VENTURA, Calif. (AP) - A Southern California man's tradition of handing out cash totaling $1,000 to homeless men was broken when he was turned away by a shelter on Christmas Day.

Harvey Youngman says he felt dejected driving home from the Ventura County Rescue Mission's facility in Oxnard with a bag of unopened cards stuffed with $20 bills.

The Ventura County Star reports (http://bit.ly/WQidgF) Youngman had been bringing money-filled cards to the mission for about a decade. However, the shelter's new director John Saltee said the money can be tempting for the men who are recovering from drug or alcohol addiction.

Saltee drew the line when a man who received one of Youngman's $20 bills last year got drunk and left the recovery program.

Youngman says he'll find something to do with the cards.

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