Dear Friend,

Our Saint Olga Respite Care Association has been caring for houseless patients this past year in Corvallis, Oregon where we are incorporated. We received our 501(c)3 IRS non-profit status last November and have reached out to several foundations for funding. This funding provides us with a small portion of our annual budget. Thanks to the members of Saint Anne Orthodox Church, several generous donors and contributions from members of other Orthodox churches in Oregon, we were able to raise $12,000 in 2022.

We have used our funds to care for several houseless neighbors by providing respite care and support services, which included Emergency Room visits, hospital visits as well as transportation, meals and the most important part of our mission: friendship, care and companionship. Our mission, which is to care for the houseless who are ill, or in outpatient medical or surgical treatment. This care is provided in The Commons (a motel which has been converted into a transitional housing facility), as well as in assisted living facilities, clinics, crisis centers, ERs and hospitals. We collaborate with several community nonprofits including the Corvallis Daytime Drop-In Center; Faith, Hope and Charity; Unity Shelters; and the Benton County Harm Reduction team. Each of these organizations have expressed strong support for our services which are nowhere else available.

While we hope to make it possible for our medically compromised neighbors who have no housing to become medically stable, this is a daunting task without a facility dedicated to providing beds, meals, wrap-around services and companionship. Even without this, however, we have built strong relationships with many clients. We maintain friendship with our clients on an ongoing basis and recently hosted past and present clients at our annual Greek Fest.

Our volunteer staff, supported by our Board of Directors, consists of: Alice Carter, Secretary and fundraiser; Jeannie Otto, occupational therapist; Joshua G, office manager and outreach worker; Ruby Baker and Vicki Davis, our respite care providers. We work closely with Chris Gray from the Benton County Harm Reduction team and Fredrick Edwards of Faith, Hope and Charity. Our parishioners at St. Anne’s, our collaborators at Faith, Hope and Charity, the staff at the Corvallis Daytime Drop-In Center, Allison Hobgood and her fellow workers are our leaders and teachers in loving our neighbors. We hope you will join us during the Nativity/ Christmas season by contributing your support in whatever way is possible, whether in financial donations, supplies, volunteering or in any other way.

Faithfully yours,

Gregory Riutzel, President.

IRS EIN: 85-3487067