Tucson mutual aid group Community on Wheels shutting down after six years

Community on Wheels, a mutual aid organization based in Tucson, announced it is shutting down after six years of serving the local community.

Volunteers with the group have been a familiar presence at outreach events across the city, often arriving in a distinctive cow‑painted van and setting up tables with snacks and supplies for those they serve.

Volunteers from Tucson mutual aid group Community on Wheels stand in front of their cow‑painted van and a table of snacks and supplies at a recent outreach event; the group announced it is shutting down after six years.

The announcement marks the end of six years of the group's on-the-ground activities in Tucson. During that time, Community on Wheels conducted outreach events intended to provide immediate assistance to neighbors in need.

Volunteers who staffed the outreach efforts are shown in recent images taken at one of the group's events, standing beside the group's van and a spread of provisions laid out for distribution.

Officials from Community on Wheels made the decision public in a recent statement announcing the group will cease operations after six years of work in Tucson.

According to KGUN9, the group was founded in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic by volunteers filling milk crates with donated supplies. Organizer Victoria DeVasto called the six-year run an emotional journey and hoped it would spur action on Tucson's housing crisis, with its final event held August 1 at South 4th Ave. and E. 25th St.; other mutual aid groups like Community Care Tucson continue the work.

Community on Wheels regularly hosted weekly distributions at Santa Rita Park for several years and began an annual "Cow Christmas" outreach in 2022 that provided gifts and supplies to unsheltered neighbors.

The organization has operated as an unincorporated mutual‑aid group (commonly called C.O.W.) rather than as an incorporated nonprofit.

Community on Wheels was part of broader mutual‑aid collaborations in Tucson — it was named in Community Food Bank materials and listed as a partner in the Tucson Alliance for Mutual Aid that participated in Thriving Communities grant work.

Local resource guides and county nutrition listings have included Community on Wheels’ regular distribution schedule, naming the group as a standing source of weekly food and supplies for people experiencing homelessness in the area.

In the weeks leading up to the shutdown, several local benefit events had been organized to support C.O.W., including a July 9 charity show and an art‑sale fundraiser scheduled for August 2 to raise money and supplies for the group’s outreach.