Sunnyvale Community Services has been the critical safety net agency in Sunnyvale, CA for over 45 years. Our mission is to provide emergency financial aid and food assistance to low-income Sunnyvale residents in order to prevent homelessness and hunger. The need in our community need is persistent, with individuals, families and seniors facing difficult choices everyday about whether to seek medical care or pay rent, about whether to fix their car or put food on the table. Here in the middle of one of the richest areas in the country, we have a great divide between the haves and the have-nots. Our long-term goal is to influence policy so that low-income families, individuals, and seniors can remain housed while still being able to buy food and seek medical care when necessary.

A combination of donations from individuals, corporate grants, government grants, and bequests, has meant that Sunnyvale Community Services has never turned away a person in need in its 45+ years. We depend not only on the financial generosity of our diverse funding sources, but also on the strength of a volunteer force of over 1,000 people each year who help us serve fresh fruits and vegetables every Produce Monday, who pack hundreds of bags of food for every Monthly Food Day, and who assist with running our annual Community Christmas Center every holiday season. Over 90% of our budget goes directly to our clients, helping to avert deeper crises arising from homelessness and hunger.

Our agency has 15 full-time and 3 part-time staff working to support the mission as caseworkers, volunteer manager, operations manager, financial director, and more. In addition to paid staff, the agency depends on a tremendous number of volunteers who come from nearby corporations, faith-based organizations, community groups, as well as individuals of all ages. Our volunteer hours equal to 15 full-time-equivalent headcount, helping us stretch our funding and involve the community in our mission. Our financial resources draw from a variety of funding sources including corporate/foundation support, community support, government grants and United Way. In addition, our annual budget includes nearly 50% of our revenue sources as in-kind donations, primarily food donations.

Our primary measurement is: Did we provide financial help and food to every eligible family and individual? Measures are based on addressing immediate emergency needs and preventing homelessness and hunger. By Board directive, we conduct client satisfaction surveys on services and the courtesy of caseworkers and volunteers. In 2014, 96% of clients gave our agency a rating of “4" (satisfied) or higher on a 5 point scale, far exceeding our goal of at least 80%. In addition, we participate in several County-wide nonprofit networks (e. g. United Way Emergency Assistance Network Partners, Santa Clara County Safety Net, Silicon Valley Council of Nonprofits), sharing trends, data, and best practices. Our capacity to help every eligible client with food and financial assistance continues to distinguish SCS.

While our core mission has not changed in over 45 years, the programs and assistance we provide have adapted to recent trends, new strategic partnerships, and requests from clients through annual satisfaction surveys. We have made great strides in bringing additional assistance to our clients, whether it's supplemental food through our Produce Mondays and Monthly Food programs, or through strategic partnerships with other agencies, such as Downtown Streets Team, a program specially designed to help homeless people find permanent housing. We also partner with state and local agencies when possible to provide relief for utility bills for low-income residents, and reduced bus passes so that our clients can get to work. We continue to advocate for a higher minimum wage so that clients who work as cooks, gardeners, and daycare providers can afford to live in the community in which they work. In addition, we push for more regulation of predatory payday loan businesses, which prey on desperate individuals trying to manage their bills while keeping a roof over their heads. We know that the need for our services will never disappear, but we are constantly striving to improve the lives of those we serve.