Project City Hope | A PEACE Plan Initiative

Senior citizens across south Orange County were blessed on August 21^st when about 80 Project City Hope volunteers visited 30 board and care facilities, bringing with them PCH Care Boxes filled with everything from blankets and slippers, to crossword puzzles and cookies.

The volunteers brought with them a little questionnaire called “Wisdom of the Ages” that included fun questions for the seniors to answer such as, Who was the president when you were born? What was school like for you when you were in school? What has been the greatest invention, in your opinion? The residents of these facilities enjoyed answering these questions and telling their stories. The things the residents said even made an impact on a 9 year old boy who volunteered with his grandpa. He was so impacted that later on, he began asking questions about Jesus and that night, he accepted Christ as his savior!

The volunteers who participated in this event were so gratified and had such a great time, that two of the groups are doing the same thing again this weekend, on their own. If blessing senior citizens sounds like something you’d be interested in, you can e-mail Dawn at dawnm@saddleback.com or call 949-609-8333.

More than 70 people were at Fullerton Calvary’s serve day last Saturday. Mark, one of the volunteers in charge of the project summed up the experience by saying, “It was quite an amazing day to see the spirit of serving by so many individuals and glorifying God…”

The group of volunteers tackled the whole campus of Fullerton Calvary, trimming trees, cleaning and painting the worship hall, restocking shelves in the storage room, cleaning and waxing the floor of the worship hall, and much  more. Mark reported later that about 18 windows were replaced, 5 doors were painted and replaced, an entire kitchen sink was replaced with a huge restaurant-style sink, and two new fans were installed in the bathrooms.

In a follow-up e-mail, one of the staff members had this to say:

Many thanks to Saddleback Church for the wonderful blessings of assistance for our work day this past Saturday. On behalf of Calvary Community Church’s Trustee Board, we wish to send an e-mailed hug and heartfelt thanks to all who participated! Wow! We were so blessed to have our campus full of workers. Please pass on our sincerest appreciation to all who joined in!

The group of PCH volunteers who gave of their time, skill and energy, had a lasting impact on the staff and members of Fullerton Calvary Church. People were significantly blessed from both sides that day.

As far as total transformations go, Kimberly Gardens in Lake Forest fits the bill. PCH made a visit to the Mobile Home Estates recently in order to do a home and yard makeover, and to show the residents that Saddleback cares about the people in their surrounding communities.

Four homes in Kimberly Gardens were worked on and painted, two additional yards were cleaned and had huge tree stumps removed, and as a bonus, 15 backpacks of school supplies were brought to any children who were in need of new supplies.

Out of the 40 amazing volunteers who served that day (including children), one was a carpenter who used his skills to literally replace old staircases as well as rebuild one set that was described as “rickety, crazy Dr. Seuss stairs.”

There was even a last minute trailer issue (meaning, there was no trailer) that was taken care of when a volunteer stepped up and offered her truck to haul all of the supplies to the site.

It was a time of coming together to serve those who needed and deserved the help, and I’m sure the residents aren’t the only ones who will remember the blessings that came from the day.

If you’d like to be a part of something like this in the future, just contact Dawn: dawnm@saddleback.com or 949-609-8304.

Bishop Manor, an apartment complex in Santa Ana, was far from looking like your average apartment complex last week. Instead, Bishop Manor took on the appearance of a packed community Kids’ Zone! It was the first time Project City Hope put on a Vacation Bible School for that specific area, and according to the amazing volunteers (who might have had a better time than the kids had), God definitely gave everyone there an incredible time.

According to Gary Cox who was one of the main leaders of the VBS at Bishop Manor, the volunteer team had no idea of how many children to expect, and to their pleasant surprise, each day saw the numbers increase until they were at 70+ three to twelve year olds by Wednesday! There were also several teenagers who looked on curiously and wanted to attend, but hesitated because of that universal “cool” factor that often gets the best of teenagers. Apparently, though, there were about 3 older boys who sat together off to the side, but were seen coloring pictures of a cross like the rest of the group.

During the week, the kids got to have the traditional VBS experience where they learned bible verses, heard stories from the bible, did crafts, and played games. And for the volunteers, it was an extremely rewarding thing to know that they had a major part in affecting the lives of these kids who had never experienced anything like it, or who had never been around Christian adults whose only goal was to serve and love these kids – kids who may have gone through more struggles than is fair for their few years up to this point.

By the end of the week, everyone had been impacted in some way, and one group leader even had 16 kids in her group accept Christ! For that and so many other reasons, PCH thanks the amazing and willing volunteers who served at Bishop Manor. If you’d like to do the same at the next VBS or in some other area, call 949-609-8333.

For four weeks this summer, 90 elementary-age kids came to Saddleback’s campus to participate in Project City Hope’s first ever Summer Skills Camp. And by the response we got from both the parents and the children, it looks like this isn’t the last time we’ll be seeing Summer Skills Camp.

Because school districts have had to drastically limit summer school opportunities for kids in need of academic help, the PCH team had the idea to offer help to students here on our campus. We rounded up a few (truly amazing) teachers from local elementary schools who taught these students with as much dedication as they teach the students from their schools, and you could see that the students clearly felt taken care of and comfortable.

Not only did the teachers do a phenomenal job, but the volunteers went above and beyond, giving three and a half hours of their day, 3 days a week, to help the teachers with anything they needed, and to make sure the kids had a safe and fun four weeks.

And the kids definitely had fun: On the last day, after surprising the students with a chance to play with big bubble wands outside, more than one child was disappointed that Summer Skills Camp was over, and then asked if we were doing it again in August! Unfortunately, they’ll have to wait until next summer. But overall, the first Summer Skills Camp was a huge success and a blessing to the parents and kids. One mom said it well when she e-mailed the staff,

“Thank you for a wonderful first day of Summer Skills Camp! My daughter LOVED it! Thank you for all your hard work. We really appreciate it!”

If you’d like be a volunteer for Summer Skills next year, please e-mail Bonnie at bonniet@saddleback.com.

This past Saturday, 200 to 250 people were served a full breakfast of pancakes, bacon, sausage and pastries, while meeting and connecting with volunteers from Project City Hope. The individuals, families, and children being served were residents of Aliso Meadows, a local temporary housing project.

Of the 140 volunteers who helped serve, 12 spoke Spanish, making it possible to minister to the Spanish speaking residents, and a good number were from Saddleback’s High School ministry. It’s incredibly exciting to think that PCH is bringing in volunteers from all over and all ages, but it’s especially exciting to know that young people are wanting to get involved…and wanting to return, as some of the high schoolers mentioned before they left Aliso Meadows.

The high school students manned the grills where they flipped hundreds of pancakes, and other volunteers formed prayer groups and visited the residents while inviting them to join the group for breakfast. The volunteer team even made sure to give attention to the kids who live at Aliso Meadows by playing soccer with them - which promptly led the kids to ask when the group would be back!

The PCH pancake breakfast was an amazing time and huge success, and people were blessed throughout the day and beyond. If you’d like to read more about this event and see more pictures, visit PCH’s facebook page: www.facebook.com/ProjectCityHOPE.com. And to get involved yourself, just e-mail dawnm@saddleback.com, or call 949-609-8333.

Antique hats, teacups, and centerpieces made of creatively decorated cupcakes filled the dining area of Vintage Senior Living Center last week. The event was a tea for the ladies at Vintage Senior Living (and any brave men who wanted to join) that was put on by Project City Hope.

There were 30 to 35 residents of the center in attendance, and each of them at one time or another, had one of the 25 volunteers sit with them, get to know their life stories, and enjoy tea and tea sandwiches with the seniors. Dawn Maestas, the PCH coordinator for this event, had a list of questions put together for the volunteers to ask the residents, which led to some interesting and very fun conversations. These were questions such as,

            “What was the greatest historic event of your lifetime?”

            “What advice do you have for others to make the best of their lives?”

            “Who was/is your favorite president and why?”

There were some individuals attending the tea that the volunteer team will definitely remember for various reasons: A woman in her 103^rd year of life, a man who was 91 and still sharp as a tack, and a woman who, in her younger years, was a Pepsi model during the 1940s.

Everyone, including the volunteers who were there for the purpose of serving the seniors, experienced a very meaningful time together and obviously a fun time considering how  many volunteers jumped at the chance to visit and do the event all over again. And the Directors of Vintage Senior Living were overjoyed and so grateful to have had such a special time given to their residents - Saddleback and PCH volunteers are welcomed back anytime!

And if you’d like to participate in this event or any get involved in any other way with seniors, call 949-609-8333 or contact Dawn at dawnm@saddleback.com.

The Saddleback Food Pantry is an unbelievably vital resource to so many people in our community. Orange County – and specifically the Lake Forest/Mission Viejo/ Rancho Santa Margarita area – is not typically thought of as an area with families struggling to simply have enough food or toiletries or even baby supplies. But, truth be told, the economic downturn has affected people in ways they themselves never would have seen coming.

To see the impact Saddleback’s Food Pantry has made in just the short time it’s been in existence is incredibly encouraging. Thousands of people have been helped in huge ways and needs have been met in significant ways – and not just physical needs. The message of hope and Jesus’ love and provision is communicated each time someone comes to the Food Pantry thinking they’ll just get a bag of groceries and then be on their way.

Instead, the amazing volunteers at the Food Pantry show just how much the Christian community cares for each individual that comes to receive help. With Jesus’ example of gentleness and grace, the volunteers make sure each person leaves knowing how much they and more importantly, how much Jesus loves them and is looking out for them.

Any one of us can help the families and individuals who visit the Food Pantry in a number of simple ways. If you’d like to play a part in providing someone with hope, please let us know! You can either call 949-609-8333 or 949-609-8756, OR, you can e-mail ranam@saddleback.com.

It could be your neighbor that you end up helping.

The scene in the dining area at Vintage Senior Living Center on June 25^th looked different than it does on a typical day. The Hawaiian leis around the residents’ necks and the umbrellas in their glasses of juice were brought by a Saddleback small group whose members use hula dancing as a witnessing tool and as a way to simply bring joy to people.

Dawn Maestas, a Project City Hope city coordinator, organized the event and said it was amazing to see how much fun the residents were having and how many extra chairs they had to bring in for all the additional seniors who wanted to join in on the fun. The small group taught the seniors how to hula, and a few members of the group even brought their kids who hula danced to “Jesus Loves You”. Along with hula dancing to songs, the group even used scripture in their hula dancing, showcasing a beautiful and creative form of sharing the gospel.

The small group was so impacted that they committed to visiting Vintage Senior Living Center once a month. And that will no doubt be a welcome treat every month for the residents of Vintage.

To check out some great photos of the event, just go to www.facebook.com/ProjectCityHOPE.com.

Through Project City Hope, Saddleback San Clemente put on their first baby shower for expectant moms at Camp Pendleton, and the people who participated saw relationships and true community begin to be built.

As He usually is, God was there in the details of the event. For instance, the group was given a room with a capacity of 59….and there were 59 people exactly at the baby shower! The new moms and moms-to-be felt so celebrated and affirmed. Each of the 17 moms received a diaper bag filled with baby basics, they played games to get to know each other, and in the end, the volunteers were able to build lasting relationships with these moms.

Julie Zambrano, who was heading up this event, says it was a huge success, and she already has only 5 weeks to get ready for the next baby shower Project City Hope and Saddleback San Clemente will be putting on at Camp Pendleton!

If you’d like to be a part of an event like this, just fill out the form to the right, or call 949-609-8333 or contact James (jamesv@saddleback.com), and we’ll get you involved!