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Caity McCardell

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Newsletter August 19, 2024


It’s Not Always Just About the Money


Help and Items Needed


Next Potluck


Projects updates


Update on Funds Received


Where the Money Went


It’s not always just about the money!



Yes, many non-profits’ efforts are usually all about raising money.  However, at South SLO County Womenade we do so much more. We provide avenues for individuals to get involved personally in providing hands on help to people in our community in need.  Not only have these activities helped our neighbors, but some great friendships have developed as well. We are very grateful to so many people - too many to name individually, but their donations of food and supplies for our drives make up close to 50% of the value of what we raise in a year!


Some of our volunteer activities include:


  • Hosting a potluck and sites for organizing drives

  • Applying for grants

  • Leading and participating in a project e.g. Toiletries, school supplies, diapers, food, laundry pop-ups etc.

  • Making and delivering weekend lunch bags for food insecure students

  • Helping at the Food Distributions at Nipomo Elementary and Lopez High School

  • Picking up food at the Foodbank

  • Participating in the Thanksgiving and Winter Break Food Basket Drives

  • Shopping for items for the many drives

  • Picking up and delivering large items from donors to clients

  • Volunteering in a classroom

  • Staffing a laundry pop-up

  • Organizing “closets” for students in need

  • …and so much more


Help Needed – contact us at sslocwomenade@gmail.com


  • Adopt an Elementary School for Weekend Food Bags – we have 4 schools that need a team leader, some food bag providers and deliverers. Dana and Nipomo Elementary have a leader. We need leaders for Branch, Grover Beach, Oceano Elementary and Shell Beach. Each school ranges 5 to 11 bags per week per school last year.

  • A second monthly Laundry Pop-Up day – with the success of our first Laundry Pop-Up project, we’d like to start a second monthly event and need a project leader and volunteers. The process and training are available.

  • A project leader for a diaper drive


Items needed


  • Toilet paper

  • Diapers

  • Pack n Plays

  • Cooking Oil

  • Laundry detergent


Next Potluck – Mark your Calendars September 19th


Thursday, September 19th at 6PM at Lola Zybura’s home


It’s Talk Like a Pirate Day!


2367 Brant St, Arroyo Grande in Cypress Ridge!


Mark your calendars!




Projects updates


We Missed the Bus – Teachers’ School Supplies -  Lisa Arakaki


Our fifth annual “We Missed the Bus” - Teachers’ School Supplies Drive is completed.  Lynette Roberts, her family and friends are sorting and inventorying all the fabulous donations.  They will distribute them to the neediest of elementary schools in the next couple of weeks.  We will have an update and pictures in our next newsletter - stay tuned!


We Love Educators Volunteers for Teachers - To provide LMUSD educators with hands-on volunteer help in the classroom.


once the teachers get to know their students, we will surely need more. There is a small charge for fingerprinting but if you need help with that, we will assist.  Lisa Arakaki has developed the form below that you can fill out and it will be sent to her.



School Volunteer: Volunteers can fall into one of three categories, those being: single event, short-term, or long-term; and one of two student contact categories: limited contact or substantial contact.


You don’t have to be an educator (although that can be very helpful). We need both former educators and lay people to volunteer.  You can specify what you’re comfortable doing. Teachers work with volunteers to get the best fit. Duties the past two years included:

  • Leading small learning groups – reading, writing and math

  • Helping with letters, numbers and phonics

  • Leading and supporting art lessons

  • Assisting with physical education units

  • Guiding individual students


Laundry Pop-Up – Belinda Benassi



The last Laundry Pop-Up was on August 17th in Arroyo Grande with  three volunteers, Belinda Benassi, Beth Hirsch, and Susan Josephson. They helped with 64 loads of laundry and although they were busy, the three volunteers handled it well.


The next Laundry Pop-Up will take place on September 21st at 119 S. 13th., Grover Beach, CA 93420, Hours: 10 am - 12 pm. Each month we only need about 3 volunteers. Belinda Benassi leads this program and could use a few more volunteers.


Currently NO ONE has volunteered for September 21st in Grover Beach! Please consider joining us. To offer opportunities for volunteers to sign up in advance for the event site and dates of their choosing Belinda put together this Sign-Up Genius https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0B44AEA82DAAF9C52-50105745-2024.  


Nipomo Food Distribution – Rosemary Cleaves, Sue McCutcheon, and Mary Anne Morgan - project leaders



The August Food distribution was on Tuesday August13th at the Nipomo Elementary School (always the second Tuesday of the month) we gave food to 360 families, and fortunately we didn’t run out this time!    We work with the SLO FoodBank and Nipomo Elementary School to make the Food Distribution happen. Thank you SLO Foodbank and all our fabulous volunteers! Let us know if you want to be on the substitute list.


In Kind Receipt


Please complete and submit the in-kind receipt to help us track how much you are contributing in donor offered items: This is a jpeg that you can copy, paste and print.



UPDATE ON FUNDS RECEIVED


7/1//24 TO 7/31/24            $12,711.37


1/1/24 TO 7/31/24              $87,013.23


2/1/2019 TO 7/31/24       $585,503.61


Thank you to our July donors!


Barbara Schader, Fran Norris, Rosemary Cleaves (2), Karen Kolba (2), Sheila and Richard Semana, Ann Tompkins, Mary DeJong, Marilyn Mullany (2), Lola Zybura, Joann and Stan Benson (2), Olive and Mike Shu, Elaine Stewart, Bluma Felix, Cory Gonzalez, Wendy Castleman (2), We Love Educators, Christine Mateer, Linda Fibich (2), Gail Applegate, Candace Guldeman, Marcella Gelman, Lisa Murdoch, Madeline Stevenson, Jann Jeffries, Barbara Crawford, Carol Chenot (2), Marilyn Knollenberg, Mary Anne Morgan and Madeline Fay, Jordis Daigle, Gwen Carton, Lisa Arakaki, Karen Kolba, Ann Mathias, Deb Sherry, Susan Josephson, Nicole Pazdan, Susan McCutcheon (2), Lynette Roberts, Caity McCardell, Dana Robertson, Anita Shower, Jessica Griffiths, Debra Jackson, Libby Cabral, Tara Mattina, Kathy Forenza, Shirley Horacek,


WHERE THE MONEY WENT


Casa Solana – Renée Poirier – Executive Director

  • Casa Solana was able to provide a gift bed to a woman who has been sleeping in her car. She has six kids who are currently in foster care. $800

 

Nipomo Family Resource Center – Advocate TBD

  • Single income household. Parent is struggling to pay for gas to get children to summer activities.$100 Shell Gas

  • Client is short on her rent money and needs assistance this month.$200 Luis Venegas (landlord)

 

Oceano Family Resource Center – Advocate Stella Medina

  • Single mom of 3 was out sick for a week with a virus. This has impacted her income and budget. Client has a turn off notice on her water bill. $300 Nipomo Community District

  • Foodbank food $100.95 SLO Food Bank

  • Single mother of three girls struggling to pay for rent, food and other basic needs. Needs help with the rent this month. $500 Goetz Manderly (landlord)


 Arroyo Grande Family Resource Center – Cinthyia Ortiz-Corona

  • Single mother with Child Welfare Services reunification plan requested support with gas for visitations with children. Recently increased to three days a week and looking to spend over nights with children. Mother on limited income and food stamps. $100 Valero

  • Single mother of three struggling with income changes with paid family leave. Current income and expenses are twice as much as she can cover at this time. Needs help with rent.$400 California Property Services

 

Nutrition Team – Mary Anne Morgan leader

  • Food for food distributions at Nipomo Elementary School and Lopez High School Food Pantry $52.80


5 Cities Homeless Coalition – Janna Nichols Executive Director

  • Former outreach client has been living in Transitions Mental Health Association's supportive housing. Client is incredibly high need and still receives a lot of support from 5CHC. Client had a court appointment and requested assistance with a haircut and beard trim prior to his appearance. $47 Supercuts

  • A single adult male recently moved into the Cabins for Change shelter site. He was able to secure employment at a local restaurant within a couple weeks of having a stable place to live. He is seeking assistance with renewing his Food Handler's Certificate so he can begin working. $7.95 Food Handlers Certificate

  • Homeless Prevention client requested assistance with paying his car insurance for the month. He has been out of work and is actively looking for a new job. This payment will ensure his insurance doesn't lapse.$72.78 Progressive Insurance


Lopez High School – Jennifer Bowen- Principal; Aurora Munoz – Admin on break


Lopez High School Wolf Den – Heidi Boatman, Jann Jeffries – on summer break


Families in Transition – Wendy Bruse Coordinator of After School Programs, Deicy Trejo – on summer break


Pregnancy and Parenting Support – Cami Statler Executive director

  • Mother in Pismo Beach requested a sturdy stroller for her 3-year-old daughter with special needs. They rely solely on public transportation and this stroller will provide them mobility to meet their needs in the county. $182.12 Walmart.com


Lumina Alliance – Heather Mullin, Development Director on break


Mission Hope – Katie Crafton – Oncology Social Worker

  • Man in 60’s with myeloma struggling to get to appointments in Southern CA. Doesn’t qualify for other transportation resources. $100 Gas Card

  • Man in 40’s with blood cancer traveling out of the area for pre appointments for stem cell transplant. $100 Gas Card

The Link – Advocates – Mesa Middle and Judkins Middle -Yuliana Molina;  Paulding Middle - Fernando Alvarado  on break


SLO County Office Of Education CSPP –(California Pre-School Programs) – Shannon Pimentel Program Coordinator On break


Department of Social Services – Jannine Lambert – Division Manager

  • PT came in requesting aid and explained that he was just released from his second hospital stay.He had internal bleeding and was eventually released then developed cellulites and was admitted again.He has no housing and is not able to heal with his condition.He needed some new clothes and transportation to get around for these items and to get to the Shelter in SLO. $25 Walmart $15 RTA Bus pass

  • PT was just released with no income and needs gas to look for work. $25 Chevron

 

County Nurses – Meryl Castro – County Nurse Supervisor

  • gas card to a family in need. Their child is having surgery in Santa Barbara on the 29. They just returned from a trip 2 weeks ago to Valley Children's in Madera $50


C.A.R.E.4Paws – Libby Williams-Cabral – area administrator

  • A young Nipomo family needed help with their 2 year old, neutered dachshund who had an emergency need for exploratory surgery to find/remove a rock obstructing a portion of his lower intestine. The dog's name is Archie and he was chasing lizards in the yard and accidentally swallowed a white landscaping rock while trying to get the lizard. His surgery was on 7/23/24, performed by Dr. Alex Gomes and he is doing SO well now! If the family wasn't able to receive assistance, the recommendation from the vet who did the initial diagnostic exam, was to humanely euthanize. $500


People’s Self Help Housing –  Joanna Domínguez - Director of Resource Development

  • Client is a single mother. She has no mattresses and is short on funds for food. $500

  • Client’s benefits are pending a taking a bit longer than usual. She is requesting $300 in rental assistance. $300 Rent

  • Client has a balance struggling and is behind in rent $280 Rent

  • Resident is behind on water bill $500 Avila Bay Water

  • Client’s adult daughter lost her job and needs funds to support her for a while $300 Walmart


HOW TO DONATE:


To make a donation write a check to South SLO County Womenade and mail to:


Our bank asked that checks be made out with the full legal name on the account.


South SLO County Womenade, 1793 Farroll Rd., Grover Beach, CA 93433.  We encourage you to become one of our monthly or regular donors.  This can be easily done through your bank or charitable foundation. Please remember that if your company has a matching grants program to include us.  As you make or update your wills, please consider adding a legacy gift to us for our future sustainability.



or go to our website sslocw.org



or Venmo sslocwomenade



Our website is: sslocw.org


Our EIN# 27-0809744


Phone number: (805) 270-5751


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