59% of Americans are Just One Paycheck Away from…

April 19, 2024May 15, 2024
by admin muindi

59% of Americans are Just One Paycheck Away from Homelessness

Homelessness is a complex issue that often goes unspoken. The gap between making it and homelessness is shrinking, even in Silicon Valley, one of the richest areas in the country. Some people have to sleep on the sidewalk because they can’t afford rent, and yet there is a common notion that homelessness is a choice. This is not true in the majority of cases.

Homelessness is often caused by factors beyond a person’s control, such as: job loss, medical bills, domestic violence, mental illness, substance abuse, and lack of affordable housing. People who are homeless are often stigmatized and discriminated against. They may have difficulty finding work, housing, and healthcare. They may also be victims of crime and violence.

We need to talk about homelessness and challenge the stigma that surrounds it. To give you a much better perspective, please watch this short video.

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This #GivingTuesday: Be the Change!

April 18, 2024June 7, 2024
by admin muindi

This #GivingTuesday: Be the Change!

#GivingTuesday is almost upon us! Thanks to generous supporters like you, this year the Muindi Foundation has continued to serve the homeless, houseless and those at risk of becoming so, right here in Silicon Valley.

Despite the continuing pandemic challenges, we’re proud of the many achievements during this period. Here’s a quick look at what we’ve been up to: Prepared and served over 900 hot and brown bag meals; distributed 1,000 snack kits, 4,350 hygiene kits and 200 winter kits; and this past summer we launched our first ever 6-week summer tutoring program for at-risk children in 1st – 3rd grade. In all, we’ve served over 4,000 homeless and at-risk families and individuals. These accomplishments are all possible because of your generosity!

In the spirit of Giving Tuesday, we hope you will support us again this year by making a donation to help us meet our goal of raising $30,000 as we continue our mission to help prevent and solve the complex and ever-growing homelessness epidemic.

Make a Contribution Today!

In addition to your generous donations, here are other ways you can support our mission:

Shopping via the Muindi Foundation’s Amazon Smile program
Starting a Facebook fundraiser benefitting the Muindi Foundation
Participating in an employee giving program at your workplace; or
Visiting our website at Muindi Foundation for more ways to give

Thank you so much for being a supporter of our work!

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Will You Donate to Support the Muindi Foundation This…

April 18, 2024May 15, 2024
by admin muindi

Will You Donate to Support the Muindi Foundation This Giving Tuesday?

This GivingTuesday, the Muindi Foundation is raising money to support and empower homeless, vulnerable, and low-income children to change the trajectory of their lives through educational success. Our goal is to raise $50,000—will you help?

You can give the gift that supports our Learning Programs, structured for homeless, at-risk and underserved children, focused on building competencies in reading, writing and math in a fun and safe environment. You’ll be doing more than just donating—your kindness will make it possible for these children to have hands-on early education intervention.

Generous supporters like you make it possible for us to serve children experiencing homelessness or extreme poverty as they often lack the support and resources needed to excel in school.

We can’t do it without you. I hope you’ll join us this GivingTuesday!

Make a Contribution Today!

Everyone can have an impact on #GivingTuesday! Join the Muindi Foundation on November 29 by pledging your time, skills, voice, or dollars to support our mission of bringing people and resources together to meet the needs of the underserved in our community, specifically the homeless, houseless and those in risk of becoming so in the Silicon Valley. Learn more at www.muindifoundation.org.

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Join Us in Supporting Local Youth this Summer

April 13, 2024May 15, 2024
by admin muindi

Transforming Lives & Impacting Generations

A lot has been happening at the Muindi Foundation since we last reached out. Here’s a quick update and some great opportunities to get involved.

SUMMER LEARNNOW 2023 EDUCATION INTERVENTION PROGRAM

On Monday June 12th, we will welcome a new group of children to our free Summer Learn Now Program. This is our third year running this incredible six-week program, designed specifically for homeless and low-income elementary-aged children who need extra support building competencies in reading, writing and math. Our program supports academic success during the school year, prevents summer learning loss, and provides basic need support services such as healthy food and safe supervision. Above all else, our students build self-esteem and confidence through personal attention from adults who care about their success.

My child couldn’t tell you more than 4 letters of the alphabet, not even see a picture and say what letter it was. Week 3 she was doing so much! She couldn’t write her name, she didn’t have any social skills, she didn’t follow directions... That all changed. In such an impactful way. It helped my husband and I with our days and really gave us a sense of how we were raising her and having a plan. Her social skills impressed me! It’s like she opened up so much... The program was beyond what we could have imagined! I have preached to many people that if it wasn’t for this program my daughter would truly struggle in T-K... I am absolutely proud to have joined the Muindi program. Everything she learned and took from it, she has grown into a smart girl. We get compliments on how advanced and kind she is. That does have a lot to do with this program.

- Parent of 2022 LearnNow Student

How can you help?
There are many ways, big and small, to help this program be a success!

1. Attend our Open House
Come tour our classroom and learn more about our LearnNow Program.

Saturday, June 10, 2023 from 1:00pm to 3:00pm
1040 Park Ave San Jose, CA 95126
RSVP to contact@muindifoundation.org

2. Donate
All of our programs rely on the generosity of donors, and the Summer LearnNowProgram is our biggest initiative of the year. Here are some easy ways to help, but every donation makes a difference.

$1,800 covers the total cost of the program for one student
$800 covers the cost of a healthy breakfast, snack and lunch for all students for one week
$500 covers the cost for two field trips for all students
$60 covers the cost of a healthy breakfast, snack and lunch for one student for one week
$50 covers the cost of curriculum for one student

3. Volunteer
We are in need of volunteers to prepare daily breakfast, snacks and lunch for students. This can be done ahead of time, or the day of. We are also in need of administrative help to file, make copies and put together curriculum packets. If you can help, please contact Serena at serena@muindifoundation.org.

ONGOING SERVICES
With a network of loyal volunteers, we continue to serve the homeless in San Jose by distributing hygiene care kits, socks & underwear, lunches and special hot meals. We offer free notary services for those in need, and after completing a lengthy registration process with Santa Clara County, we now can help clients apply for a variety of social services with one online application. We are very excited about this new service and can’t wait for the opportunity to help more people in our community gain access to the tools they need to live safe, healthy lives. More information on these programs and ways you can help can be found on our website.

Thank you for your ongoing support and partnership. We hope to see you in person at our Open House on June 10th!

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Transforming Lives & Impacting Generations

April 13, 2024May 15, 2024
by admin muindi

Transforming Lives & Impacting Generations

Tis the season to be jolly…
We can’t believe another year is almost over! There is so much to be thankful for. We are so thankful that you joined in our shared mission to end generational homelessness and for all you do to keep our work going.
As we emerge from the pandemic, we are grateful to reconnect in-person with you and your families.
In 2022, we continued our bi-monthly distribution of hygiene and toiletry supplies to homeless camps in downtown San Jose. From your continued support we were able to distribute over 10,000 hygiene, toiletry, and clothing items to the most vulnerable in our community.
During the pandemic our organization also identified and responded to a need to support at-risk elementary age children as they adapted to home-schooling. With the onset of the pandemic, not only were families experiencing homelessness, food insecurity and financial hardship, the children were also not able to attend school in-person and most of them did not have access to laptops, internet and help with schoolwork.
With your support, we were able to launch a six-week Summer LearnNow program. Children experiencing homelessness or extreme poverty often lack the support and resources needed to excel in school. With this in mind, our Summer LearnNow program was free for qualified elementary aged children and focused on building competency in reading, writing and math. Our program worked to combat summer learning loss and provided support services, including nutritional snacks and meals, confidence-building activities, and safe supervision. Above all else, our students received personal mentorship from adults invested in their success and well-being. It was a big change for our team, but the program was a success. So much so that we are proud to announce that beginning in January 2023 we are expanding our LearnNow program to include a Winter and Spring After School Homework Club which will operate Monday – Thursday from 3:00 pm – 5:30 pm. The After School Homework Club will focus on the same core competencies piloted in our Summer Program, and we are so excited to continue supporting students and families in the New Year.
All of this would not have been possible without our dedicated supporters and volunteers who continue to show up for us and our community.
As we reflect on 2022, the Muindi Foundation team is continuing to dream big, but we cannot do it without you. We invite you to partner with us to support children who come from low-income and underserved communities in Silicon Valley and change the trajectory of their lives through positive mentorship and educational success.