Dear Friends, 

Each of you has helped us along our journey to propel Project Legacy from a concept to a reality. We want to make sure you’re the first to know about the progress we’re making every step of the way! That’s why we launched this newsletter; every few months we will provide you, our fabulous friends and supporters, an update on construction, our services, and all the work that is underway to open our doors so we can continue serving community members in need.

You know getting to this point was not easy, and we know we are far from finished. However, we have made incredible progress to-date. The hard work is worth it to be able to expand our top-notch services, including transitional housing and health care for our clients. As well, we are proud to be the ONLY Homekey Initiative in California dedicated to primarily serving the extraordinary needs of vulnerable LGBTQ+ populations. We also look forward to welcoming community members who may not identify as LGBTQ+, but still need need assistance. Our doors are open to all!

I invite you to read the updates below and see what we have been up to bringing Project Legacy to life. 

In appreciation, 

Gabe

Chief Executive Officer

TruEvolution

TruEvolution had a very special guest stop by our Project Legacy construction site this month -- none other than Harold Phillips, the Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy. Alongside Riverside Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson and community partners, Director Phillips toured the site to get a first-hand look at the progress we're making in order to open our doors for community members to access transitional housing, healthcare, job training, and mental health wrap-around services to young people with HIV experiencing homelessness. 

After visiting the site, Director Phillips met with dozens of community leaders at a luncheon where he discussed the importance of projects like ours in advancing the work of the White House. 

Harold Phillips has led the Office of National AIDS Policy since his appointment by President Joe Biden in June 2021.

California's Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis came to Riverside to visit Project Legacy to see how the state's investment in our Homekey Site is making an impact in the community. As a staunch supporter of the LGBTQ+ community, even starting the state's first Transgender Advisory Council, the Lt. Governor met with TruEvolution staff to learn more about the comprehensive services we will provide starting next year. 

Thank you for coming out, Lt.Governor!

Project Legacy is being built in the heart of Downtown Riverside and will breathe new life into previously unused and aged buildings while providing housing and healthcare services for vulnerable individuals experiencing homelessness. Riverside Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson featured Project Legacy in the latest edition of Riverside Monthly.

“Project Legacy really takes an approach at looking at wrap-around services and addressing multiple different social determinants of health that are impacting people’s ability to achieve housing,” said Maldonado.

“One of the things that TruEvolution has always stood for: Gabe doesn’t wait around for people to come to him. He goes out and he makes it happen,” said Riverside Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson.

Our construction crews are working around the clock to bring Project Legacy to life. We are excited to share regular updates with all of you until we open our doors and begin providing life-saving housing and healthcare services to those in our region who need it most. Click below to watch an update from Project Legacy's Project Manager, Andrea Ordaz. 

Last October, TruEvolution invited the community to the future site of Project Legacy to highlight the historic investments made by the state of California. We stood alongside legislative champions Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes and Majority Leader Eloise Gómez Reyes, who presented a $10 million check from the state to fund our work.

We were also joined by several local elected and community leaders including: Councilmember Erin Edwards (Riverside City Council, Ward 1), Dr. Brandon Brown (Chair of Board of Directors at TruEvolution), Darwin Thompson (Director of Corporate Giving at Gilead), Rev. Elder Benita Ramsey (UFCM National Board Member), Pastor Curt D. Thomas (Senior Pastor at Renewed Church of Los Angeles), George M. Johnson (journalist, author, activist), and Twiggy Pucci Garçon (artist, activist, producer).

Project Legacy was featured in NPR/KVCR recently and lauded as a "one-stop shop for individuals experiencing homelessness." 

From the article:

"An under-construction housing project in Riverside hopes to become a one-stop shop for individuals experiencing homelessness. Project Legacy is being built in Downtown Riverside by the non-profit TruEvolution. When complete, the facility will offer 48 beds in five houses. "In the center of the campus is a 5,000 square foot commercial building, that is going to be not only our headquarters but where we are going to provide all of our social and clinical services," said TruEvolution CEO Gabriel Maldonado.

"TruEvolution has an LGBTQ+ focus, but the project will be open to all. "Our organization is not only a housing organization, we are a social services organization, we're a clinical organization as well. We provide mental health services, and we hope to expand to primary care," Maldonaldo said. "So we wanted to create a physical location that could accommodate for all of those services to be provided simultaneously."