Despite an outpouring of support from local organizations
including the WHS Cheer squad, Kiwanis club and Windsor scouts, the
Windsor Service Alliance still needs donations to feed the areas
needy.
The Windsor Service Alliance volunteer coordinator, Barbara
Brown, said the holiday donations have been generous but the pantry
still needs the community’s help.
“The Town of Windsor is great and they respond to the needs of
the hungry. Remember hunger is ongoing,” she said. “It never takes
a break.”
Brown said the pantry has received many donations from Windsor
schools with the help of Creative Property Services (CPS), where
she works as a realtor, and Hansen Moving and Storage. “CPS
Properties rented a Hansen truck and made two deliveries from
Mattie (Washburn Elementary School) and Windsor Creek (Elementary)
and I swear we must have had over 200 bags. The kids did a really
wonderful job of donating,” she said.
Brooks Elementary School made a separate donation on Nov.
28.
Brown can also expect a donation from the Windsor High School
cheerleaders. Jane Glanton, the mother of freshman cheerleader,
Emily Glanton, said the cheerleading team had a bake sale in
mid-Nov. in front of WalMart that raised $1,000. She said the team
sold $500 in baked goods and WalMart matched their funds to give to
charity.
Glanton said the 22 cheerleaders will take the bake sale funds
and buy food at Safeway for the Windsor Service Alliance.
“They are trying to buy the buy-two-get-one-free items to make
their money go as far as it can. Peanut butter in plastic jars,
canned items, lentils, canned vegetables, rice in a plastic
container, not a bag, and tuna cans are great, real pantry staples
for people,” she said.
Glanton said the cheerleading team often raises money to pay for
their expensive uniforms and are grateful to the community for
their support in all their fundraisers.
“They would like to thank the community for supporting their
efforts and would like to be seen as giving back instead of always
asking for help,” she said.
The Cub Scouts are also having donation drives for the Windsor
Service Alliance said Cub Master Liz Wilson. She said their “Pack”
raised 110 pounds of food for the W.S.A. in early Nov. and are
organizing another drive to benefit locals in need.
“Normally we do a fundraiser once a year and we sell mistletoe
in little packets we put together with bows and we take 100 percent
of the proceeds and give it to charity,” she said.
The scouts modified their traditional Christmas charity program
to focus on local residents in need after learning about giving
from a Native American speaker at a recent pack meeting.
Donations will also be made to a Veterans phone card program
called Veterans for Foreign Wars of the United States Operation
Uplink and Wilson said it provides free phone cards for troops
overseas to call home.
Wilson said the Cub Scouts will be selling the mistletoe bags
for $2 between the hours of 4 – 6:30 p.m. in front of Safeway,
Raleys, Exchange Bank and the Redwood Credit Union on December
14.
“There are going to be 100 bags at each of these spots,” she
said. “Our goal is $800; $400 to Veterans phone cards and $400 to
the Windsor Service Alliance,” she said. “This is a lot of work for
these boys.”
A combination of Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts will help unload and
sort food donations at the W.S.A. on December 15 starting at 8:15
a.m.
On the same day the Windsor Kiwanis Club will be handing out
free presents to underprivileged children at Grange Hall said club
president Jake Meyers, and the W.S.A. will be there handing out
food to families.
“What happens is W.S.A. handout food every Friday and at that
time people sign up for toys and we buy toys to match their age and
we buy the toys and wrap them up and give them to the kids at
Grange Hall December 15 between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.,” Meyers said.
“And families will get groceries and turkey.”
The Windsor Kiwanis Club participated in the John Farley Food
Drive on November 17. John Farley is the Chief Meteorologist for
NBCs News Channel 11 and he helped the Kiwanis kids collect food
and money donations in other parts of the Bay Area.
Meyers said the Windsor Kiwanis Club collected $509 and 1040
pounds of food in front of Raleys and gave the donations to the
W.S.A. Raleys helped the club by letting patrons purchase $20 bags
of groceries for $10 and donating them to the cause. The Windsor
Raleys Store Director, John Moore, is also a Kiwanis Club member.
The Kiwanis club will also be selling Seas candy and wreaths in
front of Exchange Bank from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from December 1-15.
The proceeds will be given to the W.S.A.
Meyers said the Kiwanis Club has many fundraisers throughout the
year and they all benefit Windsor children. “One child and one
community at a time,” he said. “All of the money we raise with our
fundraisers goes to the Windsor kids.”
Aside from helping the Windsor organizations with their donation
drives, Windsor citizens can also give directly to the W.S.A. Brown
said locals can also make a check out to the Redwood Empire Food
Bank where the W.S.A. orders food for their families.
Brown said the pantry still needs the regular staples given to
their clients each week, like tuna, peanut butter, green beans,
soup, fruit, pasta, ramen and rice. “The fruit and green beans are
kind of short and we give those out every week,” she said. “We can
buy lots of ramen for a few bucks. We try to put that in the bags
but we run out. That is all augmented by eggs, dairy and pastry we
get from Raleys.”
Brown said Raleys’ Food for Families program helps the W.S.A.
throughout the year and will be providing holiday meat.
She said that the W.S.A. can also use help with some repairs.
“If anybody has a water cooler, we are paying for one monthly and I
think we’ve been paying out for it for three or four years. I’ve
been looking for one but I did not want to make my food money go
for that,” she said. “If anybody wants to fix my refrigerator, we
have one down. That would help too, I really need it this time of
year.”
For more information about donating to the W.S.A. visit www.windsorservicealliance.org
or about giving to the Redwood Empire Food Bank visit www.refb.org. To learn more about the
Windsor Kiwanis Club call Meyers at 838-1667.
