MEND’s Community Nourishment Programs  have long been a point of entry for a majority of clients. Clients utilizing the food bank include families struggling to make ends meet, and people who are homeless who—because of few options—sometimes rely on foraging from dumpsters to survive.

When COVID-19 cases began to spread in late 2020, we wanted to ensure that those most vulnerable in the San Fernando Valley recieved the resources they needed to stay safe. MEND sent out its Hope & Care team to offer support, information on COVID-19 testing, prevention, resources, masks and PPE for our community.

Here We Thrive consolidates MEND’s burgeoning intensive case-management services and is our most exciting intervention in the lives of those we serve. With the goal of individual and community resiliency in mind, we are combining the former Family Support Program and Pathways to Wellness and adding a new employment component to better serve the community in one hub. Here We Thrive is staffed with professionals willing and able to support participants through a process of uncovering and overcoming their (in many cases, long-term) challenges.

Our Homeless Care Services supported thousands of homeless men and women in 2020, providing them with the nutrition they needed during a pandemic -  good food to go, fresh change of clothing, hygiene items, pet food and referrals to our partners in housing and mental health.