February 22, 2025

Dear Friend of SOS,

This month we have had to overcome obstacles like the atmospheric rainstorm and freezing temperatures, which caused so much hardship for the unhoused, to be able to serve the most vulnerable in our community.

We are grateful that the City of Sonoma opened an Emergency Warming Center (formerly The Haven, 151 1st St. W.) February 5-10, from 7 pm to 7 am. The Center accommodated 15 unique individuals, an average of six individuals per night, with a warm, dry place to shelter. Our thanks to FS Global Disaster Solutions for staffing the Center.

This month we received an amazing amount of recovery food from our partnerships: $42,741 worth of food from Whole Foods Market, Safeway, and Lucky Supermarket. 80% of this food is placed in the community refrigerator, for clients to take whatever they need, while 20% is used to cook our meals. We also received kitchen equipment valued at $2,601 from the closure of Elaine Bell Catering.

Volunteers Deborah and Lynne helped unload a big donation from ExtraFood: five flats of cherry tomatoes. Our clever chefs will incorporate them into butternut squash curry, put them into salads, and blanch them to make sauce.

Crowd waiting for lunch. This month we had 104 more individuals who came to SOS for meals and services.

In honor of Black History Month, the SOS staff, volunteers and donors are following the words of Booker T. Washington, founder of Tuskegee University: “The happiest people are those who do the most for others. The most miserable are those who do the least.”

Please make a contribution today and help us continue to do the most we can for those who are hungry, food deprived, and unhoused in Sonoma Valley.

Gratefully,

Kathy King

Executive Director