Downtown Long Beach Alliance has brought back the seasonal hygiene drive, Fresh Start, to support unhoused neighbors with community donations and connections to resources.
Donation boxes have been placed across Downtown locations to gather shampoo, soap, deodorant, toothbrushes, socks and menstrual products for distribution to nonprofits such as:
- Long Beach Rescue Mission
- Mental Health America of Los Angeles (MHALA)
- CSULB Beach Pantry
- Long Beach City College’s Viking Vault
Donations will be accepted through July 17. Those groups also offer resources for the unhoused community, which include showers, meals, job training and transitional housing support.
“Our Clean and Safe team works every day to help make Downtown welcoming and accessible for everyone,” said Juan Torres, operations manager at the DTLB Alliance, in a public statement. “Fresh Start is more than a donation drive. It’s a community effort that helps us connect people with essential resources, meet immediate needs, and support organizations that are creating pathways toward long-term stability.”
The Fresh Start program focuses on bringing public safety, community care and partnership-driven outreach. By engaging local businesses, the program aims to bring visibility to ongoing needs and to empower the community in a direct and meaningful way.
The current drop-off locations include:
- Rise Juice & Coffee – 246 E. Third St.
- Pedal Movement – 223 E First St.
- Touch’d Hair Studio – 137 W. Fifth St.
- Soul Feed – 248 E Seventh St.
- Karing Pediatrics – 936 Pine Ave.
- Courtyard By Marriott – 500 E First St.
- Billie Jean King Main Library – 200 W. Broadway
- Green Wisdom – 702 Cedar Ave.
To learn more about how to support Fresh Start, including a full list of items and drop-off locations, visit www.downtownlongbeach.org/freshstart.
