Project Connect
Ending Homelessness in Maricopa County
Project Connect is part of our long-term, multi-faceted strategy to end homelessness in our community. Project Connect is based on a national model for quickly connecting individuals experiencing homelessness with vital human services.
Sign up to volunteer at a future Project Connect event here.
Project Connect 2013 Schedule
HOW IT WORKS:
Project Connect is a one-day outreach event that brings together more than 30 human service providers to one central location, increasing access to services for many individuals. Attendees receive a wealth of information, tools and resources to tackle the issues they face each day. Individuals can obtain food, clothing, identification documents and vital records, shelter, wellness checks, haircuts and employment services, among many other things.
June 2010 marked the two-year anniversary of Project Connect for VSUW. Over those two years, we coordinated 17 Project Connect events, serving 3,172 guests experiencing homelessness and engaging 102 different service providers in our work to end homelessness in Maricopa County.
Volunteers play a crucial role in ensuring Project Connect guests receive the adequate resources to meet their needs. Over the course of our first 17 events, we benefitted from the commitment and compassion of 2,398 volunteers who contributed 12,451 hours of their time to make Project Connect a success.
Volunteers work one-on-one with guests and escort them to the array of service providers available on site. In addition, volunteers are responsible for registering guests, serving food, distributing clothes and providing other event support.
We continue to partner with churches, businesses, government and the non-profit sector in an effort to hold one Project Connect event each month. Register for an upcoming Project Connect event here.
MORE WAYS YOU CAN HELP:
Project Connect host sites offer so much more than just space to hold an event. Depending on their available resources and capabilities, host sites contribute clothing, toiletries, food, tables and chairs, volunteers and more. Despite these generous donations, additional items are always needed, such as: razors, combs, new socks and underwear, hats, reading glasses, roll-on antiperspirant, women’s sanitary supplies and more. If you can help, please contact Erika Moore at emoore@vsuw.org.
