PRESS RELEASE

PATH SEEKS VOLUNTEERS FOR PROJECT Y!MBY CONNECT DAY, AN INTENSIVE OUTREACH TO THE HOMELESS ON DECEMBER 6

Volunteers and corporate sponsors needed for the homeless expo. . .

November 27, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(LOS ANGELES)—PATH (People Assisting the Homeless) needs volunteers for its 2nd annual Project Y!MBY Connect Day (Yes! In My Back Yard) Wednesday, December 6, (9 a.m. - 3 p.m.), which mobilizes community stakeholders throughout the greater Hollywood area, to support housing, coordinated care, and other vital services to the homeless population of Los Angeles, Hollywood and West Hollywood.

"Volunteers, corporate sponsors and team leaders are vitally needed to make the day a success," said Janet Ganaway, Executive Director of PATH. "This is a wonderful opportunity for people to get involved, take action and be a part of ending homelessness in our communities."

Needed are team leaders to coordinate key services, service providers to bring staff and give direct care, sponsors to provide cash and in-kind gifts such as food, raffle prizes, eyeglasses and clothing. Volunteers are also needed to staff booths and guide the participants through the various services.

Connect Day will be hosted at PATH Regional Homeless Center (340 N. Madison Ave., Los Angeles 90004) as part of outreach actions in seven other communities throughout Southern California coordinated by Los Angeles County, all of which recognize a national day of service sponsored by the federal Interagency Council on Homelessness.

Like a social service "expo", Connect Day will gather service providers, including county and city agencies, to set up shop to provide the homeless with help and information they need to begin rebuilding their lives. Everything from haircuts and foot care to counseling, emergency medical services and access to existing programs for housing and employment assistance, will be offered by volunteers and professionals.

"PATH initiated Project Y!MBY as a local solution to end homelessness through coordination of existing resources, collaborative action and greater accountability," said Joel John Roberts, chief executive officer of PATH. "Project Y!MBY Connect Day is a grass-roots initiative designed to help communities develop coordinated responses to homelessness that are specific to their areas."

In keeping with the national goal to end homelessness, the project seeks to develop an accurate assessment of the local homeless population and reduce the number of people living on the streets through education and dialogue; coordinating existing community services; ongoing assessment; connecting people to services and permanent housing; and emergency and transitional care services.

PATH, founded in 1984, is a non-profit community organization that seeks to empower homeless people with the tools for self-sufficiency, helping them find work, secure housing and obtain an array of social and health services to reclaim their lives.

For more information and to support and volunteer to help, please contact Tara Brown at tara.brown@epath.org or call (323) 644-2222. Or visit: www.epath.org/yimby

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