Center Street Shelter
Kitchen Volunteering
Dorothy Day House prepares breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the 1931 Center Street location & transports meals to various locations to serve guests in addition to serving guests at Center St.
Volunteers work with staff members to prepare and portion food, set up for service, serve meals, and clean up afterwards. Kitchen shifts are as follows:
Breakfast: 2 shifts per day, Monday - Saturday
Lunch: 2 shifts, Monday - Sunday
Dinner: 1 shift, Monday - Sunday
Berkeley Community Resource Center (BCRC)
Also working out of the Center St location, BCRC is our service providing showers, laundry, and storage lockers. On average, Dorothy Day House provides 50 showers, 8-10 loads of laundry, and storage for 60 individuals each day. BCRC shifts are as follows:
Clothing Closet: 1 shift per day, Monday/Wednesday/Friday
Beyond the Horizon (BtH)
Beyond the Horizon housing village is one of Dorothy Day House’s shelter programs, located at 742 Grayson Street in Berkeley. We provide shelter, showers, laundry, clothing, meals, and other direct services. As Dorothy Day said, “Food for the Body is not enough—there must be Food for the Soul”. This is our guiding principle at BtH
Lunch and Dinner Shifts:
Meals are cooked at our Center Street location, then transported to BtH. Volunteers receive the food, prep and attend to meal service, wash dishes, prep leftovers for distribution to non-residents, and generally clean up afterward.
Outreach & Pantry
Berkeley Outreach
Every Friday, the outreach team stocks our pantry trailer with shelf-stable groceries, toiletries, and ready-made foods recovered from our myriad partners, then hitches up to the DDH truck. At noon they roll out to multiple homeless encampments in Berkeley and distribute directly to those in need. Our trailer is now recognized as a symbol of support, and is a welcome weekly sight to many.
Richmond Outreach
On the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of each month we take our Outreach trailer rig out to the Castro Street and Rydin Street encampments in Richmond. We distribute food, toiletries, clothing and water.
Parking Lot Pantry
Each Wednesday, coinciding with lunch service, our Parking Lot Pantry is open for business! The pantry is stocked with the same groceries, toiletries, and ready-made foods that are used for our outreach programs. Our community members are invited to stop by, see what’s new, and fill a bag with items of their choice!
DDH x Christ Church Outreach
As part of growing our Outreach program, DDH is partnering with Christ Church to serve the unhoused in locations that our truck and trailer can’t access. Join Bill Barnes (passionate and experienced community support soldier) as he makes the rounds with hot coffee, water, pastries, and hygiene supplies. You'll meet him at Center Street, load up, and get on the road.
Summer Youth Program
*Currently not accepting applications, check back soon for Summer 2023.
Dorothy Day House is offering volunteer opportunities this summer to youth who are interested in giving back to the community in a meaningful way. This program is designed to provide a view to the many facets of our operations, as students will be involved with food prep, meal service, cleaning, stocking, and clothing closet. They will also ride along with staff to partner organizations and assist with pick up of meals and pantry supplies. Everyone is expected to work hard and take initiative!
Who is eligible: Rising high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors
Commitment: One week (Tues-Fri) 7am-1:30pm with lunch provided
Mandatory Orientation: Prior to summer, date TBD (parent/guardian must attend)