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Where are you originally from? I am a native of El Dorado County, I was born and raised in Placerville and now live in Rescue with my husband and two sons. What were you involved with before starting with Hands4Hope? I have worked most of my adult life in the field of education. For the last 16 years I have worked at California Montessori Project where I have been: before and after school program support, a teaching assistant, team teacher, and the schools library tech. What do you like to do in your free time? I love to cook and bake!! I am always looking for new recipes to try. In the summer, I enjoy spending time 4-wheeling and camping in the mountains and watching my sons compete for the Dry Diggins Dolphins. In the fall, you'll find me cheering on my husband as he coaches Varsity football most Friday nights. What goals do you have for your work with Hands4Hope? My goal is to help the education program grow and mentor our youth leadership in achieving their long term goals. What are you most looking forward to in working with Hands4Hope? I am looking forward to my role in helping the youth in our community grow in their service minded pursuits. My family has instilled a love for service in me and I want to pass that joy along to others. It is always such a good feeling to know you are helping make a difference in the community.

What is your school and grade? Also, how long have you been involved with H4H? I attend Marina Middle School and I’m in the eighth grade. I’ve been involved in Hands4hope for two years now and they have both been amazing experiences! Why did you join Hands4Hope? I joined Hands4hope when I saw the flyers hanging around school, and me being the excited sixth grader was determined to join every club I possibly could. I soon fell in love with Hands4hope and fully committed to it. How has Hands4Hope helped you in school, with your friends and family, and in life? Hands4hope has helped me be more organized in school and more understanding with my classmates and friends. What has your experience been like since joining? My experience has been great! Everyone is so nice and I’ve made a lot of new friends. Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experiences with Hands4Hope? Hands4hope has just been a great learning experience that helped me improve my leadership skills, be more organized, and have a better attitude towards school and family.

How long have you been participating with Hands4Hope? I began volunteering with Hands4Hope in 2013. Why did you join Hands4Hope? I actually joined Hands4Hope because my stepmom Beverlane and her sons participated in events. I started going to outreaches with them and quickly realized how much I liked volunteering with Hands4Hope. How has the transition been going from a youth participant to adult mentor? Being a youth volunteer for a few years allowed me to meet fellow volunteers and become aware of the various outreaches that Hands4Hope participates in. Also, I was truly ready for the extra responsibilities within the organization. Therefore, my transition from a youth participant to an adult mentor has remained smooth and I definitely enjoy the new role. What outreaches do you usually volunteer with? Which do you enjoy the most? My main outreaches include the Green Valley Community Church Saturday, the Wednesday night Mercy Senior Center dinners, and the Homeless Outreach. I enjoy all of these outreaches, and they are all rather different. At each event I volunteer around great people and feel like I truly make a difference in my community. What is your impression/experience with Hands4Hope youth? My experience with the Hands4Hope youth is that they show up with a positive attitude and are always ready to help their community. Overall, what has your experience been like since joining? Overall, I have had a great experience with Hands4Hope. Everyone within the organization is always extremely warm and helpful. In addition, I love the amount of outreaches and their various purposes. They truly allow me to connect with and positively affect the community.

Anne Rhea is this month’s Adult Spotlight!

As the clock strikes half past eight and the aroma of fresh breakfast drifts through the air, the Green Valley Saturday Cafe is officially open for anyone to come in and enjoy a hot meal. And for the past century, that’s exactly how it’s been. Since the start of the 1930’s, the Green Valley Community Church has been a place of care, friendship, and faith. Being that it was founded during the Great Depression, the church provided the community with a much needed space for connection and support, often times for the less fortunate. Although economic and social conditions have eased over the years, the church still has a valuable niche in the community, making homeless outreaches a priority in addition to its regular church activities. In 1996, a group of individuals founded The Saturday Cafe, a program at the church meant to help those in need. Initially, this meant a simple breakfast and a few free food items to-go, but evolved into many more programs, including a free grocery store and daycare for kids. Hands4Hope volunteers come to the event every other Saturday, preparing food, cleaning dishes, and taking care of the kids while their parents enjoy the meal. The main part of the Saturday Cafe, as indicated by the name, is the breakfast. Starting at 8:00 a.m. sharp, the meal fills the church with life and the stomachs of roughly three hundred people in a span of three hours. During that time, Hands4Hope volunteers of all ages work together along with volunteers from the church and other agencies to ensure everyone is fed and getting enough groceries. The chefs, who are all volunteers, prepare a variety of food, mainly including traditional breakfast items like eggs, toast, sausage, bacon, and pastries. For the attendees, the event might just be a quick meal, but the volunteers often have a different story. Twelve-year volunteer Susan said, “I’ve been volunteering here for over a decade, coming in at 6:00 in the morning. As soon as I get here, I organize bread and produce and calculate the amount of people coming so everyone can get their fair share.” After the breakfast, people are welcome to visit the mini-grocery store towards the rear end of the church, where they can claim a grocery bag filled with miscellaneous food items once a month and shop for other grocery items in the pantry. The selection of goods ranges widely, from fresh fruits and vegetables to coconut cakes and brownies, and takes two rooms to store. All of the food comes from the local food bank. To make sure all the guests get what they came for, Hands4Hope volunteers help stock up the grocery store, pack goodie bags filled with food, and help them maneuver through the grocery store. The Saturday Cafe also branched out to supplying clothes to the community, taking a few donations from anyone willing to give up some gently used clothes and turning it into a full-fledged clothing store. Racks and shelves line the floors and walls of the store, filled with free, quality clothes for anyone. In 2018 alone, the Green Valley Community Church provided groceries to 7,286 families, served breakfast to 12,737 guests, and gave out almost 90,000 articles of clothing, showing that small institution can make huge impacts on its community through hard work, dedication, and selflessness. And for long-time volunteer and church manager Bobbi, those three traits have been the key to her work at the church. “Volunteering at the church and getting up early on the weekends is hard at times,” she said, “but it keeps me going when I see the amount of help we’ve given out over the years and how we’ve improved so many lives.” Bobbi’s words ring true for many volunteers, both in Hands4Hope and other organizations, who take a chunk out of their Saturday at the Saturday Cafe and Kids Oasis. Hands4Hope is a non-profit, youth-driven service learning and outreach organization based in El Dorado County whose mission is to empower youth to make a positive difference in the world around them through exploration, action and leadership. Hands4Hope is comprised of youth volunteers ranging from kindergarten to 12th grade. For more information about the GVCC Saturday Cafe and/or Hands4Hope visit hands4hopeyouth.org or call the Hands4Hope Youth Center at (916) 294-7426. -Article written by Kiran Belgal

What is your school and grade? Also, how long have you been involved with H4H? I have been apart of the amazing organization that is Hands4Hope for 6 years now. I just graduated from Ponderosa High School and through my involvement with H4H Club there and out in the community, this nonprofit has truly become like a second home to me. Why did you join Hands4Hope? My mother introduced this organization to my sister and I when I was going into 8th grade so we could give back to our community as a family. How has Hands4Hope helped you in school, with your friends and family, and in life? This organization hasn’t just provided me with the vast opportunities to serve my community, but also with the resources to grow as an individual and as a leader. This has enabled me to share the energy and skills acquired with those around me. With the volunteering hours I have accumulated through the years, it has surprisingly taught me about what I love, or could learn to love, in my future educational and career paths. The nonprofit organizations I have gotten the chance to explore have shown me a different side of the world we live in. The tasks I have gotten to undertake through these programs have given me the skills I need to undertake bigger challenges facing my and future generations. What has your experience been like since joining? My experience with Hands4Hope has done nothing but surprise me. Its amazing family- like environment, its hard working staff and youth members, and surprising myself with all I can truly do, has taught me more than any school classroom or extracurricular activity I’ve taken part in. Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experiences with Hands4Hope? I wouldn’t be who I am today if it weren’t for the mentors and friends I have met through the amazing organization that is Hands4Hope.

Hands4Hope selected Joey Castellanos as this month's Youth Spotlight for his hard work and commitment

Heather Sikes is this month’s Adult Spotlight!

Hands4Hope has selected Wan-Cheng as this month's Adult Lead Spotlight.

Mckenna What is your school and grade? Also, how long have you been involved with H4H? I will be going to Ponderosa as a freshman this fall. I have been involved with H4H for three years. Why did you join Hands4Hope? I joined H4H because I wanted to help out in the community and I knew that H4H was a great place to start. How has Hands4Hope helped you in school, with your friends and family, and in life? Hands4Hope has helped me out by letting me channel my creativity and letting me be a leader without having to take an extra class in school. With my friends and family, I could talk about all of the things that I was doing to help the community and I could invite them to join H4H. What has your experience been like since joining? Since joining, I have been better at helping others and listening to what others have to say. I have had a great time thinking of ways to help out while still participating in the meetings. This club allows all types of individuals to freely think and speak their minds about topics that come up in meetings. I think that this is essential to every club that wants individuals to join and enjoy their time in the club. Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experiences with Hands4Hope? Hands4Hope is a club that allows everyone to feel like a leader or to follow someone else. Everyone feels welcome and everyone is able to contribute to the atmosphere of learning that is developed in meetings. I love all of my time spent working with Hands4Hope. Madisen What is your school and grade? Also, how long have you been involved with H4H? My school is Ponderosa and I am in ninth grade. I have been involved in Hands4Hope for three years. Why did you join Hands4Hope? I joined Hands4Hope to help my community and develop my leadership skills. How has Hands4Hope helped you in school, with your friends and family, and in life? Hands4Hope has helped me by building my leadership skills and helping me impact my community positively. What has your experience been like since joining? I have had a great time and met so many nice people since I joined Hands4Hope. Is there anything else that you would like to add about your experiences with Hands4Hope? I am so glad that I got to be a part of the wonderful program and that I will be able to continue to make a lasting impact in my community.

Allison Simko is this month’s Youth Spotlight!

A few years ago, Hands4Hope volunteer and high school senior Kirsti Buckendorf found that her community was failing to meet the needs of many senior citizens. After some research, Buckendorf approached Creekview Manor, an independent living senior housing facility in Folsom, California, to share some ideas as to how Hands4Hope could help. The discussion went well, and Hands4Hope was able to establish a monthly plan to encompass seniors in one of its outreach programs. In just a couple hours every month, Hands4Hope’s Mercy Creekview Senior Dinner provides food, entertainment, and company to the seniors of Creekview Manor. Although the residence was built with the intent of providing housing to low-income residents, financial issues are still prominent within the Creekview community. Resident Coordinator Sarah Simons explained the importance of the program, expressing that many struggle to buy food as their money becomes scarce towards the end of the month. Through monthly food donations, Hands4Hope volunteers and staff are able to provide a gourmet, homemade meal for residents. Every month, the number of seniors that attend the dinner varies from 30 to 50. Those who stay home can still receive a dinner by requesting a volunteer to hand-deliver it. For many Creekview seniors, the dinner is a place to interact with people--young people in particular. Jonnie, a four-year resident at Creekview Manor, said, “The kids who come here are great. I finally get to be around young people again and I love that.” It’s not just the seniors who love the social aspect of the dinner, volunteers enjoy connecting with the residents too. Twin brothers Mason and Brody have been attending the dinner for five months with no plans to stop anytime soon. “At the senior center, we usually bring or make food to donate,” they said. “When we get there, we fill up waters for the main tables and figure out what main dish we are serving. There are also a few ladies who like to play Scrabble, so we see if they want to play. Once we serve dinner, we deliver meals to the apartments of those who couldn’t make it (sometimes for physical reasons).” Not only do the boys work hard to make sure that all seniors have food on their plate, but they have fun with it too. They often do art projects with the seniors and stick around after dinner to chat and connect with them. Over the last eight years, keeping the dinner running has not been easy. After Kirsti left for college, her mother, Inga, decided to take on the outreach. For her, the two hour event turns into around a three day affair. She plans meals, prepares food, shops for ingredients, and even donates some of the food. “But in the end,” she said, “the warm smiles, hugs, and thank you’s make it all worth it.” -Written by Kiren Belgal