Locals looking to get involved in nonprofit projects need look no further than a forum on Sept. 6, when the Church of the Red Rocks invited six women involved in projects to support local homeless people to speak.

Each project fills a role, and the women explained their services and needs.

“This is so incredibly exciting that so many people want to talk about the homeless situation,” said Laurie Moore, co-founder of the Sedona Area Homeless Alliance.

Angie’s House

Angie Lozano shared about the mission of Angie’s House, a nonprofit that provides help for individuals coping with addiction, mental illness and homelessness. People without homes can find immediate shelter through Angie’s House, and the nonprofit also helps those recovering from addiction with recovery homes as well as transitional housing.

“We do have a housing crisis,” Lozano said. “What I do is I put people in housing immediately. It may be a homeless shelter, or a shared facility, but it’s a place for them to feel safe.”

Angie’s House seeks donations of bedding and pillows, as well as food to stock the homes’ refrigerators. For more information about Angie’s House, visit angieshouseaz.com or call 301-2169.

The Castle

Jessie Russo helps maintain the Castle, a gathering and resource center in Sedona. With a living area, library, music art and games, the Castle provides a gathering space for anyone most evenings. Visitors can borrow clothes from the Castle’s wardrobe, and food and camping gear are also available.

The Castle is looking for a larger facility. At its current location, hours are limited to evenings, and Russo said she wants to be able to extend the Castle’s hours.

“If we could have a place where we could have some morning hours where people could come, share food, use the bathroom, maybe use the shower, look through clothing, whatever they need, that would be good,” Russo said.

The Castle accepts donations of clothes, body care products, blankets, sheets, towels, washcloths and non-perishable food. It also needs volunteers to help sort and organize donations.

For more information about the Castle, visit its Facebook page or call 821-8969.

Catholic Charities

Catholic Charities helps those experiencing homeless find permanent housing, if they wish. One of their homeless programs is Projects for Assistance in Transitioning out of Homelessness. Outreach teams seek out camping areas and give people supplies, such as camping gear, food and clothing.

Other outreach teams specifically assist homeless people with mental illness, as well as homeless veterans.

Catholic Charities seeks donations of socks, bottled water, sleeping bags and tents, as well as volunteers for its outreach teams.

For more information about Catholic Charities, visit catholic charitiesaz.org.

Old Town Mission

Kellie Wilson, executive director of Old Town Mission, said the nonprofit provides food for those in need, including daily lunch service and a food pantry.

Showers are available certain days of the week, as well as other necessities depending on donations. The mission also provides a number of periodic services, including a hair salon open twice a month, and monthly vision and legal clinics, free of charge.

“Part of our mission statement is building relationships,” Wilson said. “Old Town Mission is so much more than just food and clothing.”

Old Town Mission is selling its current building in Old Town Cottonwood and in the process of looking for a new, larger facility.

Wilson said Old Town Mission seeks donations for its thrift store, as well as volunteers. The mission also is raising funds to purchase a new freezer.

For more information about the mission, visit oldtownmission.org or call 634-7869.

Sedona Area Homeless Alliance

Moore shared about the connections SAHA makes with local homeless people.

SAHA helps distribute needed items, such as food, clothing and tents and sleeping bags, as well as provides a nighttime shelter during the winter so homeless people have a warm place to sleep when temperatures drop. She said many of the local homeless her nonprofit serves aren’t looking for permanent housing.

The alliance is raising funds to purchase a building to open a day services center.

Moore said the alliance also seeks volunteers to join its Board of Directors, as well as help in other ways.

For more information about the Sedona Area Homeless Alliance, visit sedonahomeless.org or its Facebook page.

Verde Valley Homeless Coalition

The Verde Valley Homeless Coalition operates mainly out of Cottonwood, providing shelter, as well as housing and employment help, to local homeless.

VVHC’s Front Door program helps connect housing services to homeless people who are seeking housing. The nonprofit also recently opened its drop-in day center, which is open from 1 to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and gives access to internet, computers, phones and other services.

During the winter, VVHC provides a nighttime shelter to host homeless people when the weather is below 35 degrees.

Avalon said the coalition needs volunteers for its programs,
particularly Front Door. They also seek donations of toilet paper, paper towels, toiletries and nonperishable food to stock its drop-in center.

For more information about the Verde Valley Homeless Coalition, visit verdevalleyhomelesscoalition.org or call 202-1176.