January 9, 2009

Helping others is the spirit of the season

”Thank you so much for all your help! With your help, we are happy to feed as many people as we do. Loaves & Fishes Family Kitchen needs you now, more than ever before,” said Christina Egan, Chief Executive Officer of the Loaves & Fishes Family Kitchen. Photo by Thom Harney

By Bill Highlander
Editor

The spirit of the holiday season is most manifest not in the getting of presents but in helping others. Several Evergreen residents and businesses exemplified this by donating time and items to those needing special attention.

In many ways, Christmas is for kids. But kids locked up in Juvenile Hall don’t often get much attention during the holidays. Debbie Gentry-Rao heard about the situation while involved with volunteer activities at Saint Francis of Assisi church with Pattie Cortese. She decided to do something about it.

She met with Aldo Montufar, co-owner of MegaByte Pizza, and he readily agreed to provide food for a holiday dinner at Juvenile Hall. On Thursday, Dec. 18, Gentry-Rao and the staff prepared pasta, chicken and salads to feed nearly 400 kids and the staff at Juvenile Hall on Guadelupe Parkway in San Jose.

MegaByte staff and Debby Gentry-Rao packed up nearly 400 meals for the youths at Juvenile Hall.

Montufar said “Debbie was the angel, we were glad to do it but it was Debbie who made it happen.” Ken Connor, also a co-owner, added that MegaByte wanted to give back to the community and “this was a good way to do it.”

MegaByte, with Gentry-Rao leading, followed up the next Monday with pizza and ice cream at the detention facility as the kids participated in games and a show. She would like to make this an annual event and MegaByte wants to continue its support.

Juvenile Hall is part of Santa Clara County’s Juvenile Court system. It has 390 beds, medical facilities, religious services and a school. Kids placed in detention stay in “living units” based on age, history and type of offense. Connor has also asked Juvenile Hall for a list of other needed items that the Evergreen community might help provide.

The winning bidder of a silent auction chose to put owner Marie Ortiz through a workout on the SuperSlow machines.

Thom Harney, a resident of The Villages, served food on Christmas Day at Loaves & Fishes. “It was one of the best experiences I have ever had on Christmas,” Harney says. He and other volunteers served meals to homeless at St. Patrick’s Church kitchen, 389 East Santa Clara Street in San Jose.

It’s not just during the holidays that volunteers can help. Hot meals for the needy are served at St. Patrick’s Church Kitchen on Mondays and Thursdays at 4:00 p.m. and Saturdays at 4:30 p.m. More information is available at: www.loavesfishes.org. If you would like to volunteer to help serve, call Paolo Machuca at (408) 439-0915.

SuperSlow Zone of Silver Creek, served as a drop-off point for people to bring clothes, toys, household items and cash to benefit Next Door Solutions to Domestic Violence. “We filled up an SUV with toys, books, personal hygiene items and more that have come out of the wonderful generosity of our clients and Evergreen neighbors,” said SuperSlow Zone® owner and General Manager, Marie Ortiz.

Ken Connor, Liz Alameda, Debby Gentry-Rao and Aldo Montufar were pleased with the effort to provide a meal for Juvenile Hall.

“Many of those served by Next Door Solutions leave in a crisis, with little more than the clothes on their backs, and it’s just a wonder to have so many willing to give from their hearts to make their lives just a little bit easier during this economically-challenging season.”

Cy Mann, an Evergreen resident, operates Mr. Mann's Christmas Trees in Morgan Hill during December. Mann noted in the Mercury News Wish Book that Vanessa Sanchez wanted a tree for Christmas to provide cheer for her two small children. Mann invited Sanchex and the children to select a tree for free, play in the bounce house and feed the animals while there.

Many others did acts of kindness throughout the holidays. It would be great if volunteering and helping out were a year-round activity.