SafeHouse of the Desert

Our staff is so creative, what a nice way to beat the heat with pipe cleaner bouquets. It brightens up the kids rooms and allows creativity to flow.

This weekend SITE of Southern California had their annual poker tournament and fundraiser at the Tommy Bahama Miramonte. Their partners donated sheets, bedding and pillows to us for our housing programs and we will also benefit from donations made on opportunity drawings. Thank you so much to Colleen and her partners at SITE, it was wonderful working with you all again.

Some of our residents got their "Happy" on over the holiday weekend with a trip to see Despicable Me 4. Outings for our kids are a huge part of the programs. Our youth love experiencing new things. They go to the movies, bowling, water parks, mini golf, attend plays, sporting events etc. If you would like to make a donation towards some summer fun, please contact Julie Hale at [email protected].

Our youth at Harrison House participated in an art therapy program last week and used colors and geometrical shapes to express themselves. Art has always been a large part of our programming at both the youth shelter and the Transitional Living Program. If you have a talent you would like to share, we love volunteers. Reach out to [email protected]

Our awesome Anti-Human Trafficking Team and RCAHT Response Team Advocate Corina participated in the 3rd Annual Magdalena's Daughter's Anti-Human Trafficking Walk for Youth this week. They love interacting with the community and raising awareness at the same time. If you would like more information on our Anti-Human Trafficking Program, please contact us at [email protected]

Thank you to Brenda Lu from Keenan for art supplies and a generous donation of $2,000 towards SafeHouse of the Desert programs. Brenda and Keenan have been very active and enthusiastic in keeping our programs full of art supplies so that our youth can participate in art therapy. Their contribution will keep us painting and creating until the end of the year!

SafeHouse attends many community events to provide youth and with information on our mental health, shelter, street outreach and transitional living programs. We love seeing the kids and hope they love seeing us.

We were so honored to have been chosen by the Desert Elite Referral Partners for their annual SERVE day. Their skilled group of laborers from local businesses including; plumbers, electricians, landscaping, carpet cleaning, remediation, door and window repair and painting fixed and repaired items at SafeHouse of the Desert shelter and Harrison House Transitional Living Program on Saturday. Both programs looks so great! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for dedicating your day to us!

We love the Madison Club. Thank you so much for stopping by. In-kind donations no matter how big or small really assist us in spending those dollars on other needs within our programs, such as staffing, counseling or utilities.

Special thanks to Palm Springs Community School who dropped off blankets with candy inside for our youth at Harrison House Transitional Living Program. We were chosen to be part of their Heartwarming Project. Thank you so much to all of you!

One of the really wonderful things about the Coachella Valley is the partnerships we have established with other Non-Profits. Craig Magaw from AAP Food Samaritans worked with one of our Harrison House Transitional Living residents, Mariah. She created an original art piece for his Step and Repeat backdrop that he used on his Charity Night at Fashion Week El Paseo. It featured, AAP and SafeHouse and she even got to meet the designer for the night, Scooter LaForge. Thank you Craig and AAP for your friendship and the opportunity for Mariah to experience collaboration and the excitement of fashion week.

What an incredible Friday night we had at Fashion Week El Paseo, opening night with Max Mara fashions! Thank you so much to Palm Springs Life Magazine and Susan Stein, Bobbi Lampros for your sponsorship and giving heart, Candy "Sunshine" Glickman for your unwavering support, promotion and guest list, Yamir Perez of Cake and Cakes who graciously donated our after party treat, Trio Restaurant for the fantastic food and service staff, our volunteers and to our attendees at the Breakfast at Tiffany's exclusive tent event. Your dedication and support of SafeHouse of the Desert and its programs is amazing. We hope you enjoyed your evening and look forward to seeing you again next year!

It is always nice to highlight our programs through other avenues like tv news media and newspapers. Having that coverage assists us in outreach and education, especially to other communities in our county that we may not have regular contact with.

Last week, our Street Outreach Team was highlighted by the Spanish news station Noticias. Alyssa explained how we provide survival kits, education, referrals and assistance to local school youth on their campuses and how we work with entrenched street. If you know someone between the ages of 11-24 who is living on the streets, please reach out to our team for assistance at [email protected].

We would like to give a shout out to Brenda Liu and Keenan who supplied us with over 700 hygiene packs and blankets. These will be placed into our survival kits and handed out by our Street Outreach Team to youth on the streets. We always happy to accept your donations of hygiene items, blankets, socks, gift cards, shampoo/conditioners, soap or chapstick. All of these items are high on our list to hand out to youth and young adults who are living on the streets.

We are so grateful for our partnership with the Living Desert. Yesterday Lizzie and her team of volunteers planted a certified butterfly and bee habitat in our quad area at the shelter. Their master gardener created a wonderful plan of plants that are natural to the desert and will attract butterflies into our garden. The stones that line our new path through the garden were painted by past and present youth clients who have participated in our art classes and provide a cheery and inviting area for our youth to walk and reflect. We cannot wait to see how the plants grow and mature and are excited to see how many butterflies the habitat will attract over time.

We are always happy to invite members of our community in to share their talents and knowledge. Last week, Craig Gordon of Craig Gordon Coaching began a series of life skills classes for our youth at Harrison House. All of our youth were excited to attend and gain insight into improving resumes, interview skills and how to interact with potential employers. We would like to thank Craig for his generosity and for giving his time to teach this series.

SafeHouse is very excited to announce that we have been chosen to be one of six benefiting charities for Fashion Week El Paseo. We are featured on opening night and will be holding an exclusive Breakfast at Tiffany's cocktail event prior to the fashion show, featuring food and specialty bar by Trio, entertainment by Keisha D and a signature dessert by Cake and Cakes.

The tickets are selling out fast! You do not want to miss out on the fun and excitement of one of the desert's signature events. You must purchase your tickets through SafeHouse in order to enter the Breakfast at Tiffany's cocktail event. Don't hesitate, get your tickets now. Julie Hale, [email protected] or 951-351-4418 ext. 112

Thank you to everyone in the community who attended our first Anti-Human Trafficking Conference yesterday. It was a wonderful success. Attendees were able to speak with staff from SafeHouse, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, Barbara Sinatra Children's Center and Reach about how we each serve victims of human trafficking and how to identify youth who may be trafficked.

We hope to see those of you who were not able to make it at our next conference in the upcoming months. Dates TBA soon.

As co-founders of the Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, SafeHouse has always had an interest in youth who are potential victims or current victims of trafficking. We are so excited to partner with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, Rebirth Homes, Barbara Sinatra Children's Center and REACH to hold our first community panel of the year at our SafeHouse of the Desert Campus on Thursday, January 29th, 2024 from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn how to identify, report and prevent human trafficking. If you are interested, please reach out to Kiany Zaldivar at [email protected] to confirm your seat at the table.

We wish you all a Happy New Year and look forward to seeing you at our events and in the community in the upcoming year. Thank you for your support!

These little ladies from Troop 492 dropped off Christmas donations to make the holidays a little brighter. Thank you so much for your good thoughts, we love when the Girl Scouts come by and visit.

Thank you to Kristen Dolan, her entire team and your supporters at California Desert Arts Council for all of your hard work gathering art supplies for our youth. You have made our holidays a little brighter with all of the fun activities included in your donations. We are looking forward to using all of it!

https://conta.cc/3S2wkDT

SafeHouse Wishes You A Happy Holiday Season Newsletter       Hello, As the year comes to end, we wanted to take time to thank each and every one of you for your continued support. Your monetary and in-kind donations, volunteerism and engagement

Our 12 days of Christmas continue with PJ day. Everyone is having a great time this year getting into the spirit of the season.

Wow! Thank you to Mission Hills Country Club Community Team for taking on the task of purchasing every gift on our resident's wish lists for Christmas at Harrison House. We are so grateful for each and every one of you and thankful that you all took the time to shop and wrap. We are so thrilled that you adopted us this year and look forward to working with you all in the upcoming year.

The Christmas fun continues with our 12 Days events for staff. We had Christmas socks day and Christmas Tree day. Everyone is getting into the fun. Tomorrow is Candy Cane day.

Our staff has kicked off the 12 Days of Christmas at SafeHouse. Today was wear your holiday hat day! Our staff in Riverside and the Desert put on a festive display. It also helps our youth get in the holiday spirit too.

Tennesse and his crew from Dutch Bros. were able to raise $2,300 in their La Quinta and Indio Stores, where they applied $1.00 of every sale to SafeHouse. Their donation will benefit youth who access our emergency shelter in times of crisis. DutchBros has been a long standing partner of ours and they truly care about our community. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for thinking of us during the holidays.

California Desert Arts Council is doing a Art Supply Drive for SafeHouse. If you can, please visit their website or wish list to support them and us.

Today is Giving Tuesday and we're doing an arts supply drive for SafeHouse of the Desert!

Kids end up at SafeHouse for many reasons and being there during the holidays can be difficult for them. We want to help brighten their spirits and give them some more tools to use in their toolbox when dealing with hard feelings - and we all know art heals!

We'd like to provide a coloring book, a sketchbook, a pack of markers, a pack of colored pencils, and a pencil sharpener to each kid for the holidays and we're collecting up to 20 of each item.

Share the gift of art with others this holiday season!
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1YYK31QM63A3J?ref_=wl_share
**Choose Kristen's Address (our Executive Director) at checkout**