Sierra Roots offers weekly meals and clothing to people who are homeless. Clothing, including socks and shoes, is available every week. Individuals can get clothing once every two weeks.

During winter months, lunch served on Thursdays at 11:30am at the First Community Church at 300 Main Street, Nevada City. 

During summer months, Thursday lunches are served at 11:30am at Pioneer Park, 421 Nimrod Street in Nevada City in the picnic area near the horseshoe pits.

NOTE: Sierra Roots does not provide motel vouchers or gas cards.

CalFresh is a food supplement program, formerly known as Food Stamps or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), that helps qualified individuals obtain nutritious food.

ELIGIBILITY 
Many CalFresh customers work and are considered low income. Others may be unable to work due to lack of work or inability to work; individuals receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI and SSD), and Social Security are eligible for CalFresh. Individuals receiving or authorized to receive SSI/SSP (Supplemental Security Income/State Supplemental Payment) are eligible for CalFresh, provided all other eligibility criteria are met. 

Visit GetCalFresh.org to apply or call 877-847-3663 (FOOD) to be connected to your local county social service office.

APPLYING
To apply, an application can be completed online at https://benefitscal.com/ or in-person at the Nevada County Social Services office. Next, an interview will be conducted by an Eligibility worker wher… [read more]

2023 CalFresh Market Money (also known as Market Match) runs June 3 - Nov 18, 2023

Spend CalFresh dollars at Western Nevada County Farmers Markets and receive up to a $15 match per market every week. Come to the Farmers Market booth, show EBT card and photo ID (must be a Nevada County resident), then Market Match tokens will be given to match EBT purchases (up to $15). Tokens can be used to buy food at participating farm stands. Market Match will be available at the TUESDAY and SATURDAY and markets. See times and locations below. Details different for Truckee market - see below.

Market Money can be used June 3 - Nov 18, 2023. Dates below are for the entire farmers market summer and fall season.

2023 Farmers Markets offering this program:

TUESDAY MARKET
Grass Valley – Pine Creek Shopping Center, near Jamba Juice, 650 Freeman Lane, Grass Valley, CA 95949
May 2 – September 12, 9am-1pm

SATURDAY MARKET
Grass Valley - Pine Creek Shopping Center – JCPenney parking lot, 732 F… [read more]

The San Juan Ridge Family Resource Center (FRC) provides families in the San Juan Ridge area with information and referrals to local resources, services, and facilities on a drop-in basis for visitors of all ages.

NOTE: The FRC does NOT have any housing resources and does NOT have any gift cards, gas cards, etc.

Services the FRC does offer include computer, phone, fax, printer, children's play space, clothes closet, laundry station, food pantry, diapers, lending and reference libraries, information, referrals, parenting support, weekly children's playgroup, summer camps and periodic events.  
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This is a Ready to Grow (R2G) resource. Ready to Grow is a First 5 Nevada County program to connect children 0-5 with services and information that support their well-being. Organizations with programs that have this R2G tag may have additional programs of interest to families.

Spirit Peer Empowerment Center offers support groups for people experiencing homelessness and/or mental health challenges.

Support services include:

• Staff can administer naloxone NARCAN in case of opioid overdose (naloxone is the drug, NARCAN is a brand)
• Housing Circle - assists with completing low income apartment applications, Craigslist searching, housing advocacy, and more. Call 530-274-1431 for meeting time info.
• WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan) education, an eight week course supporting individuals to succeed at the goals they set for themselves, including looking at triggers and addictions and ways to get beyond them
• Food distribution to those in need
• Hot showers for program participants - They offer 5 showers per day, 10am-1:30pm. It's recommended to be there a bit before they open at 10am to get one as they are first come, first served. Shower is ADA-compliant, but not roll in. Please notify in advance if needed.
• Laundry facilities for program…

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United Way of Nevada County allocates donated funds from annual fundraising campaign to qualified Nevada County non-profit human service organizations; forwards donor designated funds to non-profit health and human service organizations; collaborates with local government, education, local businesses and humans service organizations.

Programs include:

• ​Farm and Field Workers Relief (FFWR) Program - a one-time payment of $600 to Farm, Field and Livestock workers who incurred expenses preparing for, preventing exposure to, and responding to COVID-19.  https://uwnc.org/farmworkers-program
• MED-Project - program to help dispose of expired or unwanted medication, inhalers, and sharps. They are now able to provide pre-paid envelopes and sharps containers to anyone in need. Please come by our office to pick up envelopes or containers.  Please note that this is NOT a medication drop-off- They do not take your items, but provide you with a safe, …

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Any Nevada County resident who has a current positive test result for COVID-19 or who has long COVID may be eligible for some County services if they have no other support available from family or friends. Positive test result can be from a testing site or a home antigen test. If a home test, a public health nurse will determine if a PCR/on site test is needed. People in these situations can call 211 to be put on a list. County staff will contact them to see if they can assist with services.

All COVID-19 support referrals received over the weekend or on holidays will be reviewed the next business day (regular hours are Mon-Fri 8am-5pm excluding holidays). Hotel rooms are not available as an isolation resource.
 
For people with a current positive COVID test result, the County may be able to provide supplies that can be ordered online for delivery:

• groceries
• toiletries
• diapers
• cleaning supplies

For COVID-19 test kits call Nevada County COVID-19 Nurse Line at 530-265-7258 and arrange f… [read more]

211 provides information about Food Banks and Pantries and Congregate Meals.

FOOD BANK OF NEVADA COUNTY
Check website for holiday distribution dates and times
November 2023 distributions will be Thu 11/16 and Thu 11/30 (closed Thu 11/23 for Thanksgiving)
Grass Valley
2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month from 10am-12pm
Grass Valley Seventh Day Adventist Church
12889 Osborn Hill Rd, GV
 
North San Juan
2nd Tuesday of each month from 10am-12pm
Oak Tree School
18847 Oak Tree Rd, North San Juan, CA 95960
 
Town of Washington
3rd Wednesday of each month at 12pm
Washington Fire Dept
15406 Washington Rd, Washington

Higgins
3rd Thursday of each month from 3:30-5:30pm
United Methodist Church
22559 W Hacienda Dr, Grass Valley, CA 95945

Truckee
Tuesday from 4pm-5pm
12116 Chandelle Way, Suite, D2, Truckee, CA
Call to confirm if weather or other factors might affect distributions. 775-545-4083
 
GOLD COUNTRY SENIOR SERVICES

• Meals on Wheels is delivering on Tuesdays and Thursdays (no deliveries on week…

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The SAFE (Stability, Access, Foundation, Empowerment) program is committed to finding, and helping youth ages 12 -26 who are experiencing homelessness.

Many youth experiencing homelessness do not have access to local or state funding, or simply don’t know what services are available. And few nonprofit organizations in the region are able to help. SAFE fills the gap by connecting youth who have alternative, unpredictable, or inconsistent housing access with community resources and well-trained professionals.

SAFE helps mitigate homelessness in Nevada County by providing:

• Basic needs, such as food, clothing, housing, hygiene supplies, showers
• Education and training, including transitioning to college and/or trade school
• Physical health and mental wellness counseling
• Training to develop the necessary skills to live independently

Call FREED at 530-477-3333 for a screening to learn if you are eligible for food home delivery due to inability to leave your home to get your own groceries. For seniors and people with disabilities who have absolutely no way to get to a food distribution anywhere.