Torres Community Shelter

Our longest running program

The Torres Community Shelter is our service-enhanced shelter that serves Butte County residents who are 18 and older 24-hours a day, 365 days a year at 101 Silver Dollar Way in Chico.

Yes, we provide a safe place to sleep for up to 188 people experiencing homelessness daily, but our programs offer so much more than that.

We provide wraparound services and support, including:

• a warm bed (men, women, and gender neutral dorms)

• 3 fresh meals a day

• showers

• laundry and mail services

• property storage

• one pet per person and veterinary care

• individual guidance with health care, housing, and employment/income.

• substance use disorder counseling

• mental health counseling

• therapeutic wellness activities (art, gardening, meditation, etc.)

• vocational training programs

Our case managers offer one-on-one guidance to every guest we serve, focusing on addressing their basic needs and stability, helping them secure income, and safe, sustainable housing.

Established in 2003, the Torres Community Shelter is our longest running program at True North.

For Our Guests

We are low barrier and open 24/7 for those 18 and older who are Butte County residents.

New to the shelter? Please arrive at 2 p.m. for intake.

Returning guests must check in by 6 p.m. daily. Please call and get prior approval for alternate check-in time.

If you are seeking services and have stayed at the shelter before, please make an appointment with your case manager.

To make an appointment to meet with staff, please call us at 530-891-9048. Case managers, agency representatives and social workers from other service providers must call ahead prior to intake to arrange for shelter entry on behalf of their clients.

BASIC RULES:

It is our highest priority to make the Torres Shelter a safe, clean, and healthy place to stay for all.

Our rules are behavior-based. We do not under any circumstances tolerate violence or aggression.

Arsonists and those with sexual assault charges (290s) are not allowed to enter our programs.

We do not test for drugs or alcohol. However, drugs and alcohol are not permitted on our properties.

Workforce Development Program

Kitchen

Designed to be as much a work opportunity as it is a way to provide our guests with balanced meals, our vocational kitchen program (called the Breakfast Club in its early days) helps move people forward by providing transferable work skills so they can regain a stable income.

The Kitchen Crew is selected through a competitive process. Guests submit an application and resume and then participate in an interview. Those who are selected then go through job training. All become fully certified as food handlers through ServSafe, a program administered by the U.S. National Restaurant Association.

Guests spend upwards of 30 hours planning, preparing, cooking and serving breakfast and lunch, as well as doing inventory and kitchen sanitation, giving them a healthy dose of real-world experience.

This provides a stepping stone to employment—many of our kitchen crew members have gone on to secure jobs in the food service industry.

Maintenance & Facilities

The Torres Community Shelter also offers valuable vocational training and work experience in maintenance and facilities in areas such as painting, minor plumbing repair and minor drywall repair. This section of our workforce development program also helps guests build skills in landscape and groundskeeping. We’ve partnered with the Valley Contractors Exchange to offer construction-based vocational training as well.