Saffron Strand CEO and Executive Director Yvonne Nair has received a Jefferson Award for Public Service for her work in helping the homeless in the San Francisco Bay Area through Saffron Strand. Yvonne has accepted the Award “in behalf of every person and organization that helps to revitalize the lives and re-engage livelihoods of the
“Defragmenting the Homeless Continuum: Linking Pathways to Self-Sufficiency” took place June 18-19, 2012 at the Richmond Memorial Auditorium in Richmond, CA. All who participated in our Third Annual Conference proclaimed it “The best Conference yet!” The Conference crystallized a common objective for everyone trying to help the homeless: Make it a priority to help the homeless
Thank You to Friends of Saffron Strand! Jael Myrick, Chair of our Board of Directors, welcomed friends of Saffron Strand to our Holiday Celebration, December 10, 2011 at the Richmond Progressive Alliance office in Richmond. More than 50 guests enjoyed local wines and other beverages, along with a big buffet of diverse appetizers, demonstrating Saffron
At Saffron Strand’s Second Annual Conference, May 16-17, 2011 in Richmond, CA, acclaimed author and job development consultant Denise Bissonnette challenged us to stretch our thinking, question our assumptions, and turn our traditional way of looking at ourselves and the world on its head. Denise gave the opening keynote address in a two-day program which
In this era of shrinking budgets for publicly-funded social services, we are seeing greater attention to best practices and cost-effectiveness in back-to-work programs for those receiving public assistance and those who are “hard-to-employ,” including the homeless. Recent research at the national level supports the need for more effective, lower cost, community-based programs like that of
On Thursday, September 16, 2010 our Saffron Strand volunteer professionals offered their salon expertise to Contra Costa’s homeless at the Project Homeless Connect (PHC6) event organized by Contra Costa County in Antioch. Our pros were in great demand, providing haircuts, hair styling (including hair-weaves), and therapeutic massage to more than 70 homeless persons. Saffron Strand
As citizens and taxpayers, our current “investment” in homelessness is huge. But it is difficult to recognize its awesome size because we are feeding, housing, and caring for so many of the homeless in so many different programs already. These measures are humane and very important. But they are emergency measures, they are not permanent
The Contra Costa Inter-Jurisdictional Council on Homelessness recently issued an advisory on “key components” of the county’s use of more than $1.4 million of new federal funding intended to prevent homelessness and to find housing for those who lose it. This money was part of $1.5 billion in federal stimulus funding for homeless programs. This
Spanish-speaking residents of Richmond wanted to know more about Saffron Strand during the Healthy Eating Healthy Living Fair, August 15, at the Nevin Center. Eighth-grader Livier Juarez stepped forward to volunteer to provide Spanish-English translation services, becoming Saffron Strand’s youngest volunteer. The Fair, sponsored by Brookside Community Health Center, offered barbecue, music, games, and educational
According to news reports, cities in at least four states use a “cost-effective” way to reduce their homeless populations: Exportation. The link below is quite an eye opener as to what happens to people in our society when they fall on bad times. However, these folks at least have somewhere to go: See NBC News report.