Pujita Mayeda: Outreach Coordinator...and so much more!

Sept. 18, 2018


Behind the scenes at CSS is a beehive of activity that keeps a dynamic and challenging organization running as smoothly as can be expected. One of the energetic worker bees in the hive is Pujita Mayeda, whose official title is donor relations specialist.


Pujita manages and reaches out in many ways for CSS. If you see the white CSS van heading to the coast one day with a dozen CSS campers on board for an outing, that would likely be Pujita at the wheel. If you’re reading this newsletter online, Pujita is the IT support person who keeps the computers and programs happy. If you’ve attended a tour of a CSS camp, it’s likely that Pujita showed you around.


Throughout all these activities Pujita brings a bright smile and positive energy to the people she serves.


“Pujita is smart, responsible, hardworking, and committed,” says Kristin Fay de Buhr, co-founder of CSS. “She is also thoughtful and caring and is a very versatile member of our team. She knows how to make everyone feel included, valued, and appreciated, which is critical with an organization like ours that is built on volunteers and donors.”

CSS has expanded and broadened its mission in the 5 years that Pujita has been on staff. The donor base has grown to over 1700 people and businesses, and Pujita is responsible for managing that database and all related donor activity which includes being a part of the development team.


She works with the CSS newsletter team and with other staff and volunteers to prepare and mail the annual appeal letter and digital marketing campaigns. She helps organize the annual benefit dinner, and she makes sure food is available for meetings and camper work parties.



Pujita first learned about CSS in a phone call from a close friend and volunteer, Bhavia Wagner who asked her to come back to Eugene from overseas to work with CSS. After she was hired, Pujita quickly realized her background and skill set were a good match for a non-profit organization whose mission is to create stable and secure shelter for those in need.


She has been a world traveler and volunteer nearly all of her adult life, primarily to places that need social uplift or environmental protection. She provided care for elderly and infirm people at a facility in Varanasi, India, run by the Mother Theresa Order. She has been to Cambodia as part of Friendship with Cambodia, volunteering at orphanages and monitoring humanitarian projects and she wrote a “responsible travel” guide book for travelers to that country. She volunteered at a birthing center in Indonesia and soup kitchens and schools in African shantytowns and worked for a conservation group that protects black rhinos in South Africa.


She is an outdoor enthusiast and has backpacked extensively on the Pacific Crest Trail and the Himalayas in Nepal. She has also worked as a whitewater river guide on thousands of river miles all over the world.


“I consider myself a steward for the planet,” Pujita says. “CSS is a natural fit for me and I feel honored to be a part of the amazing work we do here at Community Supported Shelters.”

News & Events

To stay connected to CSS, subscribe to our quarterly newsletter. If you are a member of the media who is seeking info, contact community@cssoregon.org.

Subscribe to Newsletter
January 24, 2026
On a sunny January day, Dan, 58, and Robert, 60, worked together on the CSS Maintenance Crew doing restoration work at the Empire Pond Safe Spot Community. Another typical workday for both of them in some ways, but one that neither could have imagined just a year and a half ago. Dan and Robert are brothers who had not
January 23, 2026
The "starving artist" stereotype is well-known. Housed folks often struggle to make an income through art. That difficulty is magnified for unhoused artists, for whom many basic resources are out of reach: good-quality supplies, studio space, and art classes. For that reason, when CSS launched our new Arts Entrepreneur
January 22, 2026
Right now is a scary time for many of the people we serve. Freezing weather brings real and immediate danger. Increased enforcement and the presence of ICE create fear and instability, particularly for immigrant community members. And harmful language and policies at the federal level continue to further criminalize ho
January 21, 2026
Major gratitude to the following local businesses: Slice Pizzeria & Bar, Claim 52 Brewing, High Street Tonics, Venue 252, Chambers Grill & Taphouse, and The Embers. Collectively, they've filled about 100 BottleDrop Blue Bags since Thanksgiving, giving us a financial boost while recycling bottles and cans.
December 30, 2025
Community Supported Shelters' new main office used to be Eugene's DMV. The building at 2870 W. 10th Place was where Eugene residents got their licenses, registered their vehicles and replaced their license plates from 1985 to 2021. Eugene's DMV is now located at 499 Valley River Center. It moved in 2022.
December 18, 2025
“I’m excited! I can’t wait! I mean, I can plug in stuff. I can go to sleep. I can lock my door!” – Joshua Most of us take these simple things almost entirely for granted. Having access to electricity. Having a place to sleep where you feel safe and secure. But, for Joshua, and the 56 other Lane County households who a
December 9, 2025
Workers at Community Supported Shelters make do in a cramped space where they share desks and have no space for private meetings with the unsheltered people they serve. The Eugene nonprofit has grown rapidly in recent years, expanding its roster of huts where people can live off the streets. Today there are more than
November 19, 2025
Zechariah Boesman was homeless for most of his life. He spent his childhood touring practically “every homeless shelter across America” and landed as an adult in Oregon, where he lived on the streets until a workplace injury convinced him to apply for a tiny home with Community Supported Shelters.
November 16, 2025
Blake Burrell: "For anyone that's ever moved in with roommates, moving 20 people in at one time can be really challenging. So we are taking that incremental approach and are looking somewhere by probably about  July or August, having 20 folks on that property."
October 31, 2025
As we move deeper into fall and prepare for the cold months ahead, we want to share an update on our work and a reflection on what this season means for our community. Recent policy changes and funding reductions across Oregon are already having consequences for people experiencing homelessness. New SNAP rules are e
Show More