FESCO's AtticFESCO's AtticIf your attic is getting crowded, perhaps you would consider donating furniture and other items for the shelter or for families who are trying to move into their own homes.
FESCO also needs donations of food. And there are always projects for volunteers.
Want to donate money to FESCO's programs?
The following items or services are needed for the FESCO Thresholds Programs.
All items should be clean and in good-to-excellent condition.
Items may be dropped off at our warehouse at 15816 Hesperian Blvd., San Lorenzo. Please call 510-886-5473 for warehouse hours.
Because FESCO operates 24 hours/day, year-round, there are many opportunities for generosity! We can always use the following items:
We appreciate your donations of supplies, clothing, furniture and household items, as well as food. PLEASE look at your collection of really good stuff and ask if these are items a homeless family needs or has room for. Exercise equipment and skis, for example, are not high on the needs list. Neither are large appliances, broken things that just need a little fixing, or worn and soiled clothing.
If someone didn’t buy it at the flea market or garage sale, there’s probably a good reason. It costs FESCO precious dollars to carry things to the dump that are not usable as-is.
Please bring donations to Banyan House, 21568 Banyan St, Hayward.
Please call in advance so that staff will know to expect you: 510-538-0321. We will be happy to provide a donation receipt.
Please contact Ashley DaSilva at FESCO for more information at 510-886-5473 or adasilva@fescofamilyshelter.org.
The FESCO volunteer application is available in two formats — Microsoft Word and Adobe Reader (PDF). Volunteers who will interact with children are required to get fingerprinted. FESCO reimburses for LiveScan fingerprinting; clearance takes about 4 weeks.
FESCO has started a collaboration with another wonderful nonprofit called Be a Mentor. Mentoring involves the match of a responsible and caring adult volunteer from the community with a student. A mentor is willing to give extra time to being a friend, answering questions, and providing guidance. Mentors come from a variety of occupations, serve without pay, and give personal time to care for a student. They are a role model, advocate, and resource. The purpose of the mentoring relationship is to help students develop their full potential, both in and outside of the classroom. The mentor's role is to provide academic help, career guidance, emotional support, and social skills. Together, mentors and students can set goals, explore career options, share life experiences, and participate in leisure activities. The mentors and students complete an application, are interviewed and attend a program training, which includes resource materials and tips on successful mentoring. Mentors and students are then matched and the relationship commences.
Through FESCO's partnership with Be a Mentor, FESCO supporters can enroll in the program and be assigned a student who is a FESCO resident or alum. This program is targeted toward Hayward middle school students, children with an open Child Protective Services case, and children with a family member in prison. If you are interested in becoming a mentor to a child who has experienced homelessness, go to http://www.beamentor.org/fesco for more information.
Qualifications: Mentors must be fingerprinted for a background check and must complete a tuberculin test. Thereafter, the match is supported by Be A Mentor Program. The time commitment is four to six hours per month for one year.
Join FESCO’s Host Committee for the Fall Raffle in October by using your social network to sell raffle tickets. There will be several prize packages including ones for sports lovers, kids at heart, food connoisseurs, travel, and relaxation. We will start selling the tickets (both in person and online) towards the end of August/beginning of September. There are a variety of ways you can help including:
We are holding our Fall Raffle in October and would like to have the drawing posted on YouTube for everyone to see. We would like to have short clips about our organization, interviews with our clients, tours of our facilities, the works! We need someone (or a team) to help us put this together, film it, and post it.
***This could be a great opportunity for someone to add a piece to their portfolio and get a professional reference.***
From time to time we need people who are good at researching and negotiating with vendors, people with trade skills (plumbing, electrical, carpentry, HVAC, etc.), people who like to plan and oversee projects, and people who are willing to lift, haul, paint, and hammer as needed. No need to attend meetings or commit to a regular schedule – when we have a need, we send out an e-mail to the team and any team member who has the time and the right skills can volunteer for that project.
We are fortunate enough to receive fresh food and produce from a variety of organizations in the area that need to be picked up during the morning. If we had someone who was available to pick it up weekly for us and bring it to our facilities it would be a great way for our residents to get . This may also include cutting up the produce and helping us freeze it for future use; if your time allows.
We can serve up to 28 dinners a night. Our staff spend a significant portion of their day preparing the meals. If anyone is available on a weekly/biweekly basis to help with food preparation it would make a significant difference in how the staff allocate their time.
FESCO has a great story to tell. If you work or have training in marketing, public relations, advertising, broadcasting, or journalism, you can help up tell our story to the world. We want to develop a team of professionals who can advise, assist, and connect us on planning and executing a marketing and public relations strategy. The team would meet as needed for planning and brainstorming. We would then turn to team members with particular expertise for assistance as needs arise, working around your schedule.
We have a warehouse full of items that supporters have donated for our families – furniture, clothing, housewares, and more. We need people to sort and organize items, accept and log incoming donations, and assist clients in selecting items for their new homes. This is a great project to do with a friend or a group of friends. While committing to a monthly shift is of greatest value because it enables us to open the warehouse for pick-ups and drop-offs, one-time volunteers can also be of great assistance for sorting and organizing.
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