Published December 12, 2024
BY TULLAH MCCOLL
With the season of giving upon us, local organizations focus on helping and giving back to the community to make a difference in lives around the peninsula through the joy of gift giving and nutritious meals.
THE SALVATION ARMY OF MONTEREY COUNTY
The Salvation Army is an international organization that serves in 134 countries. The housing program manager at The Salvation Army of Monterey, Yesenia Lopez-Rubio, coordinates the annual Adopt a Family program that assists those who have gone through The Salvation Army’s housing department and families who signed up to be supported every December to make Christmas special for children and families in need.
“We work with different organizations, businesses, schools, churches and individuals that want to take on a family as a whole for Christmas,” Lopez-Rubio says. “It is to help fill a need in the community and really to be able to give families, especially children, a really amazing Christmas.”
The Salvation Army of Monterey’s staff works hard around the holidays to wrap gifts for their annual Gift of Giving program. (courtesy of YESENIA LOPEZ-RUBIO)
Opening up their Adopt a Family list at the start of November and closing in early December, as of 2024, there are 46 families being helped by a group, family or individual for the holiday season.
“Once a sponsor is matched with a family, they shop for them and bring [gifts] back to our location where the family will come and pick them up,” explains Lopez-Rubio,
In addition to gifting families presents, the sponsors provide the family with a holiday meal, either being a gift card or a combination of a gift card and non perishable items. Volunteers receive basic information on the family like the children’s names, potential wishlists and clothing sizes to help personalize the gifts.
“One of the most rewarding things is seeing the looks on the parents’ faces when they get the gifts,” Lopez-Rubio shares. “A lot of parents just start crying…. And I hear it year after year that they are expecting one or two toys, and they end up walking out with several toys per child.”
The Salvation Army of Monterey also has the Adopt an Angel program in which people who wish to be sponsors, but cannot financially provide for an entire family, can still support an individual child.
Anyone interested in helping The Salvation Army in their mission and getting involved with the community can find more information at westernusa.salvationarmy.org/monterey_peninsula_corps/.
CASA OF MONTEREY COUNTY
Another organization that works solely on providing for the youth in our county is CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocates, whose mission comes from generous volunteers that help bring love into kids’ lives.
Former CHS students and teacher Aubrey Powers deliver the schools donations to the CASA gift drive. (courtesy of SUSANNA WILCOX)
“Volunteers are paired with a foster child,” says Susanna Wilcox, director of philanthropy and marketing for CASA. “They are appointed by the court and help to advocate for the child’s rights…making sure the child is seen and that they are getting the best possible outcomes while they are in foster care.”
For the last 17 years, CASA has done their annual Gift of Giving project to allow children they serve to be able to pick out gifts for important people in their lives. As a part of Monterey County Gives, CASA has been able to publicize and raise awareness for their nonprofit and gain donations. Gift of Giving helps children in foster care get to experience the beauty of giving back to loved ones in their lives.
“It’s a really cool thing to be a part of because a lot of them are not in a position to buy new gifts for other people,” Wilcox says. “The biggest thing is just seeing how excited the kids are…and seeing how important it is for them to have things to give other people.”
CASA provides more background and volunteer opportunities on their website at casaofmonterey.org/.
AL AND FRIENDS
Every Sunday since 2010, retired chef and caterer Al Siekert, along with his volunteers, have served a brunch-style nutritious breakfast in Monterey for our most-in-need community members.
Starting out on his own, Siekert found his true passion in giving back to the community through a form he has enjoyed his whole life: cooking.
Founder of Al and Friends, Al Siekert, dedicates his cooking to feeding those in the community most in need. (photo by TULLAH MCCOLL)
“From serving 18 to 20 people once a month [to now] serving 150 once a week, this organization has gone from me being a one-man-band to having thirty volunteers show up,” Siekert says, “many of them showing up every Sunday.”
Rain or shine, Al and Friends show up for the community. On holidays not falling on a Sunday, Siekert and his team provide a modified meal, in preparation for the varying number of people being served every week.
After hearing famous chef Wolfgang Puck say “every day is a grand opening,” Siekert decided to treat his organization with the same mentality. Showing up with consistency every Sunday to support the community shows his dedication and accountability.
“I get stories back,” Siekert shares as the most rewarding part of his work. “I had a fellow stop me [in Monterey], and he said he wanted to thank me. I didn’t really recognize him, but he told me that for two years he and his two daughters were living in a van and that I took care of them…. He just wanted to thank me…. I feel so grateful to have had that opportunity.”
Anyone wanting to look into more on what Al and Friends does can find that on their website at alandfriends.org/.
