The Brother Benno Foundation Center and main offices are located at 3260 Production Avenue in Oceanside, CA. Anyone needing help can come to the Center and register for services provided by the Foundation. Anyone wanting to volunteer their time may also come to the Center and register with our volunteer coordinator, Dixie Bales. Volunteers are needed to help with the daily work at the Center and with special events such as Christmas in July, Back to School, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The Christmas program includes a lovely dinner and a gift line where children are able to see Santa Claus and receive toys sorted into categories for their age and gender. Adults receive hygiene packs and other goodies. As many as 1,200 people have been served at the Center on Christmas Day.

Hygiene
The Brother Benno Center has facilities for hot showers with hygiene products provided for the "guests" (towels, washcloths, soap, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, razors, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, combs, etc.) Donations of hygiene products are always welcome. Two barber's chairs are provided for cutting hair; volunteers with experience in hair cutting/styling are needed to help us with the hygiene needs of our "guests."

Clothing
Donations of clothing are sorted for distribution to our Thrift Store and our Center's Clothing Room. The Thrift Store is located at 3965 Mission Avenue in Oceanside. It is open six days a week (closed on Sundays) for the public to purchase items for a very reasonable price. Our Clothing Room is open for selection of items by our "guests" free of charge. Underwear of all sizes and men's pants are in short supply; donations of these items would be greatly appreciated. Although the winters in California are mild, temperatures fall sharply after the sun goes down. Blankets are given out at the Center on a regular basis. Laundry facilities are also available at the Center. "Guests" can have their laundry done for free; all we ask is for them to donate two hours of their time to help out at the Center.

Food
The Brother Benno Center provides hot meals Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. and on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Sack lunches are also provided. Volunteers and groups of volunteers from various companies, civic groups, and churches help with meal preparation, work on our serving line, and assemble the sack lunches. Bread, pastries, and various items of produce and dairy products are donated to the Center and made available to our "guests" daily. Due to our site use permit restrictions, we cannot serve an evening meal at the Brother Benno Center. We provide to our "guests" a list of Soup Kitchens in the area where hot evening meals are served.

Families with cooking facilities and children (under 18 years of age) are eligible to obtain a food pack once a month. The food packs contain approximately twenty-five pounds of food, including items such as rice, pasta, soups, canned fruits and vegetables, cereal, and fresh whole milk. Families can come to the Center to pick up the food packs or if they do not have transportation or cannot come to the Center for some reason, our case manager takes food packs to four resource centers set up by the City of Oceanside for distribution. Donations of items for our food packs and volunteers to help assemble food packs would be greatly appreciated.

Transportation
Bus passes for medical appointments and job interviews can be obtained at the Center. Wouchers for gasoline are also available.

Identification/Driver's License
The Center assists people in obtaining their birth certificates and replacing lost or stolen identifications and driver's licenses.

Mail/Telephone Service
Homeless people may use the Brother Benno Center as a mailing address and come to the Center to receive their mail. Local telephone calls may be made free of charge at the Center. Long distance services are provided for free on Thanksgiving and Christmas for people to call their families.

Case Management
As part of our "hand-up, not hand-out" policy, we have case managers at the Center who work with our "guests" to assist them in finding the resources they need to better their circumstances in life. We work with many local agencies to assist our "guests" We have on-site representation from the Veteran's Administration, County Mental Health, and Safe Havens, a residential program for dual diagnosis (mental illness and drug addiction).

Legal Assistance
A local attorney volunteers his services at the Center on Thursday mornings to assist our "guests" and program members with legal issues.

Shelter
The Foundation provides shelter for homeless men on a three-day basis at the Good Samaritan House. While staying at the Good Samaritan House, "guests" have access to all of the other services provided by the Foundation. Shelter for homeless women and women with children is provided at the Martha Ann Mary house, a 30-day limit emergency shelter. For everyone's safety, all "guests" at our shelters must submit to drug testing and test clean to be allowed entry.

Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation Program
The Foundation does not do detoxification, however, we work with local agencies to place people in detox centers. People coming into our alcohol and drug rehabilitation program must be clean and sober for three days prior to admittance and there is a no tolerance alcohol and drug policy (no relapses are allowed). The program is structured in three phases using the 12-Steps of Alcoholics and Narcotics Anonymous. They attend AA and/or NA meetings, get a sponsor, and work the 12-steps of the program. They are required to work with an alcohol and drug counselor and a case manager. During phase I and II, the program members learn work ethics and responsibility by working with our staff at the Center, helping to serve the poor and homeless. During Phase III, the program members work outside of the foundation, developing job skills and self esteem, while continuing to live in the Foundation's clean and sober living environment. In this phase they continue going to AA/NA meetings and working the 12-step program. They are required to save a set percentage of their money. When they are emotionally ready and financially able to support themselves, they are graduated from the program. The men's alcohol and drug rehabilitation program is solidly in place, the women's program is still in the planning stages, with only a "sober living" house in place at this time. Women must be clean and sober for sixty days and have a job to be eligible for placement in the sober living environment. We are in need of volunteers to help us plan and implement the Phase I and II parts of the women's program and women to serve as House Managers.