Narbonne High School Day of Service with The Asomugha Foundation

Things are moving and shaking over at the Narbonne School Garden. What use to be a forgotten, overgrown area is now in a full swing revival!  

We had our first pre-workday with The Asomugha Foundation on Saturday, April 6. With many rakes, shovels and paint brushes in hand, NFL Pro Bowler and new San Francisco 49er Nnamdi Asomugha and 40 student volunteers from his ACTS program showed us the true meaning of giving back to the community. Together we planted seedlings, renewed worn picnic tables with several loving coats of paint and weeded our rose beds. We are very thankful to the Asomugha Foundation for their contribution to the Narbonne School Garden.

We are also so very, very thankful to Cornerstone Construction Group for all their efforts in prepping the two-acre area. Among many improvements, including upgraded irrigation and electrical, is a beautiful outdoor stage that will provide our budding Narbonne “stars” the opportunity to perform under the stars for years to come. Cornerstone Construction Group has been a Sharefest partner since the very beginning and has completed community projects such as The Historical Morrell House in Redondo Beach, an Extreme Makeover: Home Edition build in 2006, the Cheryl Green Community Center in the Harbor Gateway, the installation of two scoreboards and a school garden for San Pedro High School. Now that’s how you give back to the community!!!

We also want to thank Mamma Chia for “seeding our souls” and sharing the Mamma Chia love on Saturday. Their thoughtful donation of vitality beverages and squeeze packs kept our community day humming. Click here to see how this project is progressing.

Putting for Projects

On Friday April 4, 2013 Balfour Beatty Construction (BBC) and its many partners hosted its first annual Golf Tournament at the Skylinks Golf Course in Long Beach, California in support of Sharefest.

Despite the early overcast, the sun emerged from behind the clouds and provided the attendees a perfect sunny and slightly breezy day of golfing for a purpose. Volunteers welcomed the golfers with gifts of appreciation along with a beautiful Adidas golf shirt where we had BBC stitched on our hearts and wore the Sharefest emotions on our sleeves. There were wonderful raffle items as well that included gifts such an embroidered Titleist Golf Bag, an iPod Mini and a Swiss Army Watch.  Throughout the day the attendees enjoyed a full round of golf and participated in friendly yet competitive activities such as “longest drive” and “closest to the pin” contests. The day ended with a succulent three-course dinner with lively entertainment and spirited conversation.

Thanks to Balfour Beatty Construction and other generous sponsors, the day proved to be a complete success raising over $25,000 to support Sharefest’s 10^th Annual Workday and Youth Development Programming. Our heart felt thanks to Balfour Beatty Construction, the numerous sponsors as well as all those who volunteered in our First Annual Golf Tournament. We look forward to next year’s tournament and partnering with this wonderful organization in our upcoming Annual Workday on Saturday, May 4 which will mobilize thousands of volunteers to complete tangible work projects that will change the quality of life for everyone in the Greater Los Angeles area. Please click here to see photos from the day.

About Balfour Beatty Construction
A leader in the U.S. commercial construction industry, Balfour Beatty Construction provides general contracting, at-risk construction management, and design-build services through more than 2,400 professionals nationwide. The company has been cited as a Top 10 Green Builder by Engineering-News Record for the past two years, and as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For® by FORTUNE magazine for three years in a row. The company is part of London-based Balfour Beatty plc, a global leader in professional services, construction services, support services, and infrastructure investment, with more than $18 billion in annual revenues. To learn more about the company and its subsidiary—Howard S. Wright—visit www.balfourbeattyus.com.

avalon students wear a new hat

 

On March 2, 2013 thirty Avalon Continuation High School students and teachers boarded the local dash public bus and made their way across town to Hawaiian Elementary School to participate in Read Across America’s annual reading awareness program. Through a day to celebrate the birthday of beloved children's author Dr. Seuss, students and community members had an opportunity to experience the powerful impact of service on individual students and a community. While about half the students had never been to Hawaiian Elementary, many of the others were eager to return to the school they had matriculated from and their younger siblings were now attending. Leaving behind their school books and cell phones, each Avalon high school student carried their favorite Dr. Seuss book they would soon have the opportunity to share with a classroom of their own. The students had been practicing reading the books aloud in preparation for the big day and for some the nervousness of the task at hand was visible as they flipped through the brightly colored books as they waited for the bus to arrive. As the bus moved through the Wilmington community a few students looked up to point out their favorite fast food restaurant or the street they avoid to stay out of trouble and away from gang violence. The conversations while lively were limited by the glares from other student using the commute time to look through the pages of their books.

When the group arrived at the school the office manager greeted the principal and students with a smile and led them to the library where they were offered breakfast and hand-stitched Cat and The Hat hats to wear during the reading. The Avalon students filled the library and sat politely on the tiny chairs as they were provided with nametags and room assignments. Each student placed on their red and white top hat and made their way to their classroom. While one student read to a special needs class of students, another read to fifth graders. The fifth graders excitedly raised their hands after the story to ask their reader a 17-year old questions like, “ Is high school hard?” and “ Have you ever been bullied”. When the high school student reassembled in the library many of them expressed a sense of pride, some discussed wanting to work as teachers in the future and another group of males talked about how being a parent is difficult especially in high school. The high school students arrived back at their school just two short hours later and quietly returned to the classes taking place without them. While to the elementary students and the passing community members they were role models and heroes, back in the gate of their high school they were just regular students again. One student explained, “…this was the highlight of my year”. 

Heartfelt Thanks to the Employees Community Fund of Boeing california

Happy New Year everyone-- our 2013 is off to a great start! Sharefest was recently selected as a 2012 grant recipient by the Employees Community Fund (ECF) of Boeing California!

Our heartfelt thanks to ECF of Boeing California for believing in the work of Sharefest, and for supporting our Youth Development Academy (YDA). A very special thanks to those who helped us through every step of the way: Executive Director Carrie Bollwinkle (ECF CA), Acting Director - Satellite Integration, Test & Launch Anthony Pirozzi Jr., Program Officer Margaret Burdeno (ECF CA), and Daneisha Brazzle (ECF CA), who paid us a very pleasant site visit!

Left: Chad Mayer, Executive Director of Sharefest
Right: Anthony Pirozzi Jr., Acting Director of Satellite Integration, Test & Launch, The Boeing CompanyThe ECF is an employee-owned and operated nonprofit organization. It is a unique employee giving program that allows Boeing employees to support the needs of their local communities through tax-deductible recurring payroll deductions or one-time gifts. The ECF pledge to its members is that 100% of the dollars contributed will be returned to the areas where contributors live and work. More than 350 nonprofit organizations benefit each year from the average $2.4 million in employee contributions each year.

Recognizing the need for continuing improvement in the quality of life, the ECF of Boeing California supports a variety of programs aimed at making our communities better places to live. With the support Sharefest has received, we are able to continue to offer interactive academic programming for our YDA. The YDA provides after-school courses for high school credit and stresses the importance of education, health and wellness, violence prevention, leadership, and teaches life skills.

avalon students provide christmas to the communities most needy

Avalon High School students show their generosity and support for the work Harbor Interfaith does within the community.  Each year Avalon partners with Harbor Interfaith to bring non-persible food items, Christmas gifts and clothing to the over 1200 adults and  nearly 700 children Harbor Interfaith will serve during this holiday season. This year was Avalon High School's largest collection of gift items and food to date.  Student Body President, Monic Cortez under the leadership of Ms. Faye Kirk, a teacher at Avalon, reached out to community partners to engage Sharefest, as well as Rio Tinto, British Petroleum and others to provide additional gift cards and funding for their effort.  It is so inspiring to see so many students give so much to those who are less fortunate, understanding that many of these students go without some of the same basic necessities themselves.  This is a true testimony of the stewardship of the youth and faculty at Avalon High School and a tangible example of the true spirit of giving this holiday season.