Shower Cart

Five Rotary clubs in the Clackamas County area and the Clackamas Rotary Foundation  banded together to sponsor a new mobile shower cart to provide showers to homeless individuals throughout Clackamas County.

The new shower cart was put into operation on November 29, 2020.  Aside from much needed showers, LoveOne, a nonprofit organization that serves marginalized persons in Clackamas County and operates the cart, has noted many other benefits.  LoveOne uses the shower events to introduce persons in need to other services such as housing, public health services, clean clothing, laundry services and food programs.  Numerous individuals have been referred to housing services as a result of their interactions with LoveOne via the shower cart.

The need for the shower cart became very apparent in April 2020 after many facilities that served homeless individuals in the Clackamas area either stopped operations or ceased providing some services as a result of COVID 19 shutdowns.  That included shower facilities.  In March 2020 Bill Stewart, member of the Rotary Club of Clackamas, happened to be in a meeting with Brandi Johnson, executive director of LoveOne.  Johnson noted that LoveOne had seen a sharp increase in serious health issues related to lack of access to hygiene related services.

Led by the Rotary Club of Clackamas and the Clackamas Rotary Foundation the coalition raised over $36,000.  In total seven Clackamas area organizations joined the project:  The Rotary Club of Clackamas and its partner the Clackamas Rotary Foundation, The Rotary Club of Clackamas Sunrise, The Rotary Club of Milwaukie, The Rotary Club of Oregon City, The Rotary Club of West Linn, Celebrate Milwaukie and Providence Willamette Falls Medical Foundation.