As part of our outreach to the local community, St. Monica regularly contributes to and volunteers with organizations that serve the local poor, particularly the homeless.
We currently support on a regular basis two organizations, the St. Robert Center Weekend Food Pantry in Venice and the St. Francis Center in downtown Los Angeles. Do watch here for news on other volunteering opportunities.
Contact: Delis Alejandro | (310) 566-1530 |
St. Robert’s Center Weekend Food Pantry: Saturday, March 23, 2024. Contact Annette at
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires a point-in-time count of people experiencing homelessness. In 2016, LAHSA started hosting the Homeless Count annually to provide improved analysis regarding the trends of people experiencing homelessness. Government agencies, including LAHSA, use the data collected during the Homeless Count to develop strategies to end homelessness and determine where funding and resources will do the most good.
In 2024, eight thousand volunteers will spread out across the 4,000 square miles of Los Angeles County in late January to conduct the Unsheltered Count. Traveling in small groups, volunteers will tally the number of unsheltered individuals, tents, vehicles, and make-shift shelters they see in their assigned census tract. The Unsheltered Count will begin on Tuesday, January 23, in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys. Volunteers in East and West Los Angeles will count on Wednesday, January 24. Finally, the Count will wrap up Thursday, January 25, in the Antelope Valley, Metro, and South Los Angeles.
St. Monica Catholic Community will once again host the Santa Monica count on Wednesday, January 24, 2024 from 8pm to 12midnight. Volunteers will be needed to help welcome, check in and help prep and serve refreshments.
Also, note that the timing for this year’s count in Santa Monica is different. Counters will gather for an orientation and then count from 8pm to 12 midnight. It will not be the midnight to 3am experience from past years.
To register to count in Santa Monica or any part of Los Angeles County visit https://www.theycountwillyou.org/
To volunteer to help host the event at St. Monica please contact Delis at
We partner with Catholic Charities at the St. Robert’s Center, helping to prepare and distribute meals, toiletries, and clothing to the homeless in our community. The St. Robert’s Center fills a very critical need in our area—since its inception many years ago, the St. Robert’s Center has been the only weekend food pantry on the Westside. Every six weeks, volunteers serve on Saturday, preparing sack lunches for needy people and distributing clothing and toiletries as needed.
To volunteer contact Annette at
The volunteer shift is from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m., and the Center has instituted health & safety precautions (gloves, masks, social distancing, and a contactless “Grab & Go” distribution). We may collect items that the Center especially needs at particular points during the year.
Volunteers will set up the outdoor distribution tables; prepare, pack & distribute sack lunches to clients; serve coffee, and clean up at the end of the morning. Volunteers can also distribute toiletries and clothing when items are available.
Check out the St. Robert’s Center Website by CLICKING HERE!
Since 2012, participants of our JustFaith program have served homeless and near-homeless members of the underserved community at St. Francis Center (SFC) in downtown L.A. We work with the Order of Malta, preparing and serving breakfast for up to 300 individuals several Saturdays each month.
On our scheduled Saturdays we need seven (7) volunteers from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Have you never done this before? Don’t worry—we’ll teach you everything you need to know!
To reserve your spot, please get in touch with Dennis Hardwick at .
If all goes well, we hope to make this a regular commitment and would love for you to be a part of it.
SFC provides a hearty breakfast to our guests! You’ll be helping to prepare and distribute meals in a Grab & Go process.
On a typical Saturday, we prepare turkey bacon, eggs, grilled vegetables, toast, fruit parfait (or comparable), coffee, and water for approximately 170 guests. We arrive between 6:30 & 6:45 a.m. The Center distributes “to-go” containers at 8:15 a.m. service ends at about 9:30 a.m. We then cleaned up and completed our work at about 10:30 a.m.
The mission of St. Francis Center, founded in 1972, is to serve homeless and near homeless families and individuals in the underserved neighborhoods of Greater Los Angeles in the manner of St. Francis of Assisi by (1) serving their immediate needs;(2) educating, empowering and accompanying them; (3) providing them with the tools necessary to build better lives and neighborhoods; and (4) addressing the systemic causes of poverty through advocacy.
Visit SFC at St. Francis Center Los Angeles - Serving Hope to learn more.