Help Us Provide Hygiene Kits for Unhoused Youth in Santa Clara County by Jan. 24

By the Valley Water Youth Commission

Youth Homelessness is seen as a rising issue in the United States. It has seen a big increase, especially in Santa Clara County in the past few years. There are many reasons why youth can end up homeless, from insufficient income to financial struggles. So the question is: What can we do to help?

To preface, here are some facts from the Bill Wilson Center on the unhoused youth population in Santa Clara County:

• Youth and young adults make up 12% of the unhoused population in the County
• San Jose has the highest per capita youth/young adult homelessness in the United States
• 42% of children from the Valley live in households that aren't self-sufficient
• There are 500+ families waitlisted for shelter
• In 2023, homeless families increased by 36.5% in the county

Centers like the Bill Wilson Center are trying to make an impact via housing programs, support and counseling services, and outreach. They also have a drop-in center for youth to provide meals, education, training and more.

The Valley Water Youth Commission is motivated to help unsheltered youth throughout the county with getting their day-to-day necessities. In order to help, we are partnering with the Bill Wilson Center to host a hygiene kit drive to collect hygiene products that we can distribute to unsheltered youth in Santa Clara County. We invite the community to support the hygiene kit drive by donating supplies through our Amazon Wishlist portal here: delivr.com/27tsn.

With your donation by January 24, we will assemble eco-friendly hygiene kits. Our goal is to develop at least 100 kits with an assortment of:

• Hand soap
• Sanitizer
• Oral hygiene products - toothbrush, paste
• Bandaids
• Shampoo
• Conditioner
• Tissues
• Feminine hygiene supplies
• You Are the Solution to Water Pollution brochure
• And more

We hope you join us in making an impact, spreading the word about environmental protection, and lending a helping hand to the unhoused youth in our community. Please feel free to email [email protected] with any questions.