SLVH Employees Sort and Fold Clothing for the Homeless

In the spring of 2019, members of the Alamosa community came together to create the Homeless Coalition. The goal of the Coalition is to address issues such as non-sheltered person’s exposure and possible death due to the subzero temperatures existing in the San Luis Valley.

Shanae Diaz, Director for Volunteer Coordination, along with other members of the La Puente team, established contact with Steve Hills, owner of Glenn Army Surplus in Colorado Springs. Steve generously donated bags and boxes of army surplus cold weather gear and clothing such as hats, gloves, boots, pants, and jackets.

Coalition member Kelly Gallegos, Senior Administrator at San Luis Valley Health, spread the word throughout the SLVH organization of a need for volunteers to aid in sorting, folding and organizing the cold weather gear. Many San Luis Valley Health employees showed up and made quick work of unloading and sorting the 45-50 bags and 10-15 boxes of clothing that arrived on short notice.

This clothing will have a significant impact on the lives of the homeless population in Alamosa that may not be able to find somewhere warm to sleep or choose not to seek shelter. Alamosa is without a “warming shelter” and the Coalition is addressing this gap in services.

The clothing gathered and sorted by the Homeless Coalition and volunteers will be distributed by La Puente.