Committed to the community
STEAC’s team has expanded since its early days, but volunteers still remain a key role in the success of our programs and efforts.
“I knew my children wouldn’t be safe, living out of the car, freezing all night. With STEAC’s assistance, I was able to afford household necessities.”
Liliana B.
Yolo County Resident
Our Mission
To provide immediate assistance with basic necessities to Yolo County families and individuals with income below the poverty level.
STEAC is committed to enlarging the social awareness of the community and to provide opportunities for local citizens to help others in need.
* from 2000 to 2020
History
A Rainstorm of Need
STEAC is an organization that was born out of a rainstorm. In 1967, late spring rains inundated the rural areas of Yolo County, keeping many of the county’s migrant workers from the fields. Without pay, the workers had no way to pay for food or housing, so many lived in their cars. Their requests for food flooded area churches. Under the leadership of a committee of key volunteers, STEAC was born to provide emergency aid to those workers.
The group’s first “office” was on a volunteer’s kitchen table. Names of friends were kept on 3×5 cards in a recipe box. The client-help phone service was run out of a kitchen of a home in Davis. Volunteers did everything – from donating money to delivering food to baby sitting for those in need.
STEAC has expanded since those early days, but the model remains the same — caring volunteers providing essential services for the county’s needy. Learn more about our team.
Operating Structure
Generous Friends
STEAC is a nonprofit, public benefit California corporation and has earned tax exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code. That means contributions are tax deductible to the extent of the law (TAX ID: 94-6138684).
Income for nearly 80 percent of STEAC’s budget is provided by charitable donations. Some 2,000 generous “friends” provide the funding to pay for operation and contribute to special funds that are earmarked for specific emergency needs. STEAC also receives financial support from businesses, University of California Davis employees, students, churches and from foundations. The remaining funds are provided by government grants.
The “friends” provide support with gifts of appreciated stocks, bonds and mutual funds and non-cash items, such as property. STEAC also receives financial support in the form of planned gifts, such as bequests memorials and other deferred giving vehicles. STEAC is a United Way agency (#00040), so supporters can donate through their workplace.
Policy at STEAC is set by the Board of Directors. The board, which meets regularly, gets advice from volunteers who work through standing and ad hoc committees.
Partnerships
Affiliations
STEAC is affiliated with the following organizations:
- United Way Capital Region (covers Sacramento metropolitan area and Davis) (ID#: 0040)
- United Way Woodland (covers Woodland) (ID#: 0040)
- Yolo County Homeless and Poverty Action Coalition
Diversity Equity inclusion
Committed to Diversity
STEAC’s mission is to engage and organize our neighbors to combat poverty and its effects on local families and individuals. We recognize that the effects of poverty do not fall equally on all individuals but are concentrated on particular groups. Our programs seek to reduce disparities in poverty-related outcomes that are driven by systemic inequality through offering flexible and equitable services that are accessible and targeted to support those facing additional burdens.
We aim to create an organization that reflects the people we serve with diverse leadership among our Board of Directors, staff, and volunteers. We will work to ensure that all stakeholders are given the voice and agency to shape programs and operations. We will actively work to end all forms of systemic discrimination and foster an inclusive environment so that all our clients, staff, and volunteers will feel respected, heard, valued, and supported.
