Tag Archives: Collaborating to Build Community

Eastside Garden Gives Riverside Students Hands-On Learning Experience

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The Eastside Community Garden at Emerson Elementary School is a shining example of Riverside’s unified spirit working together for the common good of the city as a whole.

On February 23, the Press-Enterprise published a story written by correspondent Kevin Keckeisen about the collaborative effort between Riverside Parks and Recreation Department and Riverside Unified School District. The garden is part of the school district’s Farmers Market Salad Bar program.  The following is an excerpt from the story:

First-grader Kalia Cook, 6, inspects lettuce plants with the rest of her class at the Eastside Community Garden at Emerson Elementary School in Riverside. (photo by Kevin Keickerson; source: PE.com)

First-grader Kalia Cook, 6, inspects lettuce plants with the rest of her class at the Eastside Community Garden at Emerson Elementary School in Riverside. (photo by Kevin Keckeison; source: PE.com)

Nearly two dozen different crops such as squash, tomatoes, eggplants, lettuce and onions are grown. The produce provides students nutrition at the school salad bar, and some is sent to RUSD Nutrition Services to be centrally prepared and distributed to other schools in the city.

“Kids don’t have the foggiest idea where this stuff comes from. It comes from the grocery store as far as they’re concerned,” said Tony Inaba, caretaker of the garden and Riverside parks commissioner.

Students do most of the planning and weeding, and they observe. They work on the garden once every other week, and so do students with disabilities from North High School. It’s a learning process and part of their curriculum, Inaba said.

The community also has access to the garden.  According to the Eastside Community Garden Facebook page, this is the city’s oldest community garden and has been in existence since approximately 1980. In 2004, Emerson Elementary and the City of Riverside Parks and Recreation Services Department joined forces.  Since then, the operation has won national attention for it’s ‘garden to salad bar’ participation by the Emerson Elementary students five years in a row.

Click here to read the full story as published in the Press-Enterprise.

For more information on the garden, visit the group’s Facebook page.

Wood Streets Neighbor Network Recognized for Improving Riverside’s Quality of Life

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Each month the Riverside City Council in partnership with the Riverside Neighborhood Partnership (RNP) – a gathering of neighborhood leaders and activists from the community, business and faith-based organizations – celebrates an achievement or success of a local neighborhood group or effort.

WSNN LogoEarlier this month, the RNP 2013 Chairman and Seizing Our Destiny Champion Pastor Jeff Wright and RNP Board Member Gary Coffer recognized the Wood Streets Neighbor Network in a presentation to the City Council.

Founded in May 2012 by Michele Carry, the community group has already grown to over 30 volunteers who help their neighbors in the Wood Streets with tasks such as walking dogs, running errands, doing minor household repairs and other everyday jobs.

“Nationwide 28% of residents do not know the name of a single neighbor,” stated Wright. “This Wood Streets Neighbor Network stands in contrast to that inertia; they get to know, and serve, their neighbors in the Wood Streets.”

WSNN volunteers help a neighbor with landscaping maintenance (Source: WSNN Facebook page)

Examples of the group’s service includes assisting an elderly neighbor with landscaping maintenance so that she could avoid being cited and/or fined for code violations.  They have driven a retired police officer to and from his cancer treatments – 5 appointments per week for nine straight weeks.  It is also common for the volunteers to partner with local congregations or other agencies to help with service projects throughout their neighborhood.

“It is Riverside’s great strength to have a commitment to neighborhoods and to neighborhood groups, not just for governance, but for local problem solving working with the City to improve our communal quality of life,” expressed RNP Chairman Wright.

The Wood Streets Neighbor Network is a shining example of Riverside as a unified city, improving the quality of life for others through collaboration, outreach and community spirit.

To watch the full City Council presentation recognizing the Wood Streets Neighbor Network, click here; or to learn more about the group, click here.

Click here for more information on the Riverside Neighborhood Partnership.

CBU Student Receives National Recognition on the ‘Ellen Show’ for Community Service

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(Source: California Baptist University Media Center, January 29, 2013)

Ellen DeGeneres recently recognized CBU student Reneisha Wilkes as Volunteer of the Year on the nationally-broadcast Ellen Show. DeGeneres presented Wilkes with a $10,000 check from Shutterfly and a certificate.

 “The amount of public service that you do is so impressive to me … so beautiful,” DeGeneres said on the Nov. 19 program as she presented the award.

Reneisha WilkesWilkes is a senior communication major in the Online and Professional Studies Division. After graduation, she plans to continue her education at CBU in the master of public relations program.

Wilkes began a non-profit organization called Someone Helped Me at the age of 14, offering free transportation to senior citizens and veterans.

“I love helping people,” Wilkes said in an e-mail describing her experience on The Ellen Show. “The ride share program was implemented when I started to receive so many letters from around the U.S. from veterans having a hard time finding rides. We help as many veterans as we possibly can get rides to their doctor appointments and to the grocery store.”

The CBU senior says that anyone can assist those around them.

“I would just tell young people and (everyone) in general to help others any time and in any way you can,” she advised. “You don’t have to help people with money or material goods. You can help them by doing a good deed for them or saying a kind word. Help someone else, and you in turn will be blessed!”

Reneisha Wilkes is a shining example of a Riversider and student that has made improving the lives of others and creating a more unified community part of her everyday life.

To read the full article as published by CBU, click here.

Riverside’s Pick Group Holds Campaign to Increase Volunteerism

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The Pick Group is calling on young professionals and the Riverside community at large to participate in the “Pick and Pledge” challenge, through January 31st, to promote volunteerism in 2013. The Pick Group matches volunteers with local nonprofits and ask participants to publish their pledges via social media on the Pick Group Facebook page. At the same time, the Pick Group is highlighting Riverside area non-profits through the Pick Group website and its social media pages. The Pick Group is a local organization that offers young professionals social, professional and civic opportunities.

“This is our 5th year hosting ‘Pick and Pledge’, but the first time we’ve tried a month long social media presence instead of a single event. Our hope is that we’ll be able to build on our experience and reach a wider audience,” shared Pick Group board member Samantha Jobelius.

Pick Group Board Members pictured with their volunteer pledges for 2013.

The group will also host an opportunity drawing for the Volunteer Tool-Kit. The tool-kit is a basket full of items valued at $150.00 to help the winner be the ultimate volunteer. Pick members and residents who make a commitment are asked to print out the “Pick and Pledge” flyer available on the website, write in the number of hours they commit to do in 2013, and post a picture of themselves holding the flyer onto the Pick Group Facebook page (www.facebook.com/pickgroup) or email (membership@pickriverside.org) to the group for posting. Organizers hope to both keep track of participation and help participants be accountable to one another.

Board members of the Pick Group will be leading the way in this challenge. All 18 board members have pledged combined volunteer hours of over 2000 hours and the group will be highlighting their pledges on the The Pick Group social media pages on Facebook(www.facebook.com/pickgroup), Twitter (www.twitter.com/pickgroup), and LinkedIn(http://www.linkedin.com/in/pickgroup).

“The benefits of volunteering are enormous to you, your family, and community,” says Pick Group board member Jesse Limon. “Giving back allows a volunteer to create new friendships, connections with community, learning new skills, and even advance a career.”

The Pick Group aims to develop not only its members, but invest in our wider community. “We think the best young professionals are those that have an ethic of service and care about the public square as much as their personal careers.”

This past November, local nonprofits rallied around the inaugural ‘Give Big Riverside‘ event as a way to increase philanthropy in the Riverside community.  The Pick Group’s volunteer pledge campaign will provide another valuable resource to our local organizations – manpower – and demonstrates the increasing collaboration and compassion growing throughout this ‘Unified City‘.

Riverside Honors King’s Legacy

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(Includes excerpts written by Alicia Robinson, Gail Wesson and Erin Waldner as published on January 21, 2013 on PE.com)

The life and work of Martin Luther King Jr. were commemorated by Inland area residents with a 5K walk, a park clean-up, music, speeches, and other events on Monday, Jan. 21.

In Riverside, the sun shined on walkers as they filed from the Eastside and through downtown for the annual walk.

After a few warm-up exercises at Bordwell Park on Riverside’s Eastside, an estimated 700 to 800 people set off down Martin Luther King Boulevard, stretching out into a ribbon of figures in bright blue T shirts that ended at Riverside City College. They passed the King statue on the Main Street mall, where some stopped to take pictures. The 20th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Walk-a-thon was organized by the Riverside African American Historical Society and the Martin Luther King Visionaries.

Ley Yeager, 65, said it was important for him to be at the walk for “a million reasons. On the day of the (presidential) inauguration, it’s so symbolic.”

Yeager, a retired teacher and school administrator, said in the more than four decades he has lived in Riverside, he has seen increased efforts to embrace the city’s diverse population.

“Riverside at its best is very, very inclusive,” he said.

Brian Moore, 31, was a co-chairman of the event, the theme of which was “Dr. King’s dream … No one left behind.”

Moore said younger generations like his have reaped the benefit of the work of civil rights pioneers like King. Participating in the walk is a way to show appreciation, and also to acknowledge the health challenges of obesity and diabetes that the African-American community in particular faces, he said.

The annual walk is a prime example of Riversiders brought together around common interests and concerns, while celebrating our diverse communities to accelerate the common good for all.

To read the full article as published on PE.com, click here.

For more information about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy of inspiring positive social change through education and active leadership, click here.

 

Donation Helps Riverside City College and the Wood Streets Green Team Get New Community Garden Out of the Ground

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(Includes excerpts from the article submitted by Riverside City College and published in the January 1, 2013 Press-Enterprise)

A $1,000 donation from Calvary Presbyterian and the Wood Streets Green Team capped nearly two years of planning for a new community garden at Riverside City College that supporters hope will yield organic fruit and vegetables and provide an “outdoor lab” for students and the community. The new garden will open in the spring.

“We are excited about the creation of this community garden and very pleased with the enthusiasm and generous support from our neighbors and local businesses,” said RCC President Cynthia Azari. “Along with the new LEED certified School of Nursing and the Math and Science buildings, the community garden is another example of RCC’s commitment to environmental sustainability and community involvement. It will be an extraordinary learning environment for everyone.”

From left are: Ryan Sendejas, RCC student; Marilyn Morris; Preston Galusky, RCC faculty member; Pat Silvestri, Calvary Presbyterian member; Kamron Golbaf, RCC student; Justin Scott-Coe, of the Woods Street Green Team; Tonya Huff, RCC faculty member; and Virginia White, RCC faculty member.

From left are: Ryan Sendejas, RCC student; Marilyn Morris; Preston Galusky, RCC faculty member; Pat Silvestri, Calvary Presbyterian member; Kamron Golbaf, RCC student; Justin Scott-Coe, of the Woods Street Green Team; Tonya Huff, RCC faculty member; and Virginia White, RCC faculty member.

Volunteer crews of students, faculty and community members are prepping the former parking lot turned garden site, located adjacent to the Math and Science building and the Library and Learning Resource Center on upper campus. College facilities staff installed a security fence and funds donated by the Associate Students of Riverside provided materials that volunteers are using to construct runoff-prevention decomposed granite pathways. Corona Tools donated more than $1,000 in contractor-grade equipment towards the effort. The donation by Calvary Presbyterian and the Wood Streets Green Team will be used to purchase fruit trees and garden benches. Other planned amenities include a gazebo that will provide shade and space for gardening workshops, as well as entrance arbors to support grape and kiwis vines.

RCC students, faculty, and community members initiated the project in order to learn, teach, and encourage sustainability through local food production and community building.

 “The Green Team is thrilled to provide a return on the investment RCC has made and continues to make in our community,” said Justin Scott-Coe, a member of the Wood Streets Green Team Board of Directors and member of the Seizing Our Destiny Champions Council. “The RCC Community Garden is the first of what we hope are a number of community gardens supported through our local fundraising and partnership efforts. We thank Calvary Presbyterian for providing such a generous donation toward what will certainly be a premier community education and healthy food resource.”

As the new community garden comes on line, planners expect to schedule regular workshops focused on local gardening techniques from pruning to pest management. Once opened, the RCC garden, which features cultivation plots, will join a number of established and emerging gardens throughout the city of Riverside that participate in the Riverside Garden Council. As part of the Council, RCC will be able to help connect interested parties with gardening and volunteer opportunities throughout the city.

The RCC Community Garden demonstrates, the spirit of a unified community that comes together around common interests and concerns and showcases Riverside’s commitment to being one of the most inspiring, livable, healthy and adventurous cities to live in or visit.

For more information about the new Riverside City College community garden, or to volunteer, call 951-222-8361.

For more information on the Wood Streets Green team, click here.

To read the full article as published in the Press-Enterprise, click here.

Riverside Woman Hopes to Inspire Youth through the Joy of Dance

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(As written by Press-Enterprise correspondent, Peter Fischetti, and published on December 27, 2012)  

Danielle Willis is a dancer whose passion for teaching young people has inspired her to take steps you won’t find in any routine.

Sometime early next year, Willis, 27, a Riverside resident, hopes to complete the paperwork to create a nonprofit dance company called Dancing on a Dream that would provide minority children of low-income families with the opportunity to “achieve their dreams” on and off the stage.

Willis, who was raised in Riverside and returned there after attending college in Maryland, teaches dance at the Riverside Arts Council and the Riverside YMCA, and also offers private lessons. Classes in ballet, contemporary, jazz and hip hop are available for children 6 to 17 years of age. The fees for lessons vary, but are kept as low as possible, she said.

Danielle Willis (second from left) with three of her dance students from Fremont Elementary School in Riverside.

Danielle Willis (second from left) with three of her dance students from Fremont Elementary School in Riverside.

The dance company, funded by donations and grants, would allow more young people to learn and perform dance.

After some of her students from Ramona High School performed successfully at the Riverside Arts and Innovation Mayors Ball in October, she thought, “Hmm, this is so cool. I feel so humbled to be a small instrument in their growth. What would happen if people got behind me?”

From that question, the idea for Dancing on a Dream emerged.

She is in the process of forming a board of directors for Dancing on a Dream, and is taking courses on forming a 501(c)(3). To promote the nonprofit, she has developed a Christmas-themed dance show titled “Love is Christmas.” The show was performed last week at the Mission Inn as part of the Festival of Lights, and it prompted “lots of compliments,” Willis said.

A second show at the Mission Inn will be held tonight, Friday, Dec. 28, from 6:30 to 7 p.m. The public is invited to enjoy the skills of 13 young dancers as they perform holiday routines. There is no charge.

Willis’ desire to use dance as a way to increase the quality of life for youth that may not otherwise have the opportunity is yet another example of Riverside’s caring and compassionate nature, and the connected spirit created by sharing an appreciation for the arts and culture that permeate throughout the community.

Click here to read the full article as published on PE.com.