History
Established in 1995, Hillhaven was only a concept hidden in the heart of a single mother with two children. She didn't have much to give but felt compelled by her faith to trust in the vision she had been given.Nancy Belser enacted her vision for 2 years before she met and married her husband Phillip Belser, Sr. in 1997, blending their families together. They had 2 more children and for the next 10 years, they successfully opened and ran three transitional homes, a food/clothes pantry for those in need, a free 8-week summer program for adolescents who could not afford traditional summer camp, provided hot meals for the homeless, and more. Then, in 2007 she decided it was time to say goodbye to Sacramento and relocate her family to Yuba City, CA. Her eldest daughter went off to college and she settled into raising her other 4 children and later decided to go back to school to get her college degree. Over the years her heart still longed to do outreach and she would casually discuss it with her now adult children. But then, tragedy struck. Her husband was diagnosed with CHF and suffered a stroke. She then devoted all of her time to caring for him, praying for a miracle. One year later, her husband was in even better health than before. It truly was a miracle!
An Inspired Re-Opening
One day while her children and grandchildren gathered around her, her oldest son asked her, "Mom, why don't you do community work like you used to?" to which she replied, "Son, after 12 years of giving nonstop without much help and trying to raise you kids, I just got tired and needed a break. When the good Lord shows me it's time, I will." He looked at her with conviction and said, "We are grown up now. We are here to help you. God says it's time". She looked into his eyes and knew he was right. She and her family spent the next year and half brainstorming and planning before opening an office in Marysville, CA in 2019. They immediately began implementing services to help their community as they once did years before. What started out as one woman's determination to share love and hope throughout her Sacramento neighborhood 25 years ago has now expanded into a small outreach organization in the Yuba-Sutter area.
Hillhaven Community Outreach is a small non-profit organization that strives to meet various community needs by developing programs and providing support for housing, food, clothing, transportation, summer activities, mentoring, tutoring, employment services and more. Currently, Hillhaven serves more than 4,000 individuals annually by assisting them with acquiring the necessities they might otherwise have difficulty finding. Seeking to expand, Hillhaven plans to create and implement even more programs by heeding the voices of those in need and by partnering with other members of the community.
How We Are Funded
Every day we work to make our community a better place. As a small organization, many times that means contributions directly from our own pockets. However, that does not always go as far as we would like considering the work we do is so vast and seemingly never-ending. But, we won't let that stop us! A contribution today can make a big difference tomorrow which is why we have committed to recognizing every donor at the end of each year regardless of the donation size. Your continued support helps us financially with operations, program development, and service implementation. It also reminds us of your deep commitment to our cause. Thank you!
Start doing your bit for the world. Donate a little.
Our Mission - Three Primary Goals
Community Services
Would you believe that our #1 request is finding a place to get food? With all of the community resources available simple things like inability to afford a computer, lack of transportation, or language barriers keep people from being able to find and utilize services that are actually readily available to them. During each year that Hillhaven has been operational, we have served more than 4,000 individuals by providing them with basic necessities such as food, clothing, financial assistance, locating housing, work training, coaching, mentoring, etc.
When unable to fulfill a need due to limited funding, we simple walk them through, step by step, how to find the resources they seek and then educate them about how to obtain and utilize them. This not only gives them the tools they need to become self-sufficient, but it gives them the opportunity to teach someone else. A strong community that reciprocates kindness is what we are striving to achieve.
Community Development
Coretta Scott King once said, "The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." We aim to become a key beacon of hope within the Yuba-Sutter area of all that is good and wholesome. When interacting with members of our community who were born and raised here, it’s always very clear that this was a community where everyone knew your name, where asking and receiving help was effortless, where kids played carefree without fear for their safety, and seniors knew that their younger community members would look out for them.
Our desire is to get back to genuine community engagement, where finding ways to keep our community clean and safe is the non-negotiable standard. We hope to foster a spirit of pride in our community and to empower our neighbors to invest love and kindness back into the community in which they’ve chosen to be apart of. By implementing various strategies to create opportunities for diversity, increased nutrition, improved health, and more recreation, we believe that our community can thrive better than ever before.
Economic Development
We are all doing our best in the present to foster a better world for future generations. And in order to do this effectively, we need to establish a solid foundation on which to build.
Once this is achieved, we seek to enhance our community by remodeling our current infrastructure to include more emphasis on education, finance, research, entrepreneurship, and independent sustainability that will in turn create more resilience and longevity within our community and among each other as individuals. Regardless of our backgrounds or the things that make us different, we hope that we can all be connected by our desire to see our community flourish for many years to come.
Our Staff & Volunteers
Our staff & volunteers are a group of elite rockstars who love serving, changing, and impacting their community and the world. They use their knowledge and expertise to help lovingly guide every single person who comes seeking help. From the moment you enter our doors, you are made to feel welcome. We pride ourselves on being personable and professional. As a family organization, we use every opportunity to treat our clients and community members with the utmost respect. We are extremely grateful for every member of our team - past, present, and future. Without them, we would not be where we are or have the ability to dream so big!
Nancy Belser
Affectionately known by all as “Ms. Nancy”, Nancy Belser has been doing outreach for 25+ years. She has a degree in Early Childhood Development that helps her connect with and understand youth alike, which has always been her biggest passion. Her heart is so big and her arms are always open to others in need. She is considered a great leader and influencer to many in the Greater Sacramento Area and other surrounding communities. Her Faith in God is what keeps her going everyday!
Phillip Belser
Lovingly addressed as “Uncle Phil” or “Mr. Phillip”, Mr. Belser has been involved in pastoring and youth ministry for over 30 years. Despite health issues in the last few years, he remains active in church events and sports activities as NOTHING has ever stopped his love for the game of basketball!
Lyneda Lincoln
Mrs. Lincoln has been involved in community service and outreach for over 15 years. She attended Pacific Union College in Angwin, CA where she obtained her B.A. in Pre-Law Psychology. She has a passion for providing exceptional service, implementing strategies and solutions that can help our outreach succeed, and prioritizing resources for all sectors of family life from marriage and family planning to homeschooling and college prep. She enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her husband and two children.
Jam Dew
Mr. Dew has loved extremely creative and has a good eye for detail, design, and visual appeal. She has been involved in Community Service and Outreach for over 5 years and she has a spectacular gift of using her passion to make all of our organizational design needs come to life - it is truly inspirational! As a wife and active mother of 2, she enjoys quality time with her family and friends most of all.
Justin Dew
Mr. Dew has loved doing outreach for 15+ years and we are very fortunate to have him on our staff. As an innovative entrepreneur who is constantly pushing the boundaries of the technological world, he makes an invaluable addition to our team. Aside from providing technological support for our organization, he works closely with our executive secretary in establishing partnerships with local organizations, creating advanced business models, and implementing new ways to secure organizational funding. He shares two children with his wife, Jam Dew.
*Volunteer Acknowledgement*
Although they are not all listed by name, Hillhaven Community Outreach relies heavily on volunteers who give of their own time to make our organization a success. A special thank you to all who put in sweat equity, valuable time, and love to keep our community flourishing.
Start doing your bit for the world. Donate a little.
