Arden Arcade HART

Arden Arcade HART (Homeless Area Resource Team) is a 501(c)3 non-profit operated by volunteers from 20 faith communities and organizations in the Arden Arcade area. Unlike efforts that respond to the needs of the poor in our community, HART focuses its attention on those who live with the added challenges of homelessness. Under these conditions, one’s ability to engage in the daily tasks of maintaining cleanliness and eating regularly is increasingly uncertain. One’s ability to access community resources is limited by the need to be near one’s belongings and/or lack of transportation. Added to these difficulties is the social perception of being viewed as problem people who detract from the efforts of community merchants trying to make a living. Beyond those we see on our streets, San Juan Unified District has between 700 and 800 elementary and high school students with unstable housing whose opportunities for achievement are overshadowed by the constant variability in their living conditions. In response to these needs, HART volunteers engaged in the following activities in the Arden Arcade area this past year: 10, 500 Meals, 1600 snack bags, and 970 hygiene kits for our unhoused, as well as tents, tarps, blankets, and clothing. Since August of 2023, monthly we have assembled and shared 50 snack and 50 hygiene kits for our housing-challenged students in San Juan Unified School District.