On a bright, sunny afternoon, we had over 50 volunteers helping yesterday with our 226 guests (including 31 new ones) at our bustling community center. With guidance from chef Melody, our regular volunteers and new volunteers including those from Cal State Long Beach made and served beef macaroni, vegetables, fruit salad and sweets. Many of our guests also made use of our computer center and consulted with the free phone representatives who were on-hand.
Thank you to CityHeART, Board member Jorge Pantoja and his friends, Barya Hoel, and others who came and donated clothes and shoes for our guests. Many were grateful to have clean clothes to change into, especially jackets to keep warm and newer shoes to replace worn out ones. The gentleman in the photo was happy to be given a jacket.
During the past week, staff and I have been helping clients move closer to finding stable housing. We assisted several clients with apartment searches and their rental applications, including a woman and her 19-year-old son who is going to college. Driving around and making calls are both time-consuming; however, the process of securing an apartment becomes even more challenging as many of our clients have less than stellar financial histories and few, if any, personal and professional references.
We are grateful that we have been able to help several clients secure a place to live. Thank you to Betsy Yeh of The Estate Sisters for again allowing us to pick up gently used furniture, including five beds that were delivered to clients last week.
Thank you for your support which has allowed us to help stabilize the lives of those who are experiencing homelessness.
Please mark your calendar for Saturday, April 27th when we will hold our annual dinner benefit and silent auction. This year, we will be honoring Brenda Caloca of Supervisor Janice Hahn’s office and Temple Israel.