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The Common Good Project

The Common Good Project (TCGP) is a program working under the nonprofit Trash for Peace (TFP). What does this mean? It means that TCGP can get public funding and grants for its projects and have assistance running its programs so that the focus can be on our work on the streets and have the support of TFP when it comes to administrative duties. 

The Common Good Project is a year-round service organization whose mission is to stabilize, enrich, and transform the lives of Portland’s homeless residents through meaningful city waste removal work that builds self-esteem, personal agency, and community, ultimately creating pathways toward more stable lives. It employs homeless team members with a dignified wage and partners them with volunteers from our housed community to conduct large-scale waste removal from street camps, followed by regularly scheduled maintenance. In so doing, we connect diverse members of our community in the shared goal of caring for each other and our city.

The Common Good Project was born during the fall of 2020, when former restaurateur and cookbook author, Jenn Louis, noticed an increase in the number of homeless people in her neighborhood and throughout the city. In response, she started a community-funded project, regularly providing basic living necessities such as hot meals, non-perishable food, batteries, hygiene products, shoes, and clothing to a group of 30-40 homeless people. Since then, she has been on the streets up to five days each week, helping this same core group of people meet their basic needs. As a result of her persistence and care, she has built lasting trust and community among a stigmatized and oft-neglected population. 

Despite the support Jenn provided, she still noticed that accrued waste was a lingering problem. With a $5,000 grant from Metro, she turned this problem into a new opportunity to help her homeless neighbors. Cleaning equipment was purchased, dumpsters rented, and a clean-up crew recruited from the homeless groups Jenn worked with. They were provided with transportation, lunch breaks, and a living wage for a 4-hour shift (20$/hour). Over the span of 10 days, team members were able to clear ten tons of trash and were motivated to continue working. The Common Good Project plans to expand its initial pilot program into a year-round operation. Many Havurahniks have volunteered in a variety of ways over these last few years. 

For more on TCGP, please check out the Trash for Peace website in January, 2023, when their website updates should be completed.

Thu, March 28 2024 18 Adar II 5784