2012 | Good Neighbor Stories

High School Kindness Award Deadline Approaching

April 12, 2012 By Pam Marino

CUPERTINO — The deadline for Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD) seniors to apply for a special award recognizing kindness and altruism is this Sunday, April 15.

The Sandlot Award recognizes students at Monta Vista, Cupertino and Lynbrook high schools who display kindness to others. It was originally launched in 2009 at Monta Vista as the Justin Perkins Sandlot Award in memory of former student Justin Perkins, who died of cancer in 2008. An effort is ongoing to bring the award to all five FUHSD schools.

Award coordinators say that while other school awards measure academic, athletic, and extracurricular successes, the Sandlot Award measures altruism that is not necessarily well known.

The award shines the light on “invisible students” who don’t always get recognized for their efforts, said Lynbrook Associated Student Body President Kevin Tu. It’s about students who are, “doing something good, not just for the title and recognition; it’s people serving for the heart of serving,” he said.

“It’s what’s unique about this award, and something Lynbrook needs a little bit more of,” Tu said. “I really support what this award encourages and fosters. And I believe that if everyone would be more like a sandlot hero our school would be a better place.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Youth Tagged With: Cathy Gatley, Cupertino High School, Fremont Union High School District, Howard Doi, Justin Perkins Sandlot Award, Kevin Tu, kindness, Lynbrook High School, Monta Vista High School, Sandlot Award

Volunteers to Beautify Santa Clara School April 28-29

April 10, 2012 By Pam Marino

The children and staff of Pomeroy Elementary in Santa Clara will leave their well-worn campus on an upcoming Friday to return on Monday to a brighter, fresher school, thanks to a full weekend of volunteer labor.

More than 300 volunteers are expected to descend on the campus in the Santa Clara Unified School District on Saturday, April 28, and Sunday, April 29, to clean, paint, build, and garden, in a project called “Beautify Pomeroy”. The group Beautiful Day is signing up people from all over Silicon Valley who want to invest in the children’s futures through the service project.

“Beautify Pomeroy” is part of an even larger community-wide annual Beautiful Day event that is expected to utilize approximately 6,000 volunteers between April 21 and 29. Projects include cleaning area freeways, refurbishing homes, cleaning parks and neighborhoods, helping the homeless, and more.

By the end of that weekend at Pomeroy, the teachers’ lounge will have a new look, as well as a refrigerator that actually works, replacing the old broken one. The school’s community garden will have new planter boxes and a solar-powered water feature. The playground will have some new equipment, as well as a recycling center to collect empty juice boxes and water bottles. And around campus some walls will sport fresh paint and murals.

“I think it’s just exciting to think about what you’re doing for the next generation,” said Lori Dabak, one of the project’s coordinators. “You don’t know how this investment will affect something down the road.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Volunteering Tagged With: Beautiful Day, Beautify Pomeroy, Lori Dabak, Pomeroy Elementary School, Santa Clara Unified School District, volunteer events, volunteering

Eighth Grader Making Birthday Wishes Come True For Less Fortunate Kids

April 3, 2012 By Pam Marino

Every child has a birthday wish. But some children from poor or homeless families don’t get those wishes fulfilled, which is why eighth grader Yasmine Davis decided to step in and make a difference.

Davis and her family are founders of the nonprofit Make a Birthday Wish, which provides presents and birthday parties for more than 300 disadvantaged children and teens in the Silicon Valley.

Along with her mom, Nike McDonald, Davis shops for presents for children and teenagers, then throws a party complete with decorations and cake for all the birthday boys and girls of one month. The children and teens are matched to Make a Birthday Wish through West Valley Community Services (WVCS).

“The kids all have a wish list, so we try and get them what’s on the wish list so they’ll be happy with their presents,” Davis said. “And even if we can’t they’re still really happy with the birthday party.”

While not shopping, planning, and party hosting—a volunteer job that keeps her busy for up to eight hours every weekend and sometimes after school—Davis is a student at Kennedy Middle School in Cupertino, where she keeps up good grades and plays sports. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Volunteering Tagged With: children, homeless, Make a Birthday Wish, Nike McDonald, teens, West Valley Community Services, Yasmine Davis

Five Ways to Be a Good Neighbor in April

April 2, 2012 By Pam Marino

It’s April, which means spring is now in full swing. Opportunities to be a good neighbor around Silicon Valley and the Bay Area are sprouting as fast as seedlings in the warm sun.

Here are five ways to do good for others (and yourself) this month.

1. Drive Focused: April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The California Highway Patrol and other local departments plan on cracking down on distracted driving all month as a way to bolster public awareness of this dangerous problem. Using a cell phone while driving—hand-held or hands-free—delays a driver’s reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent, according to one university study. And text messaging creates a crash risk 23 times worse than driving while not distracted. Find out more at Distraction.gov. In the meantime, officials want everyone to take the pledge to drive distraction free, and to encourage others to do the same.

2. Knit for a Cause: A group of people who love to knit and crochet get together regularly to create hats and scarves for Sacred Heart Community Services. Called One Brink Knits, it’s a part of the One Brick Silicon Valley group that helps connect volunteers with service projects. Don’t know how to knit or crochet? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community Tagged With: Beautiful Day, Drive Less Challenge, Earth Day, Five Ways to be a Good Neighbor, knitting, National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, National Volunteer Week, One Brick Silicon Valley

Pitch In to Take Freeways From Trashy to Beautiful

March 28, 2012 By Pam Marino

With shrinking state coffers translating into mushrooming piles of litter along California freeways, one organization is collaborating with Caltrans to give residents a chance to pitch in and clean up at the end of April.

The nonprofit group Beautiful Day is organizing a massive week-long service event by the same name in the San Jose area April 21-29, including what organizers are calling Trash It, three days of cleaning up debris along Silicon Valley freeways.

“I hate driving on the highway and seeing all the litter there, especially when people from other states come into visit. I want to be proud of my state,” said Trash It team leader Kristy Espinoza. “I feel like I’m doing my part to be organizing such a large event to get rid of litter.”

Beautiful Day is looking for 600 adult volunteers to participate Friday, April 27 through Sunday, April 29. There are five total shifts that weekend, with one on Friday morning, and two each on Saturday and Sunday, morning and afternoon. Each shift is about three hours long. Volunteers will meet at one of four Caltrans yards in Cupertino, Milpitas and San Jose.

Trash It signups are underway now at the Beautiful Day website, along with signups for the group’s other projects during the service week. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Volunteering Tagged With: Beautiful Day, Caltrans, Kristy Espinoza, litter clean-up, Trash It

Reborn Homeless Shelter Puts Faith in Community

March 21, 2012 By Pam Marino

A rotating shelter for homeless men in the West Valley once cut in a budget-trimming move is now experiencing rebirth, thanks to a collaboration of more than 20 churches, community members, and businesses.

The newly incorporated nonprofit, Faith in Action Silicon Valley Rotating Shelter, is celebrating the grand opening of its program with a special benefit concert and reception for the entire community at 7 p.m., this Saturday, March 24, at the Congregational Community Church, 1112 S. Bernardo Ave., Sunnyvale.

Faith in Action volunteers reopened the once defunct shelter earlier this month at the first in a series of eight host congregations in Sunnyvale, Cupertino, and Saratoga that are opening their doors for one month at a time.

The shelter can house up to 15 men who are actively working toward jobs and permanent homes. Eligible shelter guests are allowed to stay up to 90 days.

Facing Uncertainty

It’s a big success for the group, which faced a lot of uncertainty when the original Faith in Action rotating shelter was shut down three years ago, after nearly two decades of operation through the help of West Valley Community Services (WVCS). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Nonprofits Tagged With: Cathey Edwards, Faith in Action Silicon Valley Rotating Shelter, Gary Bouchard, homeless shelter, Orrin Mahoney, Pat Vorreiter

Won’t You Be My Neighbor? Day

March 20, 2012 By Pam Marino

It’s Won’t You Be My Neighbor? Day, the day that marks Mister Rogers’ birthday. It’s a big day in Pittsburgh, PA., where Rogers lived, but the day is catching on elsewhere as a time to do something nice for others in the spirit of his neighborliness. Wearing a sweater is an optional, but a fun part of the tradition.

Fred Rogers would have been 84 today. He died Feb. 27, 2003, of stomach cancer, less than two months after he served as grand marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade with Art Linkletter and Bill Cosby. Rogers made an impact on childrens television like few others. In his own soft spoken way he became America’s neighbor.

So “make the most of this beautiful day,” and wear your favorite sweater (and if so inclined, submit a photo of you in said sweater to The Fred Rogers Company). And make sure to do something neighborly for someone you encounter today.

You could be a neighbor to this website by encouraging your friends on Facebook to “like” our Facebook page, or your Twitter followers to follow our Twitter page. If you do either of those things by midnight tonight, you’ll be entered in a drawing for the book, The World According to Mister Rogers; Important Things to Remember.

Have a wonderful day, Neighbor.

Filed Under: Community, Good Neighbor Tagged With: Fred Rogers, Mister Rogers, neighborliness, The World According to Mister Rogers, Won't You Be My Neighbor Day

Free Tax Help Available in Bay Area; Use Our Interactive Map

March 19, 2012 By Pam Marino

Hundreds of volunteers are being deployed throughout the San Francisco Bay area to help the region’s poorest tax payers prepare their taxes this year, thanks to regional United Way agencies, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and local nonprofits and businesses.

The tax help for those making less than $50,000 a year is available at 200 locations. Below is an interactive map created by Good Neighbor Stories showing locations in Santa Clara County. Clicking on the map links to a page that includes a full list on the left-hand side of the page.

According to the Earn it!Keep It! Save It! program led by United Way of the Bay Area, less than five percent of those eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) are not taking advantage of the free tax preparation. Many turn to commercial tax preparers paying between $150 and $300, which officials estimate costs $2.2 million annually in the Bay Area alone.

“Unfortunately, thousands of low-income taxpayers are not taking advantage of our free, expert tax preparation,” said Kelly Batson, director of Earn It! Keep It! Save It! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Community, Volunteering Tagged With: earned income tax credit, income taxes, interactive map, IRS, Kelly Batson, Tax Couseling for the Elderly, United Way of the Bay Area, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance

High School Kindness Award Deadline Approaching

Volunteers to Beautify Santa Clara School April 28-29

Eighth Grader Making Birthday Wishes Come True For Less Fortunate Kids

Five Ways to Be a Good Neighbor in April

Pitch In to Take Freeways From Trashy to Beautiful

Reborn Homeless Shelter Puts Faith in Community

Won’t You Be My Neighbor? Day

Free Tax Help Available in Bay Area; Use Our Interactive Map

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