At the Heart of Helping

"At the Heart of Helping..."

April 2017

Kids Helping Kids

...At the Heart of Teaching Children About Giving

Yasushi and Hanna Morita reached out to us to make plans for their two young children to visit our Food for Kids program. Takumi (left) and Ayaka (right) donated 15 lbs of food and helped sort several boxes of food with their father. After the visit, their mother sent us this lovely note:

"Thank you very much for the amazing experience my children had today. When I came home, they were so excited to tell me what they learned. My daughter wanted to buy more food for other children and now she is motivated to save her allowance to buy more cereals for your program. I work for LAUSD so I know there are many families who can't have healthy food and we are so grateful that we were able to contribute and we look forward to visiting your office again."

Currently our pantry is in urgent need of shelf stable "protein" such as chicken, tuna, ham, beef pasta and peanut butter. Donations can be dropped off Mon-Fri from 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. at 1230 Cravens Avenue in Torrance. For more info about this program, contact Trisha Smith (310) 212-5009 or [email protected].

Smart & Final Food Drive April 29 & 30

...At the Heart of Feeding Hungry Families

Our spring food drive will take place at five local Smart & Final stores on Saturday, April 29 and Sunday, April 30. Volunteer shifts are two hours and are perfect for families with young children to participate together. Our theme is "Island Tropic" so you can wear Hawaiian shirts or your organization's service T-shirts. Volunteers educate shoppers about Food for Kids so they can add a donated items at checkout. Last Fall we raised $1,400 in cash donations and shoppers purchased vouchers for more than three pallets of food. Special thank you to our star volunteer chairs Lexi Ley and Kathy Gray for organizing this effort again this year. They are amazing! To sign up for a shift, click here.

We are especially looking for responsible individuals to be Captains and oversee one store. The Captain's training will be on Thursday night, April 27 at 7:00 p.m. Call (310) 212-5009 or email [email protected] if you are interested. Service groups or companies can "adopt a store" and fill all of the shifts together.

VolunTEEN Summer Program - Enrollment Open!

...At the Heart of Summer Service

Do you know a teen that wants (or needs) to spend the summer engaged in community service? We are now enrolling students ages 13-17 in our VolunTEEN Summer Program. Here's the details:

Open to teens ages 13-17
Kick-Off Training Wed., May 31 6:00 p.m.
Assistance finding a volunteer match for the summer
20+ hours of volunteering at a nonprofit (Transportation not provided)
Completion of a reflection project
End of Summer sharing and celebration
Certificate of completion
Summer program is $35.00 per student

Interested students should fill out this form, space is limited. Deadline to apply is April 30. We will notify students of their acceptance into the program by May 5. For questions, please please call or email Melissa McCormick (310) 212-5009 or [email protected].

Durfee Scholarship Applications Open

...At the Heart of Supporting Students

Each year the Volunteer Center selects local low-income high school graduates to receive a scholarship to assist them with class and material costs for their first year of college. The recipients are chosen in recognition of their ability to overcome personal struggles and hardships and still dedicate time to volunteering and serving their community. Applications are available here and are due May 1. For questions about this program or to make a donation so we can help more recipients, please call or email Melissa McCormick (310) 212-5009 or [email protected].

Thank You to Our Family Fun Faire Supporters!

...At the Heart of Our Community

We had a great ti me at our inaugural Heart of Helping Family Fun Faire which took pl ace on one of the only beautiful rain-free weekend days in February . The Faire attracted more than 300 attendees and volunteers and featured a giant bo uncy slide, a bunny petting zoo, photos with a GIANT teddy bear, face-painting, cookie decorating, carnival games, food trucks, an interactive storytime and more. The event raised about $8,000 for the Volunteer Center . A special thank you to all our generous Vo lunteer Center sponsors and volunteers!

Pictured: Molina Healthcare Volunteers helped us with our Prize Booth.

Spring Cleaning Time!

...At the Heart of Donating Items to Benefit Others

As you are cleaning out your cupboards and closets, please remember to donate any unused clothing, toys, books, kitchenware and canned goods to a favorite charity. If you need help finding an organization, give us a call at (310) 212-5009 and we'll help you find a perfect match.

Recently we received a call from a woman in Long Beach who wanted to donate a wardrobe full of 60's era garments. We gave her the names of local theaters that might need them for costumes and a few thrift stores that sell unique items.

THANK YOU TO OUR MAJOR SPONSORS: