The Child Development Center at Martha’s Village & Kitchen has long offered exceptional care for children from 8 weeks old through the age of 5. Through the years, parents have often felt supported knowing their children are in great care while they take measures to find greater balance in their families’ lives.
Recent grants from Inland Empire Community Foundation through the Joyce A. Montgomery Donor Advised Fund, the Todd Barajas Legacy Fund, and Martha’s Village and Kitchen Food Fund Endowment will further assist with those efforts.
Rosa E. Verduzco, Chief Operating Officer of Martha’s Village & Kitchen, said the new funding will help several expansion measures at the nonprofit, particularly in the Child Development Center and the center’s playground. 
“Those resources will help us increase our capacity from 24 kids to 50,” Verduzco said, expressing gratitude for expansion funding overall.
It is just one of many success stories in the organization, which has become one of the largest providers of homeless and disadvantaged services in Riverside County and Coachella Valley.
The nonprofit offers life-changing programs based on the “continuum of care model,” which aims to break the cycle of poverty and homelessness. Launched in 1990 as a noble endeavor to serve hot meals to homeless neighbors, the project thrived with just a parish kitchen, a group of volunteers, and $5 donations. It has grown considerably since, expanding its services considerably.
Its Career and Education arm, for instance, has been a valued resource for the community. So too have the nonprofit’s emergency housing and its vast array of healthcare services. Case management, a homeless recuperative care program, an exemplary food services program, and a revered cooling center during hot months round out some of the other offerings.
Verduzco has been with the organization for 12 years, serving in a few capacities.
“I am very fortunate to have done every position there is,” she said. “I started as a part- timer, moved into the rec program, then some management. It’s been a journey, but it’s easy to work for an agency whose mission is to serve the community and the less fortunate, and to do it with such grace.
“We all strive to provide high-quality service,” she added, noting how the organization stands out for its significant support for the community.
Martha’s Thrift Store in Indio, for instance, has become a go-to with the sheer amount of items it houses. Consumers may feel a sense of peace realizing their purchases and donations help the nonprofit to continue serving the region by responding to food, clothing and shelter needs.
There are many other ways for the community to contribute.
One standout initiative, dubbed Adopt-A-Room, strives to help “transform lives.” Interested individuals can offer an annual $5,000 donation to adopt one of the nonprofit’s 35 residential rooms. These are where families and individuals live during their stay at Martha’s Village & Kitchen.
“We’ve been around for more than 35 years, but yet many members of the community still don’t know a lot of things we provide,” Verduzco said. “We can impact more than 8,000 members of the community, not just the homeless individuals, but those at risk of homelessness, meaning that they might have their home, but they can access our services.
“Maybe they are needing a part-time job and they need to build up their interview skills before becoming homeless,” she added.
Verduzco also noted her passion and joy for a key project revolving around early education.
“Some folks don’t know that service is there,” she said. “They don’t know that we have a fully licensed child center offering high-quality care for children. And it’s not just to the clients here, but it’s also for the members of the community. That is unique.”
Learn more at marthasvillage.org.
This story originally appeared in the Desert Sun, December 2025.
Stay up to date on all the good work we’re doing through the power of philanthropy. Sign up for our eNewsletter, Philanthropy Matters, today.
