Six years ago, Kathy Powell got a call requesting furniture for a formerly homeless person who had just received housing in Ventura.
The longtime volunteer rallied friends and fellow volunteers to furnish the room, and thus the Moving In Project was born. Since then, the Ventura organization of volunteer seniors has helped furnish 1,308 households or helped 2,109 people across Ventura County.
On April 27, a group of siblings from Oxnard and a family from Simi Valley arrived at the Moving In Project’s Ventura storage facility where the group keeps all its donated furniture and household goods. They “shopped” for goods to fill their new homes.
On any given week, the organization, which has its nonprofit status under the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura, helps between five and 10 households. All the people they assist are referred to them by Ventura County agencies or nonprofits, Powell said.
The founder said the group’s efforts help people find their own furniture to make their new digs a home.
“We want them to start out their new life with good stuff,” she said.
Powell said they organization also brings in like-minded volunteers to help their community. She noted that their work has the added benefit of keeping goods from the dump.
The Moving In Project also picks up gently used, donated pieces in Ventura, Oxnard and Camarillo. Occasionally, people drop off their used furniture to the Ventura storage facility.
To learn more, visit www.movinginproject.com.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura group helps recently housed start a new life. Here’s how
Reporting by Staff reports, Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
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