Community Partners
Everyone loves cleaner parks. But our greatest value is delivered through The Neighborhood Hands Community: a growing collection of nonprofit, private, and public sector partners who together provide efficient and comfortable access to essential resources, services, and social capital for our unhoused and low-income participants. (Why is social capital important? Read here.)
City of San Jose's Cash 4 Trash Program - Mastercard Debits
BeautifySJ's Cash4Trash program provides pre-loaded debit cards (with minimal spending restrictions on items like alcohol and tobacco) from Mastercard as part of stipends participants at our program.
Downtown Streets Team - Transitional Employment and Case Management
Our no-barrier homeless outreach program provides an entry point (or step one) for those seeking a path back to long-term employment. Through our partners at Downtown Streets Team -- who provide steps two and three via transitional employment and case management services -- our participants have another path to exit homelessness.
Loaves & Fishes Family Kitchen - 112 Packaged Meals and Bottled Water
To face the enormous mountain that is climbing out of homelessness, one first needs energy. Enter the incredible Loaves & Fishes Family Kitchen. This inimitable nonprofit partner delivers 112 packaged meals and cases of water to our program every single program.
Open Doors To Future Possibilities - Mental Health Consulting and Socks
Open Doors to Future Possibilities offers mental health consulting at every program. Through consistency, listening, and relationship formation, they build trust and rapport with residents whose experiences on the streets often leave them with trauma and other mental health challenges that should not be faced alone.
Good Karma Bikes - Free Bikes and Repairs
Access to transportation is the single biggest factor helping people hold a job, keep appointments, and in many cases, avoid homelessness. So Good Karma Bikes (GKB) provides free bike repairs (and occasionally, free bikes!) to our neighbors every program.
Left photo below: Joe recently brought GKB a bike that was too far gone to save, so they hooked him up with a Specialized Rockhopper!
Right photo below: Richard recently had a Cannondale with a broken derailleur hanger, so GKB granted him a refurbished Specialized Hardrock! If Joe and Richard hadn't met GKB at our party-in-the-park, they likely wouldn't have a cost-effective way to start traversing their respective paths to stable living.
Left photo below: Joe recently brought GKB a bike that was too far gone to save, so they hooked him up with a Specialized Rockhopper!
Right photo below: Richard recently had a Cannondale with a broken derailleur hanger, so GKB granted him a refurbished Specialized Hardrock! If Joe and Richard hadn't met GKB at our party-in-the-park, they likely wouldn't have a cost-effective way to start traversing their respective paths to stable living.
Vibes & Smiles - Clothes, Hygiene Packs, Dental Products, Music, and More
Vibes & Smiles provides a plethora of clothes (including suits from Indochino!), hygiene packs, feminine hygiene and dental products, snacks, and loads of positive energy every program. Our "party-in-the-park" simply would not be the same without them!
Project WeHope's Dignity On Wheels - Mobile Showers
Joining us every program as of August 2024, WeHope's Dignity On Wheels provides mobile showers for participants.
Team Jesus - Light Breakfast, Coffee and Spirituality
Regulars at Neighborhood Hands since early 2020, Team Jesus is a staple at our program. Their light breakfast is legendary and spirituality second to none!
Unhoused Response Group (URG) - Clothing, Books, Batteries, and More
Unhoused Response Group provides a plethora of clothing, reading materials, batteries, and other essentials, as well as top-tier advocacy for those who want it.
Santa Clara County Public Defender Office - Legal Services
Santa Clara County PDO provides legal services (including on-site expungement!) which remove barriers to housing and long-term employment for our participants.
Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services - Harm ReduQion Project
This Santa Clara County partner provides harm reduction services for people experiencing substance use disorder, including free narcan, naloxone, training on how to use it, and more.
American Assistance - Free Phones and 4G Service
Available to anyone on government benefits -- Medical, SSI, CalFresh, etc. -- this service is a literal lifeline for neighbors on the housing waitlist! (If someone has lost or can't afford a phone and service, they can't be processed in Santa Clara County's housing system. The lack of a phone is a very real barrier to housing!)
Adopt-A-Park and Home Depot - Tools and Resource Fair Infrastructure
|
|
We can't clean the park without park tools! Big thanks to the City of San Jose's Adopt-A-Park Program and Home Depot for providing everything from shovels to rakes to tables and more.
Noah's NY Bagels - 200 Bagels
Instead of throwing away what's left at the end of the day on Friday, we happily re-route Noah's leftovers straight to the park on Saturday morning!
White Cap - Pallets of Bottled Water
If you're unsheltered, you don't have easy access to fresh drinking water. So White Cap has stepped up and now donates pallets of bottled water so our unhoused volunteers can take bottles to-go after the program.
Tone Yao Lee Homeless Project - Assortment of Essential Donations
Joining us quarterly, the Tone Yao Lee Homeless Project provides youthful energy and an assortment of essential donations, including sleeping bags, care packages (hygiene supplies, tampons, socks, underwear, nonperishable foods, etc.), shoes, and clothing.
Park Impact
While we are unabashedly a people first organization, our community takes great pride in restoring unmaintained parks and surrounding areas. See below for a few before, during, and after pictures from recent program dates at Guadalupe Gardens.
On a typical Saturday at our new location, we clear an estimated 6500 lbs of fire hazardous debris and trash from Guadalupe Gardens and surrounding areas, something the City of San Jose's Parks, Recreation, and Neighborhood Services Department can't manage due to budget cuts. As of November 2023, we have cleared an estimated 620,000+ lbs of park waste around Columbus Park and Guadalupe Gardens.
A special thanks to Swenson Builders, Laine Equipment Rentals, and Bill's Brush Works, who provide operations support every program! And we can't forget BeautifySJ, Adopt-A-Park, Home Depot, and Target, who also provide tools and other park supplies!
A special thanks to Swenson Builders, Laine Equipment Rentals, and Bill's Brush Works, who provide operations support every program! And we can't forget BeautifySJ, Adopt-A-Park, Home Depot, and Target, who also provide tools and other park supplies!
