Homelessness: Helping Our Community
"Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity it is an act of justice."
Located in California with roots in India and South Africa, we are all too familiar with the travesty that is mass homelessness. To have over 160,000 homeless residents in the richest state in the richest country in the world is unacceptable.
This is a problem that takes a team effort across many different spheres to solve from the government, to non-profits, to social workers, to innovative entrepreneurs and more. We try our best to fit in where we can in this network as a non-profit and do our best on a local and global level to help in eradicating and alleviating homelessness.
What We've Accomplished
After five years of delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and rising material costs, Covey Cottages, a tiny homes project for homeless veterans in Bakersfield, is nearing completion. The RNP Foundation donated 315,000 to the project and thanks to the unceasing efforts of Deborah Johnson, president and CEO of the California Veterans Assistance Foundation, the project is nearing completion despite the unforseen setbacks. The community will feature 12 units, each 400 square feet, providing permanent housing to veterans at risk of homelessness. Designed to offer more than just shelter, the community will also include a shared common building with supportive services and a green space. Residents are expected to begin moving in by March 2024.
Read more here.
An annual event where we provide food for the homeless and needy. We serve about 500 hot meals at the CBCC and gift the needy with hoodies, sweaters, toiletries, hygiene kits, and many other items.
December 16, 2020
Due to the difficulties people are having with housing during the Covid-19 crisis, the RNP Foundation donated to the housing assistance fund of Catholic Charities. Catholic Charities is an amazing local organization that works in various ways to assist the community. This housing fund is designed for people who need some assistance to stay in their place of living instead of ending up on the street if they are in between jobs or have fallen on hard times. The RNP Foundation is proud to partner with such incredible local organizations doing work right here in Bakersfield.
June 25, 2020
Recognizing the potential for rapid spread of COVID-19 within the Bakersfield Homeless Center, where already vulnerable individuals and families live in close quarters, measures have been quickly implemented to protect clients and staff. However, these changes due to COVID-19 come at a cost.
To support the Bakersfield Homeless Center through this unprecedented time, The Ravi and Naina Patel Foundation has donated $40,000. The funds will be used towards a variety of services including:
Equipping the lobbies and other points of contact with Plexiglass shields
Tutoring and support for students/children
Supplies such as diapers, baby wipes and feminine hygiene products, hand sanitizer, sanitizing wipes, disinfectants and more
The Foundation recognizes that any ongoing support makes it possible for Bakersfield Homeless Center to sustain their mission of providing support and resources to families and individuals in crisis while helping them achieve their highest level of self-sufficiency during such a challenging and unpredictable time.
For more information or to donate to Bakersfield Homeless Center, please visit bakhc.com.
Ongoing Projects
For over a decade now the RNP Foundation has been proud to donate 30,000 dollars a year to the Bakersfield Homeless Center and 30,000 to the Alliance Against Family Violence. The Bakersfield Homeless Center is a staple in the community providing food, shelter, and love to homeless families in need throughout Kern County. The Alliance Against Family Violence and Sexual Assault provides protection to those most vulnerable in Kern County as survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. They provide essential services such as an emergency shelter, traditional housing, a crisis hotline, legal advocacy, human trafficking victim advocacy, and many more. By donating yearly to these two incredible organizations we hope to provide a steady stream of support to those most vulnerable in our community.
As part of our continued effort of giving back during the uncertainty and economic stress of the pandemic, the Ravi and Naina Patel Foundation has been preparing and serving 200 meals per day, five days a week.
Individual prepared meals are collected from the CBCC Health and Wellness Cafe then supplied to the local CityServe affiliate.
CityServe then works with a variety of regional churches and ministries across the county – Taft, Delano, Westchester, etc to distribute the meals. Through this program, we are able to continue nourishing food insecurities and building relationships with those in need within our community.
We began in the Summer of 2020 and will continue serving 200 meals a day through the end of 2021.
A large portion of the homeless in the Pacific Northwest, particularly the Seattle area, is indigenous people. Indigenous homeless people bare the unique burden of having to interact with systems for help that don’t understand them on a cultural, linguistic, spiritual, or emotional level. This disconnect leads to many challenges and for this reason the RNP Foundation is proud to have donated 100,000 dollars to the Chief Seattle Club.
The Chief Seattle Club is ran by indigenous people who understand and can truly help urban Native people in a way that others can’t. They provide housing assistance, food assistance, mental health programs and counseling, and have started their own dormitory style housing complex known as Eagle Village that helps transition Native American and Native Alaskan people to permanent housing.
Upcoming Projects
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