Every Sunday, Lunches 4 Bunches assembles bag lunches given out at the Santa Monica Access Center at 5th and Olympic. Recently UUSM volunteers also began making lunches at the facility on Wednesdays.
Last month, Rebecca Haggerty informed the congregation about changes at the Access Center and how it affected our lunch ministry. On July 1, the cities of Santa Monica and Los Angeles along with LA County defunded the county-wide Access Center system in favor of new models. Santa Monica is building a “housing-centered system of care” which does not include drop-in sites for showers, laundry, or a bag lunch.
The People Concern, a local non-governmental organization, was contracted to provide those services and more at the Access Center. They are keeping the Center open with private funding, skeleton staffing, more volunteers, and donations such as our lunches. Monday to Friday, they will offer showers, laundry, lockers, bag lunch (up to 150/day), mental health counseling, medical clinic (Venice Family Clinic satellite), and a clothes closet. The existing mail program is winding down.
UUSM volunteers gather at the Center each Wednesday and make lunches for Wednesdays and Thursdays. Besides us, a Monday team of long-time volunteers make lunches for Mondays and Tuesdays. Fridays, the Karsh Center (part of Wilshire Blvd Temple in Koreatown) delivers lunches prepared in their DPH-certified kitchen.
Consider joining us, even if once a month. The work is simple with music and lively conversations: make sandwiches, assemble the lunches, and store them in the cooler for later distribution. There is a one-hour People Concern volunteer orientation on Zoom. On your first day, you’ll sign a waiver and get oriented to the kitchen. The next orientation is mid-October in the evening. Please let Charles Masten know if you’re interested at hunger@uusm.org and he’ll send you the Zoom link when it is scheduled.
The Hunger Task Force can always be reached at hunger@uusm.org.
