Last Saturday I spotted an open house invitation on
7,000 so Steph and I went today. A Jesuit volunteer named John showed us around. John was graduated from Santa Clara last year and decided to commit to working for a year as a Jesuit volunteer. He said he still trying to figure out what he's going to do when he finishes in August.
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Along with housing assistance and medical care from volunteer doctors, the
House of Charity provides clothing and food for the homeless and other people in need. Although they do prepare a small breakfast and a modest dinner, the main meal they provide is lunch during which they serve 150-200 people. The kitchen is the primary volunteer opportunity in which you can help prepare the food, serve it, and clean up afterwards.
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They also have 114 beds for men. It's a real interesting system. The men are awakened at 6:45 am. They turn in their pajamas, put their own clothes back on, retrieve their property and clothing from their locker, and go outside. The house opens at 7:30 am and the men who just went outside can come back in and sign up for a bed. Those that had a bed get priority, so as long as they sign back up every morning they can have a warm and safe place to sleep for as long as they want. Some people have done so for over a year. At 7:30 pm, those that have a bed lock up everything they have in a locker, take a shower, put on the pajamas provided for them and go to bed. No personal property whatsoever is allowed in the bed area to prevent disturbances as well as theft.
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