Bread for the Journey

The homeless population of Orange County is estimated at 35,000 and growing. For four years, Sue Sonnenberg and her volunteers have been frequenting parking lots, emergency shelters, and mental health facilities in Santa Ana, distributing over 1200 pieces of clothing a month. They set up tables with the clothing ordered by gender and size, have a numbered waiting system, and call most of the recipients by name. Sue is particularly delighted when she can give someone with an upcoming job interview an appropriate outfit, plus a five-piece toiletry pack with a razor. "It's such an esteem builder to feel decent about the way you look." Each year, clothing stores and private individuals dispose of thousands of items without considering the poor and homeless, or even taking the items to thrift stores. Through a $1500 grant, Bread for the Journey of Orange Country partnered with Sue to help with storage rental and the purchase of underwear, which is hard to find in good used condition.

Santa Fe

Viva Bikes

Nine years ago, Bread for the Journey of Santa Fe gave bicycle enthusiast Richy Green a small grant for tools so that he and some friends could repair and give away old bicycles. Since then, Richy has formed a nonprofit organization called Viva Bikes, Inc. He is aware that many young people between 13 and 18 years of age would love to ride a bicycle, but cannot afford to own one. Richy plans to offer five-mile bike rides — twice a month for six months — on a beginner’s trail out in the beautiful countryside east of Taos. Instructors will teach safety checks, and everyone will be required to wear helmets, as well as bring water and snacks. The ride will include a stop along the way to rest, enjoy a snack, and discuss the environment in that setting. Bread for the Journey of Santa Fe gave Richy $1,000 to buy ten helmets and to cover the estimated $216 in fuel costs for van transport of the kids and the bicycles on a total of twelve trips.

Planting Time

Miguel Santistevan loves the land in northern New Mexico where he was born and raised. Currently a Ph.D. candidate in biology at the University of New Mexico, he has planted small fields with youth over the years, and now wants to expand this work since inheriting two acres that have been in his family for generations. Students from Antioch College in Ohio, University of California in Santa Cruz, and a Native American charter school in Albuquerque — as well as other local schools — have come to participate in his workshops and experimental seed-saving farm. As Miguel is opposed to burning, he always cultivates by hand and turns the plant scrub back into the soil. Bread for the Journey of Santa Fe was happy to support his youth mentorship program in agricultural work by granting Miguel $1000 to purchase a cutter bar and a hiller/furrower.

Young Peacemakers

Dr. Jim Kavanaugh (a licensed child psychologist, freelance journalist and documentary filmmaker) and Dr. Selena Sermeno (the Ambassador of the Bartos Institute for the Creative Engagement of Conflict) intend to create a film that will illustrate the power of approaching our inevitable human differences with an open mind, a commitment to human rights, a forgiving heart, and respectful dialogue. This will be accomplished through the voices of former alumni, current students, volunteer mentors, and community leaders and other young people from around the world. Dialogues among students in oppositional cultures will form part of the training aspect of the film. The film will be distributed to schools and communities throughout the USA. Bread for the Journey of Santa Fe was delighted to provide $2,500 for the short demo film, which will be used to raise awareness and additional funding to complete the full-length version.

Palliative Care

Marcy Grace and a small group of people in Santa Fe want to create an in-patient freestanding facility for dying patients without the restrictions of traditional Medicare Hospice, and to set up a point of entry into the system for patients with life-challenging illnesses. They have formed a nonprofit group called Palliative Care Services of Santa Fe and have connected themselves with Baylor University Palliative Care in Dallas in order to be able to access the most cutting-edge information in the field. Marcy approached Bread for the Journey with a request for $2,500 to defray the costs of printing a fairly substantial packet of materials for prospective donors. Bread for the Journey of Santa Fe was happy to grant their request to help get this project off the ground.

Sebastopol

Earth Roots Sustainability Camp

Earth Roots Collective Sustainability Camp started in the summer of 2007, with the shared intention of teaching children skills in sustainable living, organic gardening, and the expressive arts. The camp’s projects and workshops included gardening, composting, animal husbandry, green building with cob, herbal crafting, solar energy, basket weaving, native storytelling, eco-art, yoga, and water-quality monitoring. The 10-week camp takes place at the 50-acre Laguna Farm. This year, with a grant of $1500 from Bread for the Journey of Sebastopol, they are working on expanding their outdoor kitchen and cob stove so they can accommodate more students.

Grant of Time and Creative Energy

We’re constantly reminded that not all seed grants come in the form of money. Bread for the Journey of Sebastopol’s Sharon Bard and Susan Harman met with Pablo Rodriguez at a local coffee shop, where it became clear that Pablo could benefit from a boost of “idea power.” Pablo is a singer and vocal teacher who also teaches schoolchildren about music, using methods that are dynamic, creative and fun. He needed to raise money to repair older instruments and supply the program with new ones, so that he could add workshops — even charging a small fee — to continue expanding the program. During this brainstorming session, they were able to come up with several concrete ways for Pablo to make his project self-sustaining. Pablo was thrilled with the gift of time and creative energy, and everyone had fun expanding on each other’s ideas. It was a delightful exchange and a serendipitous win-win for all concerned.

Wilmington

Gee…You Will Project

The “Gee…You Will” Project is dedicated to empowering women and to giving them the tools they need to live happy, prosperous and successful lives. Their formalwear initiative provides dresses to women who are not otherwise able to afford them. “Gee…You Will” also offers a mentoring component and hosts more than 50 women at the three-day “Women Supporting Women through Opportunity Conference.” Bread for the Journey of Wilmington was happy to grant the “Gee…You Will” Project $500 to apply for nonprofit status.

Formal Dress Project

Attendance at her school prom was among the highlights in Tracy Burns’ young life. Having grown up in a family where community service was very important, Tracy now collects new and gently used prom dresses. With assistance from The Foster Care Association, YWCA, Big Brothers, Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Club and others, many girls in New Castle County who would not have attended their proms for financial reasons now have the opportunity to obtain a dress,free of charge. They can also use the dress for other special occasions. Bread for the Journey of Wilmington was happy to grant the Formal Dress Project $500 to apply for nonprofit status.