Sometimes, when planning for the future, nonprofits reach for the stars. This year, for the Sun’s annual presentation of local nonprofit wish lists, we decided to appoint you, the community, as those stars.
Pretty shiny, huh?
Don’t worry: You won’t have to remember where you fit into Ursa Major or hang in the sky for chilly hours on end. You will, however, have to shine a light on people in need by offering your time, money, or other gifts or talents.
It’s pretty easy, actually—a lot easier than being reliable enough for ship captains to use you for navigation.
So read on. Help local charity groups, centers, and advocacy organizations chart the rough waters of fundraising—and simply stay afloat!—by stepping up for the season. Guide them with your generosity and goodwill.
Then, when these nonprofits say they reached for the stars and got them, they’ll be talking about getting in contact with you.
Let’s see Polaris do that.
Tommie Kunst Junior High Band
The band at Tommie Kunst Junior High School is one of the hardest-working bands around. On the last day of school, it played an impromptu concert in the cafeteria. The group may have a bit of a list for Santa Claus and his helpers, but it’s really made up of the bare necessities.
As hard as the students work, their instruments do, too. In fact, one band member, who plays alto saxophone, can’t play most of that instrument’s range: Only the C, B, and A notes are working. The rest of the band instruments are pretty much functional, but they require constant fixes.
“I have to repair two or three instruments every day. It’s a daily thing,” said band teacher Jessica Husselstein. “It’s not the kids’ fault; they’re so careful.”
She added that some of the instruments are held together with masking tape, and the dire condition of the instruments causes the kids to trade—though they do have their own mouthpieces.
The group would also love to have marching band and concert band uniforms.
“They would go insane if they had marching band uniforms,” Husselstein said.
There are other things the band would love too, such as a bass guitar and amp and an electric guitar with an amp to start their jazz band; chimes, a vibraphone, and a marimba for the percussion section; and a sousaphone. Although they have particular instruments in mind, the band will also accept any working instrument.
Locals who have working instruments hanging around and want to donate them can drop them off at either the Santa Maria-Bonita School District’s Souza Center or at Tommie Kunst.
For more information, call the district at 928-1783.
—Henry Houston
Child Abuse Listening and Mediation
ALM—a nonprofit dedicated to putting an end to child abuse—opened an office in Santa Maria earlier this month to help local children and families in need. The North County employees are still adjusting to the move, and could use some help from the community.
Ryan Smith, interim manager for the organization’s Great Beginnings North County program, said one of CALM’s primary goals is to provide a safe and comfortable environment in which children can receive services. So, he explained, a lot of the items on CALM’s list have to do with making the office feel like home.
“Some of the bigger ticket items we’d like are couches and arm chairs—new or very gently used,” he said. “We can always use toys, especially baby toys. We don’t have any of those.”
Toy figurines—superheroes, Barbies, animals, and
houses—also serve a larger purpose because “younger kids make sense of things through play,” Smith said.
Other items on CALM’s list include art supplies; themed children’s books focusing on different cultures, and emotions and life changes; an office printer, desks, chairs, and computers; and tote boxes therapists can use to carry toys and supplies to patients’ homes. Lastly, volunteers are also needed to provide transportation and babysitting services.
For more information, visit calm4kids.org or call 614-9160.
—Amy Asman
Buellton Senior Center
Director Colleen Klein admitted that she’s never before considered an actual wish list for the Buellton Senior Center, but that didn’t stop her from thinking on the fly.
Monetary donations are always appreciated (and easy to make at syvalley
seniorcitizensfoundation.org). Klein said she expected to dole out 18,000 to 19,000 meals to seniors this year, but they’re closing out 2010 at just about the 20,000 mark.
She quickly warmed to the wish list idea, brainstorming ideas both little and big, but said “it would all be awesome.”
“One of the things that we need would be … this is terrible, but … well, it’s not, it’s just that, there’s no way that somebody could do that,” she said, talking mostly to herself. “We have a need for a catering van, and you know sometimes people have them and then they don’t have a use for them anymore.”
The center, seeking to augment its dwindling grant money in this time of economic downturn, started a catering business.
“It’s just taken off,” Klein said. “It’s really, really wonderful, but right now we just have the one van.”
That one van is also used for the center’s Meals on Wheels program, which can lead to complicated and conflicting scheduling. Another van would allow the volunteers to carry on with meal deliveries and catering, worry free.
“You never know,” Klein said with a laugh.
On a related—but smaller—level, the center could use any kind of kitchen equipment: silverware, pans, “even towels to dry dishes with and stuff.”
“We just kind of take everything,” Klein summed up.
For more information, or to donate, visit syvalleyseniorcitizensfoundation.org or call 688-4571.
—Ryan Miller
Northern Santa Barbara County Special Olympics
With year-round sports programs and more than 200 athletes, the volunteer-run Northern Santa Barbara County chapter of the Special Olympics puts a lot of wear and tear on equipment and uniforms.
Through its consistent fundraising efforts, the nonprofit is focused on providing for both its spring/summer athletic season of aquatics, basketball, bocce ball, and golf; and its fall/winter season, consisting of bowling, floor hockey, soccer, softball, tennis, and volleyball.
“Special Olympics is always grateful for any kind of donation we receive, benefiting our athletes and allowing them to compete at their highest level and have fun,” said Rudy Gutierrez, operations coordinator for the organization.
The specific items most desperately needed, according to Gutierrez, are as follows:
• Basketball jerseys, basketballs, and ball bags for Lompoc and Santa Maria programs
• Baseball tees
• Softball bag and helmets
• Softball bats, mitts, and pants
• Soccer pop-up goals, soccer balls, and uniforms
• E-Z Up instant canopies (10-foot-by-10 foot)
• Two bocce ball sets
• Swimming goggles
• Tennis balls
For more information, call 925-0951.
—Jeremy Thomas
Santa Maria Arts Council
The Santa Maria Arts Council has been helping to promote the arts in Santa Maria since 1965 and has awarded more than $205,600 in scholarships to 314 locally trained artists. Though it does a lot of giving, the council has needs, too. Council president Craig Shafer only hopes there’s enough room in Santa’s sack—or the hearts of the community—for the council’s wish list.
Shafer gave the Sun a peek at that list; here are some excerpts:
“I’ll start with the small stuff. How about bringing throngs of adoring art lovers who will pack the theaters, art galleries, art classes, and all the music and dance events throughout the year,” he wrote.
He also would like to see Santa help develop art connoisseurs—art lovers who understand the inner workings and technical skills required for each art form. They’re the kind of people who go to art events, not because they want something to do on a Friday night but “because they appreciate the technique from the subtle to the grand spectacle.”
More public art—of the sort that announces a rich and vibrant art community in Santa Maria—is also on the list.
And Shafer added one more thing: “If you can’t fulfill this list, you could come join the Santa Maria Arts Council. We meet at noon on the third Wednesday of the month at the Town Center Gallery. We are currently planning for the Spring Student Art Show and the Individual Grants Competition (where we give away $10,000 to the brightest new artists).”
He added this P.S.: “I almost forgot … the local schools are in need of band instruments. Contact your local school for their specific needs before trying to drop off 76 trombones … though that may be on their wish list, I’m not sure.”
For more information, visit smartscouncil.org or e-mail info
@smartscouncil.org.—Shelly Cone
Santa Maria Police Activities League
Since 2004, the Santa Maria chapter of the Police Activities League (PAL) has provided free sports and recreational clubs to youths from 12 to 18 years old. Participants get to join boxing and baseball, fishing and paintball. Supported solely through fundraisers and grants, PAL’s staff of nine city police officers and an extended group of volunteers mentor more than 500 at-risk children, with the goal of keeping teens off the streets and preventing juvenile crime and violence.
To help continue their mission into 2011, PAL Specialist Javier Montes is asking the public for the following items:
• Three copies of Madden 2011 for Playstation 3
(for a Madden Football Tournament)
• Pencils and blue and black ink pens
• 8 1/2-by-11 size notepads for the PAL Job Faire
• Gift cards to local teen-related businesses
• Food, electronics, sports, entertainment, and other items to use as prizes in competitions
• 1,000 drinking straws of the same size for a tower building competition
• 2-inch-by-15-yard gauze
• 2-inch-by-10-yard medical tape
For more information or to donate, visit santamariapal.org.
Luis Oasis Senior Center
Seniors in Orcutt are fortunate to have a gem like the Luis Oasis Senior Center. The nonprofit provides food distribution, a daily lunch program, and other senior assistance programs, as well as community classes like senior aerobics, yoga, painting, and the Oasis Ukulele Band.
Moani Goonetilleke, executive director of the Luis Oasis Senior Center, said the nonprofit can certainly use financial donations. However, she explained, above all, it’s
being top of mind that will make a
real difference.
“Most of all what we really need is for more people to know about us,” she said. “We need more members, more volunteers.”
She said she wants people to realize what services Luis Oasis Senior Center offers seniors and the community as a whole: “Tell your mom and dad and aunts
and uncles about us. Tell your neighbors. Discover what
we have to offer.”
Of course, office items are much-needed, as they’re usually used until they’re beyond repair before being replaced. Goonetilleke said used-but-newer computers are needed, as are office chairs and lightweight, heavy duty, 6-foot folding tables. Donated items of value for silent and live auctions are also needed.
“All of these things aren’t urgent, but we do need them,” Goonetilleke said.
For more information, visit oasisorcutt.org or call 937-9750.—Shelly Cone
Western Wishes
There are many wonderful “wish-granting” organizations established in our country nowadays, but did you know there’s one with a cowboy flair and a local chapter on the Central Coast? Since 1994, Western Wishes has made countless dreams come true for kids facing adversity and who love the “western” way of life. Western Wishes sets itself apart by putting the youngsters first and doesn’t restrict help to the terminally ill or under-18 age group.
The foundation hopes its chosen recipients will “inspire others with similar conditions to find the hope and strength to make the best of their situation.” Above all, the organization hopes to “turn dreams into lasting memories.”
However, making wishes possible requires a lot of work, resources, and generosity. The Western Wishes foundation could always use more help and is currently seeking contributions and volunteers to help with its many projects.
If you want to help, read an inspiring wish story, or get more information, visit westernwishes.org.
Central Coast Commission for Senior Citizens
This year, all the Central Coast Commission for Senior Citizens wants for Christmas is you … to volunteer.
The organization is a one-stop shop for Central Coast seniors in need of resources and services. It offers information and advice on everything from in-home support services and health insurance to hot meals and help with car maintenance.
Executive Director Joyce Ellen Lippman said her organization currently has two major needs: volunteers for the Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP) and volunteers for the Area Agency on Aging Advisory Council.
HICAP volunteers, Lippman said, are typically retired people willing to learn about and provide information about Medicare and healthcare plans to seniors.
Members of the AAA Advisory Council meet each month to review programs and services, and advocate for senior programs and policies. Meetings are held on the second Friday each month in the morning.
For more information about HICAP or the AAA Advisory Council, call 928-5663 or 925-9554. More information about the commission can be found at centralcoastseniors.org.
This article appears in Dec 23-30, 2010.