South County Outreach is a non-profit based in the city of Irvine, California, whose mission is to fight hunger and homelessness in Orange County. South County Outreach is a tax-exempt, non-sectarian 501(c)(3) non-profit organization governed by a board of directors. Our tax ID is: 33-0330233.

South County Outreach (formerly Saddleback Community Outreach) was founded by local businessman Ray Havert in 1989 to fight to end hunger and homelessness in Orange County. Joining forces with a number of local volunteers, Ray conducted food drives and opened a small food cupboard that grew into a larger food program to assist families and seniors in need. During the first year of operation in 1989, the team was able to provide 1,500 local residents with food, household items, and resources.

Our Mission – Preventing hunger and homelessness by helping people help themselves. 

Our Vision – We envision an Orange County community where no one goes to bed hungry or without a place to call home. 

Our Values – South County Outreach’s core values are dignity and respect. We embody them by treating the people we serve with compassion and empathy, while upholding our mission to prevent hunger and homelessness in the community. 

  • Dignity recognizes the inherent value and worth of all individuals, regardless of their background, culture, beliefs, or circumstances. 
  • Respect means treating others with consideration, courtesy, and kindness, while acknowledging their rights and feelings. 

Our dedicated team empowers people through our spectrum of collaborative services to serve those most vulnerable to hunger and homelessness, including robust housing and homeless prevention programs and our client-choice food program, our education program, and our self-funding social enterprise – the Upscale Resale thrift store. For more details about our programs, please visit this page.

We prevent homelessness in our community by offering assistance with monthly rent payment, paying for a utility bill, and rapid rehousing programs to qualifying households. To combat food insecurity and hunger, we operate one of the largest free food programs in Orange County that provides fresh and shelf-stable foods to over 3,000 residents each month.

The rapid rehousing program provides medium-term financial assistance and case management services to house individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness, or face imminent homelessness, to get quickly placed in housing and stabilized.

Unlike the stigma many believe, the majority of the individuals we serve are hard-working individuals, many who work multiple jobs, and still can’t scrape together enough to get by. We also serve those living on fixed incomes,  or otherwise at-risk, with less than 5% of those we serve each year are truly unhoused or homeless.

Whether you are in need of food for your family, or help paying rent and keeping the lights on, South County Outreach can help! To select the right program for you, please visit this page and contact us at 949-380-8144 or sco@sco-oc.org.

For housing-based programs, funding recipients are determined by our highly-trained caseworkers. If for any reason you are not eligible for assistance at SCO, you may be offered resources and referrals to other agencies. In order to receive food program services, clients need to provide identification for all household members as well as complete a self-declaration of income form.

We receive funding through the financial support of individuals, businesses, government partners, community groups, and faith organizations.

There are a variety of ways to donate to South County Outreach! If you’d like to make a financial contribution, please visit this page, or call Lauren Ruiz at 949-687-2410.

If you’re interested in becoming a South County Outreach volunteer, please visit this page. We’re always looking for individuals who want to offer their assistance in interacting with clients, sorting, and stocking our food market shelves, helping tackle office administrative tasks, and much more. Our volunteer department can be reached via email at volmgr@sco-oc.org or via phone at 949-687-2408.

Our homeless prevention program offers emergency rental and utility assistance, rapid rehousing, and case management services to households who are at risk of utility disconnection or eviction from their homes. This program serves hundreds of Orange County residents each year and helps ensure that a temporary setback does not turn into a socio-economic crisis.

Our food drives are facilitated by members of our community. We join forces with local cities, faith organizations, businesses, and others to host food drives that help stock the shelves at the South County Outreach Food Market. For more information about how to host a food drive, please visit this page. You can also contact our food team at foodteam@sco-oc.org or via phone at 949-380-8144 ext. 203.

South County Outreach operates a client-choice model in the food market, where residents may shop for foods based on preference, dietary restrictions, allergies, etc., much like they would a grocery store. Shopping hours are Monday through Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Please call 949-380-8144 ext. 207 for more information.

Upscale Resale is the social enterprise arm of South County Outreach located at 23461 Ridge Route, Suite D, Laguna Hills, CA 92653 and 28985 Golden Lantern St, Suite B102, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677. Upscale Resale is a wonderful place to find clothing and household goods at great prices.

Donations are typically accepted at Upscale Resale every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Please call (949) 855-4158 to ensure that the store is able to accept your donation. When you donate items and shop at Upscale Resale, you are supporting programs that help keep people from becoming homeless, feed people with limited financial resources, and find housing for the working homeless.

We help approximately 6,000 people across our various programs each year, including over 1,500 residents each month through our food program.

We distribute over 900,000 pounds per year, equating to 70,000 to 80,000 pounds per month.

In Orange County, there are more than 450,000 people at risk of going hungry each month, including children, seniors living on fixed incomes, people with disabilities, and those without homes. (Source: Feed OC)