Community Service Agency Needs Your Help

Driving down Clairemont Drive, across from the South Clairemont Park, you may notice a little house on the corner of Rappahannock. This is the Clairemont headquarters for the Community Christian Service Agency (CCSA).

Right now, CCSA needs donations of the following items:

• Toothpaste (regular & travel size)
• Toothbrushes
• Shampoo and Conditioner
• Razors

These items while not expensive are often beyond the reach of the homeless and low income families we
serve. You can imagine how hard it must be to look for work or attend school when you don't have the basic hygiene items.  Please consider picking up one or two of these items next time you are shopping and drop them off at CCSA.

For 40 years, the Community Christian Service Agency has been serving those in the San Diego community who lack the basic necessities of life. The mission of the Community Christian Service Agency, an ecumenical Christian agency, is to provide emergency services to individuals and families in need in San Diego County, including food, clothing, and referrals, and where practicable, counseling to assist in their transition to self-reliance.

The Rappahannock location in Clairemont serves low-income families by providing emergency food, clothing, assistance with obtaining ID cards, bus tokens for transportation to doctor appointments and job interviews, and referrals to other services.  Some resource counseling is also available.  Client service hours are M-F 9;30-4.

This center is a distribution site for USDA Commodity Foods, holding an active application with the San Diego Food Bank. Each month, CCSA distributes USDA Commodity Foods to about 1,000 individuals on the fourth Thursday of the month.

The agency operates two service centers. The main site in Clairemont serves primarily low-income individuals and families, and the Pacific Beach Center focuses its services primarily on the needs and challenges of the growing population of the homeless. Each year, the agency has more than 25,000 service contacts with people coming in for food, clothing, and other basic necessities of life. CCSA is open to anyone in San Diego County that needs help. Combined, the two centers serve up to 2,000 people each month with the Pacific Beach Center serving as many as 150 homeless singles per week.

CCSA strives to deliver quality services to its clients at the lowest possible cost.  A large volunteer workforce and substantial donations of food, clothing and supplies enable CCSA to keep CCSA to keep overhead low.  These donations come from member churches, community groups, and businesses.  More than 90% of the money donated to CCSA is spent on programs directly benefiting CCSA clients.

CCSA is an IRS-qualified nonprofit organization.  All contributions are tax-deductible.

Services Provided at Both Centers:

• Emergency food and clothing
• Assistance with temporary housing and emergency shelter
• Bus tokens for medical appointments or job interviews
• Assistance in obtaining birth certificates and California ID cards (needed for employment or program entry)
• Resource counseling and referrals to other service agencies

Services Provided at Clairemont Service Center

• Distribution of USDA Commodity Foods to about 1,ooo persons each month
• Annual Back to School program of backpacks with school supplies for students
• Annual  Christmas Adopt-a-Family and Christmas Meal baskets
• Emergency food and clothing and referrals to other services on a walk-in basis
• Services Provided at Pacific Beach Service Center
• Volunteer nurses provide health assessment, first aid, education, and referrals
• Annual Christmas gift bags
• Emergency food and clothing and referrals to other services on a walk-in basis