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Publication Date: Friday, May 06, 2005 'A bunch of do-gooders'
'A bunch of do-gooders'
(May 06, 2005) Assistance League plays a variety of roles in our community
by Julie Nostrand
A piano player for seniors. A mentor for a pregnant teen. A vision-screener for preschoolers.
These are just a few of the roles the Assistance League of the Amador Valley plays in our community. The local chapter of the larger National Assistance League organization is a group of women volunteers who donate more than 6,000 hours to the community each year. Working primarily behind the scenes, their mission is to ensure that those in want are helped.
Just as the needs in our area are varied, so are the outreach efforts of the Assistance League. This group is in a never-ending dance with local charities, identifying needs and filling them, from filling backpacks with school supplies and clothing for needy students to providing victims of sexual assault with clean clothes to staffing events at the Senior Center.
Cathy Jacob is an Assistance League member who participates on the Pleasanton Nursing and Rehabilitation Center support team. Regularly, she and a few of her fellow Assistance League volunteers can be found at the Pleasanton center's Happy Hour.
The team serves non-alcoholic beer and wine, chats with the residents and one of them plays the piano. Sometimes the volunteers go from room to room ensuring that all the residents who wish to participate are included in the frequent afternoon socials.
No matter what the activity, the team's objective is to spend time with the residents. "Mostly it's about visiting," said Jacob. "Our goal is to listen, converse and be there for them."
"This is a busy place," said Ice Rosado, the Pleasanton Nursing and Rehab Hospital's Activities Director. "It really helps when they are here."
While one team is busy in a support role for seniors, another trained team is taking the lead as vision screeners for Pleasanton preschools. The Screening Eyes Early (SEE) volunteer teams work in conjunction with the Prevent Blindness Northern California organization to provide free screening for vision and amblyopia, or "lazy eye."
Ten local preschools currently participate in this program including Early Years Children's Center, Gingerbread Preschool and Sonshine Enrichment Center Preschool. Early Years has been involved in the Assistance League vision-screening program for eight years. According to Sheryl Commons, owner of Early Years, a variety of eye health issues are caught early, thanks to screening.
"We've found kids who need glasses and even surgery," Commons said.
She observed that the volunteers are "very efficient and very professional, nice caring women."
"They are very patient, even with the most active kids," she said.
The impact of the Assistance League is also felt in the variety of roles it plays at Horizon School, a high school program meeting the needs of teenage mothers and fathers. A team of 11 serves as mentors, tutors, administrative support and special event hostesses to the students. And, each year at holiday time, the team plays the role of Santa by donating a special gift to the entire school. This year that gift was pregnancy books in Spanish.
"All of the volunteers are wonderful," said Rena Moran, the school clerk. "They have accommodated everything we need."
Patti Hart, an Assistance League volunteer who has been working with Horizon School for over eight years, added that the team enjoys its involvement with the young parents because it allows them to become mentors for the students. "We love working with them," said Hart.
For the Tri-Valley Haven Rape Crisis Center, the Assistance League plays a much less visible role. Karen Joest-Cortez, coordinator of the Rape Crisis Center for the Tri-Valley Haven, said she receives about 50 sexual assault survivor kits each year from the Assistance League.
These beautifully packaged, gender neutral kits are provided to victims whose clothes have been confiscated as part of a post assault examination. Distributed by ValleyCare, these kits include sweats, slippers, toiletries and a teddy bear.
Joest-Cortez said that prior to the Assistance League's involvement, victims might have received donated, second-hand clothes or whatever scrubs the hospital had available. Today, the victims leave the hospital with something of their own and the knowledge that some cared.
And that is ultimately the most important role this group plays in our community: They care.
Or, as Assistant League member Harriet Smith offered, "We are all just a bunch of do-gooders who like to help out."
Want to help?
The Assistance League annual fundraiser, the Mad Hatter's Tea being held April 23, is sold out, but the group always gladly accepts grants and private donations to support its many efforts. It is also currently seeking volunteers interested in making an impact in our community. If you are interested in becoming a member of the Assistance League of the Amador Valley or want to make a donation, call 461-6401.
Assistance League Outreach Projects:
Operation School Bell (OSB): distributes backpacks, school supplies and clothing for Children in Title 1 Schools.
¥ Book of My Own: gives new books to children in four Title 1 Schools.
¥ Tutoring: provides tutoring in Elementary Classrooms.
¥ Screening Eyes Early (SEE): screens preschoolers for amblyopia and other vision problems in 10 schools.
¥ Tutoring, Newsletter, Childcare (TNC): supports a variety of needs at Horizon High School.
¥ Pleasanton Nursing and Rehabilitation Center: ensures support for social events.
¥ Care About the Retired and Elderly (CARE): facilitates a number of programs at the Pleasanton Senior Center.
¥ Assault Survivor Kits (ASK): donates basic clothing, toiletries and teddy bears to the Tri-Valley Haven Rape Crisis Center.
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