Common Ground works with other organizations on a daily basis to ensure that our clients in both HIV prevention and direct services receive the education and care that they need. In a review conducted in 2001 by the City of Santa Monica, which grants Common Ground funding each year, our agency was praised for providing "a model of interagency cooperation."

• In collaboration with Venice Family Clinic, Common Ground operates Westside Partners, an HIV specialty medical clinic. The program provides direct medical services to low-income, medically indigent, HIV positive individuals.

• Common Ground plays a key role in the Westside Shelter and Hunger Coalition whose mission is to improve the condition and status of low-income and homeless people through the coordination of services, education and advocacy. Common Ground’s membership in WSHC has been very beneficial in developing positive working relationships with local providers and in finding collaborative solutions to problems and service gaps. Our involvement with WSHC has greatly enhanced the ability of our clients to access needed resources.

The WSHC was founded in 1982 to ensure that programs and services were coordinated to create a comprehensive, local continuum of care. With 25 member agencies, the continuum of care coordinated through the coalition provides an array of quality services, avoids duplication and maximizes benefits.

• Emergency shelter
• Showers and lockers
• Transitional housing for individuals and families
• Emergency food
• Emergency clothing
• Housing and services for the mentally ill
• Senior housing and case management
• Job placement and training
• Comprehensive services for veterans
• Permanent housing assistance
• Health care
• Substance abuse counseling and recovery
• HIV/AIDS services
• Domestic violence shelter and counseling
• Educational services
• Legal services

The WSHC actively engages in advocacy, public awareness and education efforts. Member representatives participate in extensive public awareness campaigns, speaking to public officials and community groups throughout the area. The Coalition encourages media coverage on issues impacting the target population as well as coverage of member agencies’ efforts. Volunteer opportunities are collected, compiled and distributed throughout the community.

Catholic Charities

Chrysalis (Employment Training and Placement)

CLARE Foundation

Common Ground-the Westside HIV Community Center

Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center

Edelman Westside Community Mental Health Center

Leo Baeck Temple

Los Angeles Youth Network

Midnight Mission Family Housing

New Directions (Veterans)

Ocean Park Community Center

P.A.T.H. (People Assisting the Homeless)

Santa Monica Unitarian Church

Phoenix House

Saint John’s Health Center

Saint Matthew’s Episcopal Church

Salvation Army/SAMOSHEL

City of Santa Monica

Santa Monica College

SOVA Kosher Food Pantry

St. Joseph Center

Step Up on Second (Dual Diagnosed)

Upward Bound House (Family Housing & Services)

Venice Family Clinic (STD’s & Primary Health)

Westside Food Bank

• Over the last three years, our membership in the Coalition has evolved into a strong leadership role. Common Ground’s Executive Director, Jayne Adams, is a member of WSHC’s Executive Committee and is the Chair of the Programs and Services Committee. In this capacity, Ms. Adams has been able to raise awareness of HIV, harm reduction, and related issues among coalition members and thus improve service accessibility for people living with and at-risk for HIV on the west side of Los Angeles and surrounding communities.

• Common Ground’s Homeless Youth Outreach Team collaborates with "Night Light," the youth outreach team from Ocean Park Community Center, to bring a variety of services to youth living on the streets of Santa Monica and Venice. Westside Family Health Center and Venice Health Center provide primary health services to the youth we encounter.

• Common Ground works with The Westside Food Bank and Brentwood Presbyterian Church to provide food for our clients. Twice a month, every client is able to pick up grocery bags containing nutritious food and hygiene items. This is a vital lifeline for people living with HIV who need good nutrition to help maintain their health.

Every weekday, a volunteer from Project Angel Food delivers hot lunches for several of our clients. Customarily, Project Angel Food delivers food to housed clients, including many clients of Common Ground who receive in-home delivery. Usually, homeless clients cannot access the service since they have no address at which to receive delivery. Because of our partnership with Project Angel Food, clients who are homeless can access the service using Common Ground’s address. The daily food delivery also provides an opportunity for clients to have social interaction as they eat together.

• Through our partnership with the City of Los Angeles’s Office of AIDS, we work with a consortium of other social service agencies to provide our HIV prevention and education services for drug users, including Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Clean Needles Now, Homeless Health Care, Minority AIDS Project, Bienestar Human Services, and Tarzana Treatment Center.

Common Ground is proud to be a member of Positive Images, a consortium of eleven agencies that provide an HIV prevention program for people diagnosed with HIV. Positive Images educates people living with HIV about the role that HIV-positive individuals can play in preventing the further spread of the infection. For additional information about Positive Images, see our Prevention and Outreach page.

 

There are many ways in which companies can build an ongoing relationship with Common Ground. You can sponsor all or part of a special event, make a cash or in-kind contribution, donate a percentage of your proceeds, introduce employees to volunteer opportunities, or join our Board of Directors.

Common Ground wishes to acknowledge the following organizations for their valuable contributions.

Wells Fargo Foundation has made several generous grants to Common Ground and sponsored our Valentine’s Dinners. In recent years, we honored Jonathan Weedman, Vice President

of Wells Fargo Foundation.

SBC Pacific Bell has been a generous supporter of Common Ground. In addition to cash contributions, SBC Pacific Bell has contributed the postage for many of our mailings including our newsletter and year-end appeal.

Medicine Made Easy supports our clients by providing a series of free workshops relating to medication compliance, managing change, journaling, and getting back to work. They provide delicious food for workshop luncheons and other client events.

The Federated support Common Ground’s Teen Peer Education Program with proceeds from the Macy’s Passport Fashion Show and Macy’s In-Store Passport Event.

Canyon Ranch Resorts was a primary sponsor of our 2001 Valentine’s Dinner and Dance. They generously donated

spa packages for our silent auctions.

Michael Lee hosted our October reception at his home on the Malibu bluffs. He also donated beautiful candles for the VIP gift bags for our 10-year anniversary celebration.

Ben Bourgeois was the Principal

Sponsor for Common Ground’s

10-year Anniversary Celebration.

He generously donated all rental items for our anniversary and for the Evening at Michael Lee’s.

Dean Hansell and Jason Murakawa

graciously hosted Common Ground’s

10-year Anniversary Celebration at

their home in Hancock Park.

Strand Releasing sponsored the silent

auction at our ten-year Anniversary

Celebration.

Skyy Citrus was the beverage sponsor for our 10-Year Anniversary Celebration.

Alize was one of the beverage sponsors for An Evening at Michael Lee’s.

Evian (Danone Waters of North America) was one of the beverage sponsors for An Evening at Michael Lee’s.

Capitol Press sponsored the printing of the invitations for our 10-year Anniversary Celebration.

 Thank you to Mark’s Restaurant, Off-Vine, James Beach, and El Cholo of Santa Monica for the delicious food donated for our 10-year Anniversary celebration. Thank you also to Wayne Davis and City Kitchens for the donation

of appetizers and desserts for An Evening with Michael Lee.

Richard Adams, Home Electronics and Shangri La Lighting donated hundreds of hours of labor and materials to help convert an old retail space into our beautiful new community center.

Paston/Rawleigh/Everett graciously donated fine furnishings for our new facility.

St. Matthew’s Church and its parishioners are truly strategic partners with Common Ground. In addition to an annual grant and donations from proceeds earned in the Thrift Store St. Matthew’s parishioners are active throughout the year. They host and serve at our annual Thanksgiving dinner. Recently, they underwrote the cost of our new front doors, purchased attractive furnishings for our community rooms and hosted the Grand Opening and dedication of our new facility. Common Ground’s board and staff have enjoyed the beautiful campus at St. Matthew’s as the venue for retreats and team-building activities.

Saint Monica’s Catholic Church makes annual cash contribution to Common Ground. They host a holiday luncheon and donate backpacks filled with necessities for our clients.

Brentwood Presbyterian Church donates the proceeds from their holiday Angel Store to help improve the quality of life for people living with HIV. Twice a month, volunteers from the church deliver shopping bags filled with food for clients of Common Ground. This food program is a vital lifeline to our clients. The Thursday food delivery days are times of caring and sharing for our community. Our clients receive food and sundry items, but equally important, they have an opportunity to engage in conversation and community building. The camaraderie that they build among themselves is essential to healing the isolation and stigma so often experienced by people living with HIV.

Employees of Peet’s Coffee and Tea of Santa Monica donated their Christmas Eve tips to Common Ground. The Corporate Contributions Department of Peet’s matched those tips.

We are also grateful to Noah’s Bagels, Taco Bell and Gap Foundation for their support of our Teen Peer Education training.

To learn more about the benefits of becoming a corporate partner with Common Ground, please contact our Development Coordinator, Matt Durkan at (310) 314-5496 or email him at mdurkan@commongroundwestside.org