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Rigel Grigsby used one forklift to load the Pallet micro-shelter flat-packs onto a truck which was then driven by Jim Gregory to the village site where Rigel used another forklift to unload the truck. | | | | Volunteers sorted through the pieces, arranged the shelter components on the prepared gravel pads, and then bolted and screwed the shelters together. | |
The Micro-shelters for THP's first village have been installed! Thanks to nearly fifty very dedicated volunteers led by six very skilled volunteer team leaders, the prefabricated Pallet (brand) micro-shelters were assembled at our first village site, a small 0.8 acre property on which the owner--Southern Arizona Land Trust (SALT)--has given us a free four-year lease. SALT even pays the property tax. It all began with the site clean-up when, for a week, volunteers showed up daily with their chainsaws, pruners, rakes, gloves, and sunscreen to remove the trash, dead vegetation, a discarded sofa, and -- unfortunately but unavoidably -- some beautiful old mesquites and cacti. Then Dino Rendon of Mr. Tree tree service, donated nearly an entire Saturday to removing tree stumps using a Mr. Tree back hoe.
Four roll-aways were taken off to Tank's for composting and a stack of free mesquite firewood was left for neighbors. Then, on Saturday April 19th, volunteer Rigel Grigsby took his first forklift-full of the towering flat-packs out of storage and loaded it onto a rented 26-foot flatbed truck. Once the flatbed was loaded, volunteer Jim Gregory drove it slowly to the village site, where Rigel unloaded it using a mammoth all-terrain forklift. Then the team leaders carefully unpacked the floors and put each where survey stakes indicated a shelter should be. After the floors had been leveled, and Rigel and Jim had unloaded the last pallet of flat packs, team leaders with their teams of six to eight volunteers spent the next few hours assembling the shelters, lining up screw holes, driving screws, and inserting and fastening bolts with nuts, finishing with wrestling the roof components up to teammates perched on ladders, to be attached. In assembling these fifteen micro-shelters, the volunteers effectively donated $7,500 to THP; that's the cost of two professional assemblers being sent from Pallet’s factory in Everett, WA. Yolanda Sethi, Board Member and Head of THP's Volunteer Program, and Julie Gunther, Chair of THP Resource Committee, organized this Herculean effort. Volunteer, and candidate for Congress, Chris Donat provided 6 dozen donuts that eventually disappeared. And when lunch time came, Slice and Ice subs provided by Julie Gunther were much appreciated. The shelters have been assembled considerably ahead of the usual construction schedule where utility infrastructure is usually completed first. But since the units have no plumbing and their electrical connections are minimal, the usual order was reversed. After a day of putting the shelters up, the village site looks pretty much like a group of plain white shacks huddled on a denuded property. Thank goodness that Pima County gave us an Extreme Heat Relief grant to plant large trees as soon as possible. In the fifteen micro-shelters now on site, only ten people can be housed due to zoning restrictions related to the property size and location near substance dependence treatment facilities. Already, since our setting up the shelters, we have had several people stop by to find out how they could apply for residence. THP will not itself be taking applications, on site or otherwise; instead, we will qualify potential residents through use of the City's Homeless Management Information System. People who are interested should be advised to contact the City for services, by calling 211, or to contact the City through any social service agency, such as Old Pueblo Community Services, La Frontera, Primavera Foundation, etc.
A ribbon cutting will be planned for when the village is completed. You will be invited!
| | | | | | Getting the roofs on required a few ladders, people comfortable working on ladders, and lots of hands to safely boost the roof components up and into place for securing. | | | |
Kris and Corey reviewed the plans for the village layout. | | The de la Cruz family showed up to work on erecting the micro-shelters. | | | | | | | | Angie, Alice and Jeff at the erection of the micro-shelters. | | John Blackwell and his hard working golfing buddies at lunch break. | | | | | |
Acknowledging a Key Partner: Southern Arizona Land Trust
The creation of our first village has been made possible through the generous support of the Southern Arizona Land Trust (SALT). SALT is a non-profit organization committed to improving the lives of Tucsonans by revitalizing neighborhoods and developing high quality affordable housing. Although The Homing Project village is a transitional housing model, SALT’s board of directors agreed to allow us to establish the first village on their property. Their partnership is a vital part of our progress. For more information about SALT, visit www.saltproperty.com.
We are honored and grateful to work with SALT and especially appreciate the leadership and mentorship of Greg Sasse, SALT’s Executive Director, who has been instrumental in bringing this project to life.
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Security Service at THP Village Once the micro-shelters were set up on the site of our village, The Homing Project established security, through a contract with Arizona Preventive Crime Unit, to protect our organization's key on-site assets. Over the next couple of months, toilet and bathing facilities, a kitchen, a laundry, and residents will be coming to the site, all making security increasingly important. On May 1st, THP CEO Kris Olson-Garewal met with Sergeant Hinojosa at the village site, as he assumed nighttime security duties. | | | |
Jim Click Raffle 2025. Enter to win a 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid SX PrestigeTickets are $25 each or 5 for $100. Every dollar of our raffle ticket sales goes to The Homing Project! Purchase raffle tickets on the project website. | | | |
Grants This month we received two unusual and much appreciated grants: 1) Extreme Heat Relief Grant for $36,000 from Pima County to be used for air conditioners, tree planting, and the infrastructure needed to water those trees. This will pay for the outdoor cooling for our outdoor dining patio; there will be no indoor dining room due to cost.
2) The Noah Cohen Memorial Youth Philanthropy Fund was created as part of a Righteous Giving curriculum that every Kol Ami seventh grade class at Congregation Or Chadash, participates in. The students fund the grant by donating money gifts they would normally receive during the year. For the $2,200 the seventh graders raised this year, they invited 12 nonprofits (including THP) to apply for a grant, reviewed the proposals and after much discussion, decided to split the fund between the Homing Project and Youth On Their Own, an organization which supports unhoused youths. The $1100 grant we received will provide our kitchen with a prep table and equipment such as pots, pans, and utensils. We were delighted just to receive an Request For Proposal from these SEVENTH GRADERS! Being awarded the grant is even better. The future is in good hands.
Thank you, Pima County, and thank you Kol Ami Seventh Grade Class.
| | | | | | Kris with the Kol Ami Seventh Grade Class.
Photo by Rina Liebeskind of the Synagogue Kol Ami Educational Program | | | | | | Sewing Curtains to make micro-shelters feel more like casitas... THP volunteers are working to provide the micro-shelters with curtains, making the interiors homier than their current, newly assembled, fresh off the pallet, factory finish appearance. Volunteers who like to sew are invited to come and help sew the curtains on May 21st. Interested volunteers can sign up for this opportunity on the THP website. The sewing is being accommodated in Cathey's Down the Block, a branch of Cathey's Sew and Vac, at 5851 E Speedway Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85712. A big Thank You to Cathy’s Sew and Vac for letting us use their space for sewing curtains!
| | | | Volunteers Jim Dixon and Elissa Erly measuring for the curtains.
| | Volunteer Meeting Location Change
St. Philip's in the Hills Episcopal Church has generously hosted our monthly volunteer meetings, offering us a welcoming space and showing strong support for our mission to help our unhoused neighbors find shelter, stability, and a path to permanent housing. We are deeply grateful for their hospitality and encouragement over these past months.
Beginning in May, The Homing Project's monthly volunteer meetings will move to a new location: the City of Tucson Ward 3 meeting room, located at 1510 E. Grant Rd. City Council Member Kevin Dahl and his Ward 3 staff have been dedicated supporters of our efforts since SALT made their site available for THP's village, and we appreciate their ongoing partnership in helping us establish our first village.
Meetings will continue to be held from 10 AM to 12 PM on the last Saturday of each month. The board and volunteer meeting dates are found in a schedule included below near the end of this newsletter.
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Volunteer Appreciation BBQ
Our CEO Kris Olson-Garewal hosted a volunteer appreciation BBQ at her home on Saturday, May 3rd.
| | | | Rita Gray catered the event! | | Stephanie and Angie enjoying the BBQ. | | | | | | | |
Denice Blake, Arizona Gives Day matching grant donor for THP Profile by Joan Hall The Homing Project interviewed Denice Blake, our matching grant donor for the recent Arizona Gives Day, at her lovely home in the historic Sam Hughes Neighborhood. We wanted to find out what led her to us. Denice told us that she had first heard about THP at the end of last year (2024) in an article in the Desert Leaf Magazine, and then subsequently in another publication. While this was not the proverbial “three times is a charm”, she was sufficiently intrigued by the concept to investigate further. First on her mind, like all savvy investors, was to make sure that THP wasn’t a scam. So she signed up for the newsletter to get more information, and then convinced of our legitimacy, went ahead and made a very generous donation of $2,000. Soon thereafter, Denice found out about the monthly volunteer meetings at St. Phillips Episcopal Church at River and Campbell. After attending one she felt more comfortable making a larger commitment. She liked the enthusiasm and commitment of the other volunteers, as well as their altruism – doing something that doesn’t benefit them personally. Denice then signed up to volunteer to show the micro-shelters at The Tucson Mall on Christmas Eve – how’s that for commitment! She was there with our CEO and Founder Kris Olsen-Garewal, and had a chance to learn more about THP, right from the source. From this time together, and a further meeting at Kris’ house, she came to respect Kris, from her openness about the challenges facing the project to her resolve to seeing the village flourish. Denice is a supporter of other nonprofits that also reflect her values, placiung a high priority on education, the arts, and helping the disadvantaged. She and her husband use their required minimum distributions[1] from their individual retirement accounts (IRA) to support local theaters, The Loft, Tucson Botanical Garden and Youth on Their Own (YOTO), where she also volunteers. This year, YOTO surprised her with their "Philanthropist of the Year" award, which she felt honored to receive, and yet a little undeserving. Denice is too modest! She has volunteered there for over ten years and has served in all the different volunteer roles that they have. Clearly her contributions are greatly appreciated. Denice lives near Himmel Park, and like most Tucsonans, has seen how homeless people, having no private spaces of their own, use our public spaces. The Himmel Park public library is also used by them. Seeing this has made her realize that Tucson needs more projects focused on serving unhoused people. One of the things that attracted her to THP was the knowledge that we will be providing workshops to the residents of the villages to help them learn or refresh skills. Another is the fact that we are an all-volunteer organization, with no staff overhead. She likes that her funds go to efficient and financially well-run organizations. Denice also volunteered at the recent Book Fest on the UA Mall. She got the sense from that experience that many people are really tuned in to the homeless situation and she thinks this is important, since the federal government will be less and less likely to make contributions to the problem. She also learned some new volunteer skills: “I also learned that to get people's attention, I can't just sit behind a table and wait for inquiries. Kris, the THP CEO, and Arnie (a longtime THP volunteer) are not shy about approaching people.” Recently Denice provided a matching grant of $5,000 for THP’s Arizona Gives Day (April 1, but donations can be accepted all year long). She’s very interested in following how THP's first village does [editor’s note: This is Tucson’s first village of transitional housing for the homeless.]. It's very ambitious, and even though it won't serve a large group at the beginning, if it works, it will be a real model for future attempts. What would you say to other people who might be interested in supporting The Homeless Project? “This is a committed, selfless, but also fun group to work with. And there will be lots of opportunities to pick and choose what to work on. I took some THP brochures to pass out to my two book clubs. More people need to hear about this impressive organization.” Thanks for all you do for THP, Denice!
[1] From the April 2025 newsletter: Required minimum distributions (RMDs) are the minimum amounts you must withdraw from your retirement accounts each year. Generally, you must start taking withdrawals from your traditional IRA, SEP IRA, SIMPLE IRA, and retirement plan accounts when you reach age 73. By transferring your RMD directly to a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, you exclude that amount from your taxable income for the year.
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The Homing Project Board Meeting and Volunteer Meeting Dates
Month Board Mtg Volunteers Mtg
May 2025 Wed. 28th Sat. 31st
June 2025 Wed. 25th Sat. 28th
July 2025 Wed. 23rd Sat. 26th
August 2025 Wed. 27th Sat. 30th
September 2025 Wed. 24th Sat. 27th
October 2025 Wed. 22nd Sat. 25th
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Board Meetings convene at Kris Olson’s home at 5:30 PM. Volunteers are welcome to attend.
Volunteer Meetings are now being held at 10 AM on last Saturdays, as shown above, at City of Tucson Ward 3 meeting room, 1510 E. Grant Rd. Join us to plan new events and to discuss past ones. |
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Thank you for choosing to serve our community with us, from the Board and Newsletter Staff of The Homing Project!
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