Do Good Multnomah

06/26/2026

Working with our community's most vulnerable as houselessness sees all-time rates requires kind, composed and experienced staff.

Amber, the program manager at one of our permanent housing sites, spends her time advocating for Veterans as they work to keep their housing. In the past, she's helped manage larger, complex congregate shelters. Her work has always started and ended with building meaningful connections.

"I find immense joy in this work because I have been blessed with the ability to remind individuals of their inherent worth, the kindness they deserve, and the remarkable potential that lies within them. It is a humbling experience to witness the struggles that people face, as we all encounter difficult times at various points in our lives. This realization fuels my passion for being a source of light during their darkest moments." - Amber Johnson, Do Good program manager

06/22/2026

Our supporters & friends from IAM Machinists Union created this incredible video at our 2026 Memorial Day Ruck March. While everyone was in town, the hosted a neighborhood clean-up and community barbecue at the Thayer Family Foundation Veterans Shelter. Check it out!

06/19/2026

Today, Do Good is celebrating Juneteenth across our program sites.

From a homemade meal at the Arbor Lodge shelter to games and live music at the annual Juneteenth community gathering at the Paul & Geneva Knauls Building, this holiday is an opportunity for both celebration and reflection.

We first celebrate and gather to remind ourselves of the strength brought by warm community, music, culture, food and more. But we also reflect to acknowledge that the dream of complete freedom for Black Americans remains unrealized for so many. Black Americans face dramatically higher rates of houselessness, continued discrimination, and institutionalized racism – a reality our staff work to overcome alongside our participants every day.

"Juneteenth is important to remember where we came from. A lot of people struggled and sacrificed for us to have the freedom and rights that we have today. We must celebrate and honor the hardships of our ancestors," says Darrell, a Do Good resident.

Thank you to all our staff who have put so much time, care and love into organizing these celebrations for our participants and each other.

06/11/2026

Portland is expected to see a big heat wave this weekend, please make sure you and your neighbors are aware of cooling resources available via www.multco.us/hot. Heat waves that hit early in the summer can be the most dangerous, as our bodies haven't yet adjusted to the seasonal weather.

Heat can especially impact our most vulnerable community members who lack AC in their homes. Those at higher risk include:
- Men over 50
- Older adults who live alone
- People without access to air conditioning
- Pregnant people
- People on certain medications or with chronic medical conditions
- People who work in hot indoor or outdoor environments
- People engaging in strenuous or outdoor recreational activities (like children on turf fields)
- People who have consumed alcohol

Drink plenty of water, find a cool place to be, remove layers of clothing, seek medical attention if symptoms of exhaustion, elevated heartbeat, excessive sweating or dizziness last more than an hour.

Cool spaces like libraries and malls will be open during normal hours this weekend. If someone in Portland needs help finding a cool space this weekend, they can dial 311 between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Visit www.multco.us/hot for more information!

06/10/2026

Last week, Multnomah County Commissioners cut millions of dollars to houseless services, including defunding the North Portland Drop-In Center in St. Johns – the ONLY day center in North Portland. We now have just three months to wind down operations.

What people don’t know is that while the Board was voting on this budget, our staff at the Drop-In Center were busy saving a life.

On Thursday afternoon, participants who frequent the day center noticed an individual slumped on his side about a block away. Their first instinct was to alert staff at the Drop-In Center, who are trained in Narcan use and CPR. Do Good staff began helping the individual, shortly followed by a doctor and nurse from the Multnomah County Health Center next-door.

The incident is symbolic of what the Drop-In Center provides St. Johns and the greater North Portland area: a resource that people struggling with houselessness or behavioral issues know is a safe place to ask for help. It’s what we dreamed the facility could be.

We started the process of opening the North Portland Drop-In Center three years ago because it was essential to this community. Those needs haven’t changed. In the year it’s been open, the safe space we’ve created has only proven the need in North Portland is greater than we imagined. We now better understand the houseless population of North Portland because we made a place for them to be served for the first time.

Defunding the program before a new location is available will create a huge gap in resources in St. John’s and North Portland that there is currently no plan to address.

Email our Board of County Commissioners — [email protected] — today to let them know we need to expedite a replacement for this site ASAP!

06/02/2026

Attention! An amendment to Multnomah County’s proposed 2027 budget would CLOSE the North Portland Drop-In Center!

If passed, the HUNDREDS of individuals who use the Drop-In Center would be left without access to bathrooms, shelter referrals, peer support services, mail services and more — all without a deadline for when another similar facility would open up. It would undo months and months of relationship-building that is required for folks to get and stay housed.

If the goal is to lessen the impact of the houseless community on the neighborhood of St. Johns, closing the Drop-In Center will only worsen the problem, as the community that accesses the Center will have no place to go.

"The loss of staff and peer support poses operational risks to the nearby North Portland health clinic. Without the day center, clients are likely to congregate at the clinic, repeating previous issues with overcrowding and staff disruptions." — Multnomah County Homeless Services Department

We agree that there is a DIRE NEED for houseless services in St. Johns and the greater North Portland area. But we believe this is NOT THE APPROACH, and will only HARM folks who need daily services in the short term.

County Commissioners will be voting on the budget this Thursday, June 4. Please help us advocate for this facility and the folks it serves by submitting a public comment via email at [email protected].

05/28/2026

This year's Memorial Day Ruck March was full of so much life and energy — thank you to all our sponsors who made it possible and came out in droves to join the march themselves.

The event featured over 220 attendees across all routes, brought in tens of thousands of dollars and tons of donated items we can give to Veterans and civilians across our program sites. It's been genuinely heartwarming to see so much support — lively, vocal support — for Veterans experiencing houselessness in our community. All proceeds from this year's event will be put toward sustaining our Veteran programming in the face of potential region-wide cuts to homeless services.

We look forward to seeing you all next year, and be sure to tell your friends!

Our Sponsors: Columbia Sportswear, Machinists Union, CareOregon, University of Portland, NW Natural, Housecall Providers, Cedar Hills Hospital, CareOregon, The Mission Continues, and all who joined us!

05/21/2026

The 2026 Memorial Day Ruck March is on Monday! As it does every year, the Ruck March falls in the final days of Mental Health Awareness Month — and that’s by design. Research has consistently shown that Veterans face disproportionately high rates of mental health challenges upon returning from service. Those challenges are often contributing factors that can lead toward experiencing houselessness.

We’re rucking to raise support for our Veteran programs that, among other things, help Veterans get access to key mental health support that can help them toward sustainable housing. All proceeds will go to sustaining our existing program sites across the Portland area. (last year, we raised $40,000!)

Learhn more of register for the Ruck at the link in our bio or by visiting www.dogoodruck.org. We’re excited to see you there!

05/19/2026

Overcoming houselessness can sometimes be as much about lifting material barriers as it can be about mental ones. Sometimes all it takes is hearing someone say "you belong." Last year, Michael found permanent housing with the help of staff at Do Good's Roseway Shelter in Northeast Portland.

Michael attributes much of his success to the sense of community at Roseway that helped him believe in himself and figure out what independence could look like for him. He specifically thanked program manager Heidi and case manager Autumn for making him feel so welcomed and heard while working out logistics around his housing options.

"It's about treating participants with utmost respect and dignity, listening to them and being there, being that voice for them. It’s excruciatingly important," said Heidi, Roseway's program manager.

05/19/2026

The 2026 Ruck March is next Monday, and your support could make all the difference.

“The biggest misconception right now is that Veteran funding is secure and that they’re the safe population. But doing this work every day, I’m seeing that is not necessarily the case. A lot of the funding pools we’ve had in the past are drying up." — Angelina, U.S. Navy Vet and Do Good program manager

What we need most in these uncertain times is support from you all, our community, to make sure our Veteran neighbors don’t fall through the cracks.

Whether you join us by making a simple donation or marching with us in memory of service members at the Ruck, your contributions create certainty for Veterans. Register for the Ruck today!

Do Good's Annual Ruck March is a community event this Memorial Day to support Do Good Multnomah. Every day, 18 Veterans die by su***de in the U.S. Lets do something about it.