What We Do
Daily Meal Distribution
OVER 200,000 MEALS SERVED SINCE NOVEMBER 2019
Our volunteers prepare and distribute 100-200+ meals every single day of the year.
Many meals are prepared in the homes of volunteers who have passed their Food Safe Certification and we have a kitchen team preparing hot meals two days a week out of a local church kitchen. Sometimes our distribution volunteers will pay out of pocket or the community donates to purchase pizzas or other takeout treats to distribute on special occasions. Our unhoused neighbors appreciate the diversity and quality of the food we prepare! Often, this is the only meal they eat each day.
During distribution, we have the opportunity to check in with folks, learn about specific needs they have, document encounters with law enforcement and government officials, and get their input on our operations.
If you are interested in volunteering to prepare or distribute meals, please visit our Events & Volunteering page.
Supply Drives, Donations, & Events
We host donation collection events once a month and our volunteers take them directly out to those living on the streets. We often coordinate the distribution of these much needed supplies with the above-mentioned meals. Our donations are a combination of purchased supplies and items from members of the public just like you. Through a partnership with Bombas, we are able to supply thousands of pairs of new socks each year.
In November and December we host large holiday events where 150-175 hot holiday meals are prepared and served by volunteers. At these events an abundance of supplies are available for our unsheltered neighbors including items that are crucial for staying warm in the rain and freezing temperatures.
We also supply hundreds of tents, tarps, sleeping bags, blankets, and other shelter-related items each year.
Our supplies are coordinated based on the needs of our unsheltered community and the donations we receive. If you’re interested in donating new supplies or new/gently used clothing, please contact us.
If you are interested in volunteering at an upcoming event, please visit our Events & Volunteering page.
Auto Repair Services
Many of our unhoused neighbors live in cars, trucks, and RVs, and often these vehicles need repairs that their owners simply can’t afford.
People who must use their vehicles as their homes are at constant risk of having their homes towed. When this happens, the person can rarely afford to get their vehicle out of impound, and they are suddenly left without their possessions, forced to live on the street.
Whenever possible, if we are able to acquire funding, we assist unhoused people with free basic auto repairs so that their vehicles can continue to operate and the threat to their health and wellbeing decreases.
Health & Wellness
Our health and wellness volunteers are passionate about health justice and are devoted to providing care and aid to our target populations.
Our work includes connecting people with health resources, and providing first aid/wound care, herbal remedies, and holistic services. At our past wellness events we have also teamed up with local herbalists and other organizations such as North Bay SolidariTea who provided our people with herbal consultations and tea donations.
Stimulus Check Sign-Ups
To this date we have helped infuse over $120,000 directly into the unsheltered population of Sonoma County by facilitating sign-ups for COVID-19 stimulus checks. These checks are provided to every citizen of the United States, but many unsheltered people do not have internet access, nor have they been reached out to by any authorities to help them receive their governmental benefits. We remedy this situation by hosting sign up events as needed.
Encampment Clean-Ups
Housed people often take for granted the ability to dispose of waste and have it picked up once a week at the curb. Our unsheltered neighbors do do their best to keep their encampments clean and tidy, however they are rarely provided adequate dumpsters, bins, sanitary stations, and other necessities, which makes this a nearly impossible task.
We provide garbage bags on a regular basis. We use our connections with the unsheltered community to coordinate keeping encampments as orderly as possible. We have collaborated with Clean River Alliance and the City of Santa Rosa in the past for trash removal and disposal as well as Culvert Opps who has provided, free of charge, the use of their industrial dump trailer.
Warming Tents
As temperatures fall near freezing and below, our unsheltered neighbors undergo distinct health risks related to exposure. Given that there are routinely inadequate centers and spaces to keep warm, we have provided regionally-targeted warming tents to our community. These tents were erected prior to the cold weather event in question, heated via a single propane heater, and taken down when the event has passed. Given that we are pretty cold during the process of putting them up, we can only imagine how difficult a night can be without appropriate sheltered warmth.
Advocacy Work
In addition to all our work on the street, we have volunteers involved in advocating and bringing the voices of those currently experiencing homelessness forward to City and County boards, committees and working groups such as the Coordinated Entry Advisory Committee, HMIS Data Committee, Street Outreach Standards Group, and the Lived Experience Advisory & Planning (LEAP) Board. The purpose of this board is to advise Sonoma County on homeless-related programs, policies and how to spend money targeted for homeless services. They advise and plan with the Sonoma County Homeless Coalition Board and homeless service agencies on how to improve homeless programs, services, shelters, and housing.
We are Coordinated Entry Access Partners and guide individuals to access points and resources. The Coordinated Entry System is designed to efficiently match people experiencing homelessness to available supportive housing programs.
Many of our volunteers have real-world experience that is sorely lacking in these political discussions and we aim to advocate for those whose voices are rarely heard. We have a proven track record of success in steering local policy towards a more humane, compassionate, and kind future.
We provide assistance and support when camp clearings are initiated by the City or County government officials and law enforcement. This includes assisting with documents for requests for shelter or reasonable accommodation requests based on disability. For those that are not offered reasonable accommodation we assist them with relocating so that they do not lose all of their belongings during the forced clearing.
Our team has provided information and declarations related to violations of the Vannucci Injunction and the Martin v. Boise ruling.