Bread of Life raising funds for new beds
The head of an Oceanside charity is making a dash to raise money to buy new beds for a winter shelter scheduled to open Dec. 1.
Pastor Steve Bassett, executive director of Bread of Life, said he plans to run Thursday in the annual Pacific Marine Credit Union O’Side Turkey Trot wearing an eye-catching purple double-breasted suit with felt turkey feathers to call attention to the fundraiser.
Bassett customized the suit himself with sewing skills he learned as a mess sergeant in the Army, he said.
Bread of Life is part of an emergency winter shelter program operated by the Alliance for Regional Solutions, a coalition of nine North County cities that united in 2007 to address homelessness and other issues.
“We’ve been wearing out our cots for 12 years,” Bassett said.
Bread of Life provides 32 beds for men and 18 for women. Last year, the charity replaced all the women’s cots with bunk beds, and this year Bassett said he had hoped to replace the men’s cots as well.
“They’ve been sleeping very well the last couple of years,” he said about the women who use the shelter.
The new beds will cost $15,000, and a $9,000 grant covered most of the price. Bassett said he hopes to raise the extra $6,000 by the time the winter shelter program opens.
“It will give them a nice bed to sleep on,” he said. “A bunk bed is a lot better than an Army cot.”
Bassett said he plans to run Thursday’s race holding an umbrella covered with signs about Bread of Life and information about how to help the charity.
Donations to the cause can be made through the Bread of Life website, www.bolrescue.org, or by sending a check to Bread of Life at P.O. Box 458, Oceanside, CA 92049.
Runners in the race also can designate $5 of their registration fee to Bread of Life by naming it as a charity they want to support.
The 5K and 10K runs start at the Oceanside Civic Center, and all runs end at the Junior Seau Amphitheater near the Oceanside Pier.
The North County winter shelter program also includes the 20-bed La Posada de Guadalupe shelter in Carlsbad, the 50-bed Operation Hope shelter in Vista and a 40-bed permanent shelter Interfaith Community Services plans to open next month.
gary.warth@sduniontribune.com
