((L-R) Greg Watson and Jenny Pence, both Business Development team members for Simplicity by Hayden Homes, Mountain View Community Development Executive Director Rick Russell, and Jenn Kovitz, community engagement and government affairs manager for Hayden Homes, visit the nonprofit’s Safe Parking & Microshelters site at Community Presbyterian Church in Redmond | Photo courtesy of Mountain View Community Development)
On November 26, Hayden Homes and Simplicity by Hayden Homes announced a $10,000 match for donations to Mountain View Community Development, a nonprofit that operates Central Oregon’s largest Safe Parking and Microshelters Program for unhoused people.
Mountain View Community Development (MVCD) has sites in Redmond and Bend where people can either legally stay in their RVs or a small garden shed-sized structure with heating and cooling. Participants work with case managers to create a path back to permanent housing. And the safe parking programs is working. MVCD is close to rehousing its 100th person.
The matching gift from Hayden Homes comes at an opportune time, said Rick Russell, the nonprofit’s executive director. Mountain View Community Development is facing a $237,500 loss of funding from the state of Oregon. The nonprofit is currently running a year-end fundraising campaign with a goal of $25,000. Having a match will make every donor’s contribution go further, he said.
“We appreciate Hayden Homes’ generosity and ongoing support,” Russell added. “Simplicity by Hayden Homes continues to be an incredible partner in the development of our permanent supportive housing village, and this gift from Simplicity and Hayden Homes goes above and beyond.
“Both of our organizations are committed to housing solutions, at different points along the spectrum of need, and it is encouraging to see a local company that genuinely cares about our neighbors and wants to build a strong community, just like we do.”
Just in time for Giving Tuesday (December 2), individual and corporate donors can make their dollars go further thanks to the matching Hayden Homes gift by donating at safeparkingworks.org.
“Most of us will never experience homelessness and living outside without heat during the holiday season,” said Deborah Flagan, VP of Community Engagement for Hayden Homes. “By supporting Mountain View Community Development there is a legal option for our unhoused neighbors to safely park and live in their vehicles and RVs with staff support to help connect to essential services. Hayden Homes and Simplicity’s $10,000 match is meant to inspire our community to support this safe and reliable option while they search for permanent housing.”
Safe parking and microshelters are an essential and extremely cost-effective alternative to traditional dorm-style shelters. For domestic violence and assault survivors, as well as individuals with children or pets, MVCD offers much-needed safety, privacy, and autonomy.
“The assistance I’ve gained from Safe Parking has been emotional and spiritual, right along with a safe place to put my trailer,” said Jon Stoneman, a former Safe Parking participant now in his own apartment.
“It’s allowed us to have security,” added Dino Antonucci, a current Safe Parking participant. “Because of what Safe Parking is doing for us, we can still live our lives.”
Hayden Homes was founded in 1989 in Redmond, Oregon, where the company remains headquartered today. The largest privately owned home builder in the Northwest, Hayden Homes has contributed more than $80 million in charitable donations, including through its flagship nonprofit, First Story.
Mountain View Community Development is a nonprofit organization that empowers people to leave homelessness by providing safe community, personalized case management, and pathways to permanent housing.
