News & Events

To stay connected and learn about upcoming events, subscribe to our quarterly newsletter and follow us on social media.


If you are a member of the media who is seeking information or would like to request an interview, contact community@cssoregon.org.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Motorcycle Club on a Mission for CSS

April 14, 2023


The idea had been discussed for some time at the Eugene-based Free Souls Motorcycle Club, Jake Courtright recalls. That idea being the creation of a group consisting of Veterans bonded by their love of motorcycle riding and shared military experiences. And so, finally in November 2021 the Veteran Riders Motorcycle Club was officially recognized as a Support Group of the Eugene Free Souls Motorcycle Club. That began perhaps an unlikely journey which eventually led to an important connection with the Community Supported Shelters community.


Veteran Riders Motorcycle Club (VRMC) began with five members and has grown to ten members including Army, Marine, and Navy Vets. The group ranges in age from 26 to 78 years old, and members meet regularly to ride and for other social events. In addition to riding together, the club serves as a support group. “We have people who know what you’ve been through and have walked through the same sand, so we do a lot of checking on each other and calling,” notes Jake. “The basis of the club is for outreach to Veterans in our community.” To remain in good standing, the club is required to do community outreach projects on a yearly basis. Jake recalls that “right from the bat when we stood up and started, we said we are going to start it right off with announcing a cold weather drive for homeless Vets.”


Club members reached out to their wider network of family and friends including the larger Free Souls network and gathered over 400 pounds of clothing and gift cards for donation in only 30 days. The next question was where the donations should go?

Club members reached out to their wider network of family and friends including the larger Free Souls network and gathered over 400 pounds of clothing and gift cards for donation in only 30 days. The next question was where the donations should go?


Jake happened to have an acquaintance who worked at CSS and shared information about the CSS program, specifically the work that CSS is doing with unhoused Veterans including offering a stand-alone community for Vets. By mid-December of 2021, the VRMC delivered their first large donation to CSS for use by Veterans and other members of the CSS communities.


In 2022, the club continued to support CSS through donations. “Last November we had a little bit more time and people knew what we were doing, and we were able to do a little bit more,” Jake recalled. He emphasized the involvement of family, friends, and the wider community in the success of the club’s donation drive. Jake shared a story about a donation they received from a movie theater in Coos Bay that had done an event for the movie Frozen. At intermission they had a snowball fight using 500 pairs of new rolled up woolen socks. Afterwards, having heard about the club’s drive, theater management contacted Jake and donated the socks that became part of last year’s donation to CSS.

In 2023, the VRMC intends to become even a closer partner with CSS by learning more about specific needs and targeting those items as they collect donations throughout the year.


Heather Quaas-Annsa, Director of Philanthropy at CSS, notes how important organizations like the Veteran Riders are. “Donations of goods and services, or in-kind donations, help CSS access resources that would otherwise be too expensive on our tight budget and allow us to prioritize monetary donations towards our programmatic expenses. We are incredibly grateful for the ongoing support and generosity of the Veteran Riders Motorcycle Club.”


Reflecting on the past two years, Jake pointed out that the recipients of his club’s donations aren’t the only ones who have benefited, noting that he’s had fellow members tell him that the club’s donation efforts make them “feel useful again.” When asked what he would want people to know about the Veteran Riders, Jake sums it up nicely. “We are a good group of guys trying to reach out to our community and help our brothers stand up.”


If you are interested in learning more about Veteran Riders Motorcycle Club, they would love to hear from you. They can be reached at info.vetridersmc@gmail.com.

Community Court Program

04 May, 2024
Community Supported Shelters’ Roosevelt Safe Spot Community has been transformed into a shelter community aligned with the City of Eugene Community Court program. Beginning in January, people charged with minor misdemeanor offenses who have opted into the Community Court system (rather than Municipal Court) can opt into the CSS shelter program and move into one of 16 available Huts at Roosevelt.

Volunteers Boost Energy Systems at CSS Communities

03 May, 2024
During the ice storm that brought Eugene to a standstill in January, all the batteries that stored the energy from the solar panels at CSS’s Lot 9 Community went dead, meaning no lights and no way to charge cell phones. Dave Reuter knew that because of a monitoring system he had set up to keep track of the status of the solar energy systems at eight CSS communities. Dave, a volunteer who has led an effort to upgrade and standardize the CSS power systems, and his wife Janel Erickson, who has worked with him on this project, are intrepid outdoors people. While most of us struggled to get out of our front doors, Dave and Janel loaded a couple of fresh batteries on their Flexible Flyer sled and attached Yaktrak spikes to their shoes and a rope to the sled. With Dave in front and Janel in the rear, they guided the sled the five miles from their Friendly neighborhood home to Lot 9, near Autzen Stadium.

UO Interior Design Creative Storage Collaboration

02 May, 2024
A sixty square foot area. Six feet by 10 feet of space covered by an unconventional Conestoga shaped canvas. This is the simple description of the Hut basic to all CSS communities. How can a safe, comfortable, and efficient habitat be created within this framework using common and inexpensive materials? This was the question posed by Assistant Professor Solmaz Mohammadzadeh Kive to her Architecture 484 class this winter term at the University of Oregon.

Volunteer Spotlight: Sandy and Percy

30 Apr, 2024
For the past several months, a couple of long-time donors to Community Supported Shelters have joined us for two hours a week at our main office to do whatever needs doing. While this may sound like a modest amount of time, Sandy and Percy’s consistent, constructive, and upbeat engagement demonstrates a truth that is often overlooked: big issues can be meaningfully addressed in small increments of time.

Eugene Parking Ban Opposition Testimony

12 Mar, 2024
It's not too late to share your thoughts on this proposed update. Send your written testimony to mayorcouncilandcitymanager@eugene-or.gov .

Incarceration and Homelessness: Breaking the Cycle

15 Jan, 2024
Formerly incarcerated people are almost ten times more likely to be homeless than the general population, according to a study from the Prison Policy Initiative. Jack spent 27 years in prison, from the age of 33 to 60. “It is a long time. It's an entire lifetime,” he says. At first, he thought he might never get out and continued what he calls “bad behavior.” But he saw others who participated in educational programs and were successful in getting their sentences reduced. He realized if he started “acting right,” he might get out. He especially credits a program called “Nonviolent Communication” with helping him. He started using what he learned and realized that “the person we communicate worst with is ourselves.”

From Waste to Wonder - UO's Grey Water Conservation Project

14 Jan, 2024
Lima, Peru, and Eugene, Oregon, are worlds apart in many ways. But spend some time with Kory Russel, an Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Studies at the University of Oregon, and you will learn there are communities in both places with challenges of access to sustainable and efficient water use. Kory has a photo in his office depicting a highly condensed neighborhood in Lima, a city where he and some of his students work on sustainable water projects.

New CSS Director of Community Impact: Black Burrell

13 Jan, 2024
Did you know CSS has a shared leadership model, with three directors? This November, Blake Burrell joined CSS as our new Director of Community Impact. His role supports all of our direct service staff, managing internal relationship-building, culture creation, program operation, mentoring, and conflict resolution. Read on for his introduction:

Volunteer Spotlight: Veronica Paredes

12 Jan, 2024
Veronica Paredes has been helping sew the weatherproof porch coverings ("scrims") for the Huts, recently working 26 hours to complete 34 scrims for us before the holidays.

Bike and Build Volunteers Assist in Refurbishing Huts

13 Oct, 2023
Bike and Build organization was established as a nonprofit in 2003. Its website summarizes its mission: “Bike and Build engages young adults in service-oriented cycling trips to raise awareness for the affordable housing cause. We advocate for the need for affordable housing in thousands of communities across the country.” As teams bike from town to town, they volunteer for service projects and give presentations about issues surrounding the lack of affordable housing. Since 2003 Bike and Build estimates that over 3,800 participants have biked over 11 million miles and donated over 255,000 volunteer community service hours to local organizations throughout the country.
Show More
Share by: