-Update Spring 2021-

In Spring, so far, we have:

• Assisted 5 individuals with rent.
• Helped 2 individuals with a motel voucher and furnishings for their apartment
• Bought 3 individuals bus vouchers to attend to their appointments

-Update Winter 2021-

In the month of December, we:

• Helped 6 individuals stay out of the cold winter nights with rent assistance.
• Got 3 individuals bus passes to get to their job and work interviews.
• Secured funds for 5 individuals to buy basic needs such as food, a cellphone, a mini-fridge, driver license, and a backpack
• Bought one week of motel vouchers for one family to stay off the streets

We also created over 40 care packages to help the individuals living in the streets celebrate the holidays.

-Update Fall 2020-

In this quarter, with the money raised, we paid for:

• Transportation passes for a single mother and her children escaping from domestic abuse
• An individual's work permit so she can start working towards getting housing
• Rental assistance for 2 families to avoid eviction
• Basic necessities for 3 individuals such as work equipment, medication, and utilities
• Provided an individual with work equipment that conforms to safety standards, allowing him to keep his new job
• A GED prep course for an individual to boost his resume
• Legal document application fees for an individual to start working

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COVID-19 - In addition to being a health crisis that affects millions world wide, this pandemic encompasses the worst global economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930’s. With lockdown implemented and businesses shut down, COVID-19 has made it hard for people to either find/keep a job or keep their business afloat. The income disruption affects all households in the U.S., especially renters, who tend to have less income and savings than homeowners. In August alone, surveys show that ⅓ of the 44 million renters will miss their rent.

The CARES Act passed on March 23rd offered 2 trillion dollars in relief for homeowners and renters ($1200/filer) as well as an eviction moratorium. However, taking into account its slow implementation, as well as limited eligibility criteria (based on 2018/9 tax returns and social security, which many low-income households do not have) means that the aid will only cover $92 of weekly spending, if it makes it to those households at all. In addition, the eviction moratorium that prevents only eviction on federally-backed properties, and not the carry-over of rent, has ended on July 24th, leaving many uncertain about their residences. If not handled well, the COVID-19 health crisis will turn into a homelessness crisis.

Here at Mustard Seed Project, following a “hand up, not hand-out” philosophy, we are dedicated to helping our community by connecting homeless individuals to programs and services. We accomplish this by developing our student volunteers in the cultural humility and awareness that helps them become the best social service navigators to those in need.

In the upcoming year, Mustard Seed Project is starting a concerted effort over our 3 college chapters (UCSD, UCR, and SDSU) to raise $10,000 for our Community Relief Fund. The purpose of this fund is provide emergency funding for homeless prevention and housing tenancy:

• $40 for Transportation Subsidies (i.e. bus vouchers)

• $100 for Healthcare Subsidies (i.e. medication)

• $100 for Basic Needs (i.e. food, clothes, etc.)

• $500 for Rent Subsidies (i.e. rental fee applications and rental assistance)

With this fund, we hope to give individuals a little reprieve from day-to-day survival, in which they are able to focus and work with our service navigators to make a sustainable plan to prevent future episodes of homelessness or near homelessness. All of the money that we raise will go directly into that mission.

Starting out as a passion project of one student, Mustard Seed Project has expanded to a nonprofit that now spans three chapters, entirely composed of college alumni and students. However, our vision has always remained the same as it always was: To strive for a world in which everyone has the right basic needs, comfort in their personal safety, and opportunity to rise above their situation. We hope that you will join us in our mission to better the communities that we live in.

Thank you so much for your support, and please stay safe. You can find more about what we do below:

https://www.mustardproject.com

@mustardproject

https://www.facebook.com/mustardproject

https://www.linkedin.com/company/mustardproject/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwK7t-hBVvpmBXSQQW4gnDA