Transition Projects

Incredible group of passionate nonprofit leaders making a daily difference in our community. Transition Projects is truly stellar.

They do amazing work! I have volunteered with them and the experienced was great. Organized, with good intentions, and the results to back it up. Really good people.

My wife and I started volunteering with Transitions Project several months again. From the start, they made it easy for us to find roles that truly made us feel useful in our community. We currently volunteer in the sack lunch program and in the mail room. We’ve have nothing but positive interactions with the staff and its also been great to see how many resources they offer to our community. If you are looking for a volunteering opportunity that has a lot of options for you to help our, Transitions Project is a great place to start!

As a volunteer art teacher at the Willamette Center, I am grateful for the opportunity to bring a few hours a month of fun and self-expression to residents who enroll for my workshops. It is clear that the center is a great resource for our community, helping those
experiencing homelessness to have a safe and welcoming place to be while awaiting placement in housing. Southeast Uplift awarded me a grant to provide art supplies for classes and these funds have enabled me and my co-teachers to continue this experience for the shelter residents. I am happy to be able to give back to my community in this way.

Wonderful learning experience, great organization!

Transition Projects is the most amazing organization designed specifically to aid the homeless in whatever way possible. They are Portland's largest and best facility with a staff that puts itself on the line for those that they are serving. I highly recommend them for any homeless services.

I have been volunteering as a meal provider with TPI for about 5 years. This is an organization I am absolutely committed to as a volunteer because I believe in their mission to help people out of homelessness. I have watched many faces come in and go out of the transitional housing program, and the transformations are truly inspiring. Portland is very fortunate to have such a wonderful organization working for our community.

I have been involved with Transition Projects, mainly the Bud Clark Commons, for about a year. Mainly this has been working with a group that provides a dinner twice a month, but more recently collaborating to start an employment program as well. TPI has been very supportive and is in the process of hiring staff to strengthen their effort in job training and placement. The whole staff is dedicated and professional. I have very high expectations on the success of the employment program.

I have volunteered with TPI for over a year at both the Bud Clark Center and Jean's Place and have had nothing but positive experiences. I am constantly impressed at the how dedicated staff and and other volunteers are to assisting and helping clients succeed. TPI is a great organization that cares and gets results!

Transition Projects has been a great organization to volunteer for. Providing meals at the Clark Center has been an amazing team building tool and a great opportunity to provide for those in need. I appreciate the communications Sam Haffey sends out to inform us of other ways to get involved.

I've been involved with Transition Projects as a volunteer for several years now, helping to feed the transient men staying at Bud Clarks Commons their evening meals each month; leading a clothing drive through my Pearl Rotary club to collect warm clothes for these homeless men, and meeting with some of these men to help them search for work. All these activities and more services are offered in a highly organized and effective way by the staff of Transition Project with the assistance of many volunteers such as myself. Transition Projects is a leader in addressing one of the more critical social problems in this community -- homelessness.

We have been BLESSED to help serve meals at Portland's Transition Projects. It is a work we do because WE KNOW it helps so many people! We are in the process of combining with other companies/churches to fast for 24 hours raising money for each hour we don't eat so others can eat on the weekend of Feb 21-22, 2014. We call it "The 1440 Project" in honor of the 1,440 minutes in a day... and trying to feed one homeless person every minute of one day. We are a small church and we could use some help with this. please contact us at 503-632-5554 and ask for Larry. TOGETHER we can reach the goal of feeding the less fortunate. I absolutely would never put so much into a non profit if I didn't see what it does to truly SAVE LIVES! I cannot express enough the importance of Transition Projects Inc. They are life savers.

Larry Deyoe
Director of Youth and Education
Trinity Lutheran Church
Oregon City, Oregon

TPI is a fantastic organization. I have worked with several staff members on a variety of projects and am constantly impressed with the level of effort and commitment. They are professional, dedicated and hard working, which makes TPI one of the most effective agencies in this arena. I hope to always stay involved in some capacity.

Our family has been volunteering at the Clark Center since my daughter was in kindergarten. Most of the time it is meal preparation and serving. BUT, my son did his Eagle Scout project for the Clark Center. And my daughter belongs to NCL, which works with Transition Projects. Of all the places we have ever volunteered, the Clark Center is by for the most satisfying. When you are done, it really feels like you have helped. My children (now teenagers) actually get excited when we are going to serve a meal there! How is that for a recommendation.

I volunteered at TPI each week for about a year in their housing facility at the Bud Clark Commons. Their organization is outstanding. Each week the amount of people that are helped through their efforts is truly amazing. In the Portland area from housing to winter coats, TPI makes a BIG difference. I'm constantly amazed by the wonderful services they provide and will continue to volunteer in the years ahead. God Bless.

I've volunteered at Transitions Projects several times to assist them with some specific areas of need. I always get a joy of helping those in need and the folks that use their services are so appreciative. I've helped individuals write resumes so they can have a good chance of entering the workforce. I've always had a positive experience with this nonprofit!

Rick Benevento

I have been serving dinner at Transition Projects since 1992. I have brought my daughters campfire group and my son's cub scout troupe to serve as well. This is one of the best volunteer experiences you can have. You cook and serve a dinner to men (or woman if you are at the woman's shelter) and are able to see the impact your work has immediately. The shelters are always very organized and well maintained. The staff is friendly and helpful. The mission of this organization, to help individuals transition from homeless to housing means you are part of a positive change in many lives. I recommend volunteering at Transition Projects for adults, families or groups seeking a positive, impactful experience.

My family has volunteered serving meals for several years. We are always impressed with the quality of critically needed services they provide and the professionalism and commitment of the staff.

Transition Projects is an oasis in the lives of those who care just enough about themselves to make their lives better. The staff is a community of caring, hard working individuals. They pull together strong toward a steady force for change, in every aspect (emotional, physical, job sets) of the transition from homelessness.

The commitment and dedication of the Transition Projects staff is an evolving force in the city of Portland. They continually find ways to reach people, exploring ways to help their lives move in a positive direction. This is a great organization providing support and connection.

I've been a volunteer preparing and serving food in the men's shelter several times a year for 20 years. The great work these folks do to help people who are victims of homelessness is truly remarkable. The respect, dignity and compassion of the staff and their commitment to help others is evident every day at TPI. They work with thousands of people every year to help lift them up. They also work on advocacy at the State and City level to improve services and expand reach.

Through Hillsdale Community Church we have donated supper monthly, for 90 homeless men for 30 years. I help with the cooking and sometimes with the shopping. This is a fulfilling effort to help those who are in need and hungry. Many times we get a standing ovations for an excellent delicious meal!

The lengths that the staff and volunteers go to in order to help our homeless community members is amazing. Transition Projects engages the individuals that utilize their resources in a variety of ways. I was really impressed to see that they had client art work up for First Thursday(S) and invited the public to come in and take a look. I really enjoy the variety of volunteer opportunities they have as well, from coat drives, to sorting donations and cooking meals. I am very proud that my Partner works for such a great organization and comes home fulfilled each day. Keep up the good work everyone! PS: I just got back from volunteering today! :0)

I volunteered at the Transition Projects through a school club and it was honestly one of the best volunteer experiences I've ever had. As a club, we've volunteered a lot for other food service charity organizations, but with the Transition Projects, having the ability to also cook and plan the meals we served added a whole new dimension. The Transition Projects provided me with a truly valuable experience!

This is a great organization! I am president of a club at our school and we will have volunteered at Transition Projects 4 times by the end of this month. Everyone has a great experience every time they volunteer with Transition Projects. It encourages more volunteering and club activity and has been labeled as the most rewarding experience we provide by almost all of our members that have participated in this event.

Transition Projects is the best chance a homeless person has to getting their life back on track. These guys give housing, food, clothing and inspiration to homeless men so they may get back in the work force and make it on their own. They a responsible for many men who can say they were once homeless but found a way out. God Bless these guys.

The Transition Projects povides help for those that normally would not get help and are often ignored and looked down upon. Their new facility The Bud Clark Commons is a clean and beautiful building. Unlike other shelters I have visited that are dark and depressing, the Bud Clark Commons is so nice it looks like a new hotel. Their positive friendly staff is great and provides an uplifting environment for people who need to feel better about themselves. I volunteer for their annual Coat and Blanket Drive. Every year many companies around the Portland Metro area take donations of Coats and Blankets, so that men, women, and children stay warm with coats and blankets throughout the winter months. They also have other drives throughout the year the supply hygene products and other supplies to people in need. Their services include shelter, clothing, food, and job skills to people who could not get help otherwise. I cannot say enough about the Transition Projects and their help to the homeless. They are the Best!!! Cathy B

Transition Projects does amazing work with all homeless people regardless of age, gender, lenght of time on the street, etc..... I have been a volunteer team leader for 8 years and I love it. To see them mens smiling faces while serving dinner and to see the faces light up when you talk to them and treat them like the human beings they are is an awesome feeling. TPI has helped so many in so many ways, big and small. They offer people a place to take a shower, wash their laundry, a computer room with volunteers to help with resume's and job searches all the way up to helping people find permanent housing. I really appreciate how much they work with our Veterans too! Thank you TPI for all you do!

Transition Projects is a non profit provider of homeless services. It is an awesome place to volunteer time and serve Portland's most needy. The staff is amazing and always a pleasure to work with. I look forward to each opportunity to work with them. Volunteering is a very rewarding experience. I always feel blessed by the experience.

I've toured several of Transition Projects buildings and volunteered at one of them. I'm impressed by their phenomenal facilities, fantastic and friendly staff, and abundance of services offered to their clients!

Transition Projects, Inc., is an amazing resource for the homeless in the greater Portland area. Professional staff, incredible facility (Bud Clark Commons). TPI provides a variety of services to help people transition from homelessness to housing by providing basic needs (food, clothing, training, self-care, laundry facility, storage, mailboxes). It's an honor to be involved both as a volunteer and a freelance designer.

For twenty plus years I have volunteered at Transition Projects. I have cooked and served meals, taught classes and served on the board. I have seen the outstanding care and skill of a remarkable staff. These folks truly do help people transition from homelessness to housing. People are offered access to new skills, respect and opportunity. The agency has grown from the basement of an urban church to three dignified, clean, safe and respectful buildings offering services and compassion to all. Transition Projects, Inc. consistently changes lives for the better.

A great place where we help people help themselves. They offer laundry, showers, training, counseling, and so much more. I have great pride in the time I spend there helping my fellow people.

This incredible nonprofit serves as a life-changing organization to so many clients in the Portland Metropolitan area. In a small, but significant, way we are able to help support this wonderful organization as we provide meals to clients at the Bud Clark Center, Jean's Place and the Clark Center. Volunteers are eager to help as the reward of appreciation is outstanding. The Staff is friendly, helpful and do an amazing job to support their clients as they prepare to move their lives in a positive direction. Ginny Utti, volunteer

Many years ago I was a resident at TPI's womens shelter. At that time I was working with the A&D counselor to modify my behavior and to create a goal that I could be accountable for. This has helped me to not only gain sobriety but it has enabled me to remain Clean& sober for more than six years now. I have been enrolled in college and remained consistant in my efforts to gain education and one day return to TPI and work with other women who are faceing life challenges. I am currently once again being assisted by TPI because they are letting me do my internship at the same facility that I used to live at. I hope to one day be employed at TPI and I am at this time a candidate for employment in several positions there. I will be working toward my masters degree and one day soon I will be able to say that through the programs and efforts offered at TPI once again I am able to live an independant life free of my past mistakes. As a student at Marylhurst University I am learning how faceing our past and accepting our mistakes we are able to help other to do the same. At TPI and the many branches of help they offer I believe that I will one day realize my dream.

This center helps people change their lives from being part of the problem to part of the solution. What could be better than that? Mike

I volunteered to cook and serve meals once a month for the Clark Men's Center in Portland and got to know several of the staff very well. The organization is very well run and the staff truly care about their clients. They worked very hard to meet the needs of the men and to make the center a warm and comfortable place. They also made it easy for groups to come in and cook meals in their kitchen, and helped us throughout that process.

As a middle school and high school teacher both in the secular and religious community, I have taken many groups to serve meals at each of the three Transition Projects' shelters: Clark Center, Jean's Place, and what used to be the Glisan Center. Not only did the TP staff make it easy for us to arrange to volunteer by responding quickly to scheduling requests, but all the staff was welcoming once we arrived at the shelters. The truly exceptional part of these experiences came from serving the residents. Each time they were polite and appreciative and made our teens and preteens feel at ease. The applause at the end always made our group feel special. Often my students recount years later how meaningful the shelter feed experience was and how it transformed their views about volunteering and put a face to homelessness. Often they approached the experience with trepidation, but by the end of the evening expressed surprise at how comfortable they felt while interacting with the residents and how motivated they were to continue helping in this way. There are so few opportunities for young people to directly serve people in need in our community; more often they are left to do fundraising or donation drives. Taking students to Transition Projects is my "go to" when trying to teach the value of volunteering!

Our youth group was looking for a way to help others. As young people they felt helpless seeing needs around them and not being able to serve. We have been serving dinner for over a year, every month. One 7th grader (who has not missed a single month of service) told me this is the best things she does all month. She loves it so much she changed her birthday party because we were serving on that date. Our kids cook everything from scratch (including dessert), take it down, serve it and then have dinner talking with the men. It has put a face to helping others and given us ALL way more than we give in service! We feel so blessed to have found not only a way to serve others, but a place where our youth are welcomed, encouraged and taught the joy of service to others! What wonderful life lessons! Jody J.

There is absolutely nothing that compares with serving at Transition Projects. Our church youth group have been BLESSED to serve meals to many homeless men in the Portland area. In all circumstances the men have been so appreciative. Sam Haffey the volunteer coordinator is one of the kindest hardest working people I've ever met. This is a well run, highly gratifying place that makes you feel so fortunate to have what you have in life and so thankful that you've shared your time to help so many.

I have been priviledged to volunteer at Transition Project's Bud Clark Commons since opening. I walked by it everyday to work and home during construction, and knew it had potential to be Portland's most progessive programs and facilities for the less fortunate. Showers, restrooms, lockers, clothing, shoes, laundry, mail boxes, kitchen, hair shop and a computer lab are available to walk-ins. And that's just the day center. There is also short term housing for 90 men on another floor, and 130 studio apartments on upper floors for the city's most vunerable and needy. I started out in the hygene center a few evenings a month handing out everything from towels to tampons. I am now in the computer lab once a week and I might assist visitors filling out job or housing applicaptions on-line, to goggling area codes they need to complete submissions. And last night I even helped with this kid's tie. No, not an interview, but I wonder how his date went?

Transition Projects, Incorporated is a worthy and critical non profit that serves over 9000 Portlanders as they transition from homelessness to housing. From shelter, meals, showers, phone message serve, computer access as well as couseling and training, they are an amazing support for their clients. For the last 8 years my family and I have volunteered at Transition Projects, Inc. in a variety of ways.Our church and soccer groups made and served meals. Our sons conducted coat drives for their scout projects. I served as a philanthropy liason for a mother daughter organization, National Charity League, and I adopted TPI as my focus. My daughter and friends offered clients home made blankets, dontated silverware packets, made and served meals, conducted toiletry and coat drives, made and donated haunted gingerbread mansions and flower centerpieces and flower pots, and delivered homemade cards and stamps for their clients' use. At the conclusion of their 6 year membership in NCL, over half the graduating class of 2012 listed Transition Projects, Inc as their favorite philanthropy. I help organize a community work day for our local high school and TPI utilizes a group of highschoolers to help with organzing and support for the shelter. The administration and staff is committed, caring and professional and deserves credit for their valued service to better the lives of so many worthy members of our community.

I have volunteered for Transition Projects Inc at their Bud Clark Commons and am always impressed by the commitment of their people, and especially their Executive Director Doreen Binder, which is a testament to her good works and leadership. They are truly an inspirational organization who provide quality services to a part of our community that often gets overlooked. We are very grateful and lucky to have such a devoted non-profit making a difference in our community.

I've been helping periodically at TPI for about a year...everyone is on time, on point and successful in their mission. Wonderful results and wonderful people!

My church & I have been preparing & serving monthly meals at the Bud Clark Commons center for going on 2 years. My work is also preparing & serving quarterly meals at Bud Clark Commons for 2 years. What a great program Ttranition Project Inc (TPI) has for the men at the shelter. The people who work at TPI are always upbeat and willing to help anyone. It's not just the meals, but the help, support and classes that are provided that makes TPI so important to all that need their services. You can see how greatful the men are at the shelter for everything. It has been a life change for me since I've started volunteering. In these times, it's great to have a nonprofit like TPI in Portland.

TPI provides a broad spectrum of social services to homeless citizens in our community that have a direct and positive impact on people's lives and longevity, from simple hygiene services like a shower and change of clothes to more complex case management like housing placement and addiction counseling. TPI is a great place to volunteer; experiences are hands-on and yield immediate, visible results. TP This is a well-managed organization that provides real leadership in our community and a unique opportunity for volunteers to give and give back.

My co-workers and I have prepared and served meals to the men at Clark Center for the past six years. We've also been involved in their yearly coat drives and have donated food and much needed cooking utencils. It's the most popular volunteer event among my colleagues because we see the direct impact a hot meal has on the men who live there. From the moment we arrive, a few guys run out to our cars to to help carry in food, there's always someone asking if there is anything they can do to help, and after we finish serving they clean the kitchen and put dishes away. That's just one example of the unique community aspects and 'were in this together' feeling that keeps us coming back.

I volunteer on a monthly basis for the Men's shelter at Clark Center. I see first hand the gratefull gentleman who benefit from this organization. Transiton Projects not only provides shelter for individuals experiencing hardships, but classes and other resources to help them establish long term housing and stability. This is a wonderful organization.

I've been volunteering at Transition Projects in Portland for over a year and it's changed my life. I've been helping at the Clark Center and also at Jean's Place. I've learned so much about myself volunteering with this organization. It's rewarding, fun, humbling, and a great organization to get involved. I see the differences we are making in these people's lives and it really feels good. The staff is dedicated and a joy to work with. I'm proud to be affiliated with this organization. Thank you! -Rick Benevento

This nonprofit is a great asset to the city of Portland. I'm an active volunteer in the men's housing shelter located under the Hawthorne Bridge. The staff is always accessible and open to services that the community is willing/able to provide to the residents at the center. I definitely think that the individuals involved in the program are given great opportunities to better themselves and their lives. I enjoy working with them and supporting them the best way that I can.