My name is Sarah, and I am the victims of crime case manager here at Hospitality House. I work specifically with the homeless victims of crime, which is a common occurrence for a lot of our homeless population. I also assist our guests with qualifying for social services, benefits, and eventually getting them into independent housing. At Hospitality House, we make every effort to guide our guests in their transition from homelessness to self-sufficiency and housing.

For this week’s news, I want to touch on a story of a man whom I will call Tom. In the past, Tom has suffered from alcoholism. Tom has always been a hard worker, but with his past traumas and current stressors he felt alcohol was his only escape. After months of being homeless and living out of his vehicle, Tom heard of Hospitality House and figured he would look into what resources were available. Tom was given case management services, housing search assistance, and transportation to and from his work. Tom was feeling stuck in life and with a little help, he was given the push he needed in the right direction. Since arriving here, a little less than three months ago, Tom has been able to keep his position at his job and found housing on a local farm where he will be able to put his many years of handywork and knowledge with horses to work. Tom has been such an inspiration to everyone at the shelter as his hard work and perseverance continues to shine. If anyone has job openings or housing options for our other guests, please feel free to reach out to me, Sarah at (530) 615-6707. Thank You.

Normally at this time, we thank all the cook groups who came and cooked over the last week, but to keep our shelter safe, our cooking groups are supporting our meals by donating financial support and food. Chef Sandro and Chef Assistant Gina are safely cooking all meals instead. We’d like to thank Alta Sierra Latter-Day Saints, Twin Cities Church, Holy Trinity Church – Episcopal: Historic Faith for Modern People, Mountain Stream Meditation, The Home Team and Abundant Life Community Church, SPD Markets and BriarPatch Food Co-op for all their help. To everyone who donated our most needed items last week, thank you as well!

And the needs of the shelter for this week are:

• Blankets and sheets, twin size
• Bottled water
• Bras, all sizes
• Duffle bags and backpacks
• Men’s and Women’s deodorant
• Men’s underwear/boxers, sizes M, L, and XL
• New pillows
• PPE masks and gloves (please keep donating these)
• Shampoo and conditioner, travel size
• Women’s underwear, sizes S, M, and L

Please drop off urgent items or mail them to Utah’s Place, located in Brunswick Basin, past the DMV, at 1262 Sutton Way in Grass Valley. For a tax receipt, please ring the doorbell and wait for someone to come outside to assist you. We greatly appreciate the community’s help at such times of uncertainty. In the words of Utah Phillips, “If we all stick together, we’ll get what we need.” Thank you

Your donations provide hot meals and a warm place to sleep this holiday season. Click Here to Donate>