 Podcast, host Ted Hahs sits down with David Bolch, a former attorney whose picture-perfect life collapsed under the weight of hidden addiction and devastating grief.

After the tragic death of his four-and-a-half-year-old son, killed by a drunk driver, David’s private battle with alcoholism collided with an unbearable spiritual crisis. That pain didn’t destroy him. It transformed him.

Today, David leads one of California’s most relational homelessness outreach programs in Salinas Chinatown. What began as a personal search for healing has grown into a mission to restore dignity, trust and belonging to people living on the margins.

He opens up about:

His hidden struggle with addiction while serving in the church.

How losing his son sparked a new level of faith and emotional honesty.

The importance of showing up consistently, not just offering charity.

What it means to truly walk with the unhoused, not just around them.

How stories, not services can shift systems and drive true change.

This isn’t just a story of recovery. It’s a call to reimagine how we serve, how we lead and how we love.

Show Notes:

Host: Ted Hahs.

Guest: David Bolch - Advocate, Father, Outreach Leader.

Location: Salinas Chinatown, California.

Topics:

Faith and addiction recovery in California.

Alcoholism and redemption stories.

Fatherhood and healing after grief.

Trauma-informed homelessness outreach.

Faith-based response to poverty and suffering.

Asset-based community development models.

Restorative justice and lived experience advocacy.

Building trust with unhoused communities.

Christian social justice in California.

Emotional healing through service.

Supporting mental health in street ministries .

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