I’m Tyson Powers, Program Officer at Hospitality House. I oversee Hospitality House’s programs which ensure our guests and homeless individuals are brought into a circle of care and provided with food, shelter, and case management services.
This week I wanted to tell you some exciting news! After being suspended for two years due to the pandemic, our kitchen volunteer program is back! Starting today, April 1st (no foolin’!), we will be welcoming volunteers back into our kitchen to prepare meals for the 80 individuals currently in our care. Cook groups plan their own menus, purchase the groceries, prepare the meal in our commercial kitchen, and assist in packaging the meals for transportation to various locations we are serving. Many of our volunteers have supported us financially during the suspension of this program, and we’re delighted to be welcoming them back into the kitchen!
In the 2020-2021 fiscal year, Hospitality House provided 84,664 meals to those in need. This was more than double the number of meals provided in the 2019 calendar year, resulting from the expanded shelter operations we adopted at the beginning of the lockdown. Because of the increase in meals and the rising food costs, Hospitality House’s monthly food costs have tripled since the start of the pandemic. Our volunteers’ willingness to donate groceries and cook time is hugely impactful in helping us stretch our budget further.
Right now, we are looking for additional individual volunteers or volunteer cook groups to cook for our guests. Volunteer slots are available Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 9:30 am -11 am for lunch or 1 pm-3 pm for dinner.
Additionally, Hospitality House is currently looking for a few volunteers to help with grocery shopping. Grocery shopping is done daily, Tuesday-Saturday. Volunteers in this position are provided with a grocery list and asked to purchase the items on the list. The volunteer will deliver the groceries to the kitchen to be prepared by our chef. Volunteers will be reimbursed for these special grocery runs; however, any volunteer who would like to sponsor a dinner or grocery run is greatly appreciated.
If you’re interested in helping prepare meals, organizing a cook group of your own, or grocery shopping for Hospitality House, please reach out to our development department at (530) 615-0852.
We want to thank all of our community members who have been giving financially in place of donating goods during construction at Utah’s Place. However, we do need a select few items presently:
- NEW Pillows – URGENT NEED
- Twin-sized bedding, including blankets, sheets, pillowcases, and quilts.
To increase safety during construction, donations are no longer being accepted at our shelter. Please drop off your items Monday – Friday, 8:30 am – 5 pm at our admin office, located at 488 Crown Point Circle, Suite 100, Grass Valley, Ca 95945 (the admin office is closed on all major holidays and weekends). 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!