Categories: Good San Franciscans, Uncategorized

Matching Needs to Resources

“I have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t want to support the community in some way,” said Meghan Freebeck, CEO, Project Homeless Connect and Simply the Basics. Meghan is serving San Francisco by connecting people’s skills and resources with various needs in our community.  To quote Meghan, “It’s a lot like match making volunteer’s time and skill sets to ensure they align with a client’s or nonprofit’s goals.”

Meghan had a vision to provide basic needs to homeless individuals and those suffering with mental health. In her free time, she started Simply the Basics, a nonprofit that distributes items such as hygiene kits, menstrual products, bus passes, and even provides dentures to people in need. “It was difficult for me to see what our neighbors were experiencing,” explained Meghan.  

Project Homeless Connect is an entity that provides large one stop shop events, where over 100 providers service over 1,200 individuals in a single day.  Attendees can receive multiple services, meeting a variety of needs, such as housing information, dental care, vision exams and prescription glasses, transportation, and banking. Between events, Project Homeless Connect provides core resources to individuals on a daily basis through drop in programs.

Meghan challenges the San Francisco community to get creative and to be flexible with their time and resources when considering volunteering so that they can be a direct part of meeting our neighbors’ needs. For more information about Project Homeless Connect and Simply the Basics, visit ProjectHomelessConnect.org and SimplytheBasics.org.