Class undertakes fundraisers for seniors, pets and paint job for park
While graduation is still months away for the Leadership Class of 2009, most of the class projects are well under way.
Each year, members of the Leadership San Benito County class learn about the inner workings of the community through full-day classes once a month that cover topics ranging from county history to public safety to politics and economics. Early on, the students are asked to identify areas of needs in the county, and to look at projects that will support nonprofits or other agencies.
Class undertakes fundraisers for seniors, pets and paint job for park
While graduation is still months away for the Leadership Class of 2009, most of the class projects are well under way.
Each year, members of the Leadership San Benito County class learn about the inner workings of the community through full-day classes once a month that cover topics ranging from county history to public safety to politics and economics. Early on, the students are asked to identify areas of needs in the county, and to look at projects that will support nonprofits or other agencies.
Past projects have included fundraising to installing new playground equipment at Chamberlains Children Center; the creation of a once-a-week afterschool program for ‘tweens, called the Drop Zone; and a video project intended to keep kids out of trouble.
This year, the class members identified three nonprofits to help, and they have been working hard on three projects – an upgrade for some San Benito County Historical Park buildings; a Sock Hop to support the senior center Jovenes de Antano Meals on Wheels program to be held May 30; and a 5K walk for people and their four-legged friends to support Pet Friends June 13.
Prep, paint, participate
“One of our events, or classes, was history day,” said Ann Robson, the project coordinator for Prep, Paint, Participate. “We ended up out at the historical park and took a tour of the park and then we had a nice barbecue lunch. We talked a lot about the history of San Benito County and when it came time to come up with some ideas for a class project we thought we should do something for the historical park.”
After talking with members of the San Benito County Historical Society, they decided some of the buildings could use some fresh paint.
“At first I thought we will have to rely on the leadership class, but it grew into more than that,” she said. “We had some other groups. Some came from the homeless shelter. There were some that needed to have community service. We had about 40 people.”
Originally scheduled for May 2, rain delayed the project until the following Saturday.
“It really didn’t hamper it at all,” Robson said. “Everyone showed up. Peter Sonne [of the Historical Society] was really excited. He said, ‘This is better than having money donated. This is something we didn’t have to raise money for, all the hard work and elbow grease.'”
The group worked for six hours, putting fresh coats of paint on several of the Historical Park buildings.
Sock Hop
Another group of Leadership classmates saw the senior center as a worthy cause.
“With the budget crisis and everything that was going on, we wanted to help Meals on Wheels,” said Robbie Russell, a project co-chair. “It was one of the programs that was threatened to have its budget cut. And also we wanted to promote an overall awareness of what Jovenes is about.”
Michele Diaz, a co-chair, and Russell got the idea to do a Sock Hop fundraiser from Pauline Valdivia, the director of Jovenes de Antano, the senior center in Hollister.
“It’s always been a dream of hers,” Russell said “We wanted to make her dream come true and do something for the seniors.”
The challenge has been ticket sales for the event, which are $50 for the general public and $30 for seniors. Residents can also sponsor a senior by purchasing a senior ticket. The event includes ’50s era music, and guests are encouraged to dress up in attire from the decade.
“The challenge has been the fundraising,” Russell said. “People are feeling the crunch – trying to sell tickets, trying to get sponsors has been very slow going.”
Diaz agreed that the economy has had an effect on the fundraiser, but that they are still optimistic about the chance of growing awareness of the senior program and Meals on Wheels.
“The most fun part has been my communication with Pauline and seeing some of her dreams,” Diaz said. “At the start of any project, you have these big ideas for it and want it to be as big as you could possibly make it. We had to scale it back and decide if our cause was raising money, or raising money and raising awareness.”
Wag n’ Walk
Marissa Brennan and Barbara Cosio are co-chairs of the Wag n’ walk 5K project. Brennan, who volunteers with Pet Friends, saw a need to help the group start a fundraiser that the group would be able to continue in years to come.
“In the past year, I just see the need with a lot of foreclosures. A lot of animals were being left behind,” Brennan said. “I thought by being able to help Pet Friends, a no-kill shelter, it’s something we could give back to the community via a different avenue than what a lot of the projects had done.”
The group hit on the idea of a 5K family run that would be open to people and their dogs.
“It was really random,” Brennan said, of coming up with the idea. “I just looked on Google one day and said ‘idea for animal shelter fundraisers’ and it was one of the first things that I saw.”
Graniterock Co. offered the use of their space on Southside Road for the 5K, and the group has been successful in gathering community sponsorships.
“We are definitely new at this and taking it day by day,” Brennan said. “We are learning something new in case someone tries to do it next year. We are learning by trial and error.”
The Leadership San Benito County board of directors will be hosting Night on the Vine August 15, a fundraiser for Leadership, and applications are being accepted for the Class of 2010.
“The benefit is that [students] learn about all aspects of our county from history to government to local economy to agriculture,” said Starr Wolff, the executive director of Leadership San Benito County. “Plus they also learn skills such as facilitating meetings and effective listening. They take it back and are encouraged to go on and work with other nonprofits and join other boards. A lot of groups come to us for suggestions on who might be good.”
The current students also had positive things to say about the program.
“I’ve met a lot of really incredible people and learned a lot about our community and how it operates,” Diaz said. “I’ve lived in Hollister my entire life and there was a lot I didn’t know. It’s been very interesting and very fulfilling.”
Upcoming events:
Sock Hop
Leadership San Benito County is hosting a ’50s Sock Hop to raise money for Jovenes de Antano senior programs May 30, from 5 p.m. to midnight. The event will include a ’50s costume contest, raffle, dinner and a dessert bar. No-host cocktails at 5 p.m., dinner and program at 6 p.m. and dancing from 7 p.m. to midnight. Live music by “Come Back Buddy.” Tickets are $50 per person, $30 for those 65 and over. To sponsor the event or make donations, contact Pauline Valdivia at 637-9275 or for tickets, contact Robbie Russell at 901-7283 or by e-mail to
rr******@sb********.org
.
Wag n’ Walk 5K
The Leadership San Benito Class of 2009 is hosting a Wag n’ Walk 5K Family Fun Run and Walk June 13 at the Graniterock Southside Sand and Gravel Quarry at 5632 Airline Hwy. The 5K starts at 9 a.m. and is open to two-legged participants. A 5K walk for people and their pets starts at 9:45 a.m. Individual registration is $15 in advance or $20 at the event. Family registration is $40 in advance or $45 at the event. To register online, visit www.active.com or visit petfriends.org. All proceeds benefit Pet Friends. For more information, call Marissa Brennan at 630-2495.
