2017 California Governor’s Volunteering & Service Awards

Nine Honorees Receive Prestigious Awards for Serving Their Communities

Sacramento, CA – Yesterday, May 2, 2017, California presented the 2017 Governor’s Volunteering and Service Awards and the Hoffman Prize to honorees that exemplify what it means to go above and beyond in the world of service and volunteerism.

Chief Service Officer Karen Baker presented the awards to the honorees in the Governor’s Council Room in the State Capitol in Sacramento.

“These dedicated men and women are purpose-driven and passionate about making their communities stronger,” said Karen Baker, California’s Chief Service Officer.  “We are so honored to be able to present these awards to the best of the best in service and volunteerism.”

The 2017 Governor’s Volunteering and Service Award winners and the Hoffman Prize winner are as follows:

Hoffman Prize – Diane Solinger, Director of Googler Engagement, Google
The Hoffman Prize recognizes an exceptional California business executive who demonstrates outstanding and impactful work fostering volunteerism in his or her local community, the State of California, the nation, and the globe. Diane Solinger and her team are dedicated to helping Googlers volunteer and give around the globe with particular emphasis on aligning Googlers skills with Google.org investments.  She manages a giving budget of over $50 million annually, which is leveraged to support Googlers interests in philanthropic giving and volunteering.  Programs range from team building through GoogleServe Month of Service, to pro bono work such as working alongside Google.org grantees, to board service, where she placed over 200 Googlers on nonprofit boards. Diane is a founding member of Impact 2030 and helped to create the organization’s charter.   She is also involved with the Global Corporate Volunteer Council for the International Association of Volunteer Effort, speaking at conferences around the world, as well as hosting regional meetings to encourage more collaboration between companies in their volunteering efforts. Diane has led Googler volunteering and giving to grow from 32 percent to more than 60 percent as the company’s employee base has grown from 32,000 to more than 70,000.  More than 200,000 volunteer hours are logged annually.

California’s Volunteer of the Year – Jack Russi, San Francisco
This award honors an outstanding Californian whose volunteer service is exemplary and inspirational.  The Jefferson Awards Foundation has been a part of the San Francisco Bay Area for the last 10 years and has honored over 500 outstanding individuals in their community, in large part to Jack Russi’s strong commitment to service. The Jefferson Awards Foundation’s mission is to empower others to have maximum impact on the things they care most about.  Jack, working with Deloitte, was also instrumental in creating the Jefferson Award’s Students in Action (SIA) program, with the goal of multiplying service and civic engagement in high schools and in the process, creating better education and job outcomes. He helped introduce SIA to 50 Bay Area high schools and over 500 nationally. To date, 2,000 youth in the Bay Area have been trained to be service leaders and have generated over two million volunteer hours and raised almost $2 million to invest in socially critical issues.  Jack co-founded and co-chairs Inner City Advisors/Fund Good Jobs, which helps to grow inner city businesses and create jobs for those who need them most.  Jack is also a Board member at Ronnie Lott’s All Stars Helping Kids assisting in funding start-up nonprofits focused on helping disadvantaged youth and is the Chair of the Haas School of Business Advisory Board.

Catherine Milton California AmeriCorps Member of the Year – Oniric Cirino, also known as Alice Kellogg, San Diego NAMI (VIP Service Enterprise)
This award honors a California AmeriCorps member who has made a substantial impact to their community.   Alice’s accomplishments have been instrumental in growing volunteerism at the nonprofit, National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) San Diego. Notably, she coordinated presentations in middle schools and high schools throughout San Diego to educate young people about mental illness and provided resources to more than 6,400 students, many of whom went on to become volunteers. She also writes a volunteer spotlight article for the monthly NAMI San Diego Newsletter. Alice is instrumental in developing opportunities for volunteers to have a voice and a platform to share their personal journeys in a nonjudgmental environment and utilize their strengths to gain confidence and champion breaking the stigma on mental illness.

California’s Governmental Agency of the Year – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
This award honors an outstanding state, county, or city agency or department that has demonstrated a remarkable dedication to engaging volunteers.  Led by Secretary Scott Kernan, CDCR has enthusiastically demonstrated their commitment to growing their volunteer footprint at the 35 state prisons. Examples of their innovations include producing a video for Correctional Officers and volunteers to better understand the importance of volunteer work within the prisons, organizing a statewide Volunteer Advisory Board, and growing volunteer-based rehabilitation programs.

California’s Disaster Volunteer Program of the Year – AmeriCorps NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps, Pacific Campus)
This award honors an outstanding California disaster volunteer program that has demonstrated an unwavering service commitment to the local community. During the Oroville Spillway evacuation incident, CaliforniaVolunteers reached out to the Pacific Region NCCC Campus to support shelter operations at the American Red Cross Shelter, established at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds in Chico.  The first team of 13 NCCC team members arrived just hours after the shelter was opened.  Additional NCCC teams arrived to assist throughout the time that the shelter was opened.  In all, 43 NCCC team members assisted shelter operations in Chico with the last team leaving when the shelter was closed nearly two weeks later.  While working at the shelter, the members assisted with meal service and cleaning duties, as well as setting up sleeping space for evacuees.  They also acted as security and helped with all duties involved in closing the shelter.

California’s Nonprofit of the Year – Sacramento Children’s Home
This award honors a California nonprofit that has shown an extraordinary ability to leverage volunteers in service to their organization.  Celebrating their 150th Anniversary, the Sacramento Children’s Home has been dedicated to caring for their community’s most vulnerable children and families. Their mission could not be accomplished without the help of their generous donors and volunteers. From educating parents of infants and toddlers to teaching independent living skills to young adults, they are able to help the widest range of clients and address the widest range of needs of any child and family service organization in the county. Last year, volunteers served nearly 7,000 children and more than 4,600 families, focusing on building strong families and ending the generational cycle of abuse and neglect.

California’s Foundation of the Year – Dolores Huerta Foundation
This award honors a California-based foundation that has made a successful investment in service and volunteering models while addressing community needs. The Dolores Huerta Foundation is a multi-issue community driven organization that addresses the most pressing issues that Central Valley residents continue to face.  Through hands on leadership opportunities, community members learn how to develop campaigns, engage local stakeholders, and work with their neighbors to advocate for change.  Through its Vecinos Unidos (United Neighbors) program, the Dolores Huerta Foundation uses a grassroots community organizing model that empowers residents to determine and prioritize community needs, trains them to speak directly with public officials, and provides them with a platform to advocate for desired changes. Their organizers work with community members to host and organize monthly community forums in which a variety of topics are covered: immigration, health reform, and education.  Intersectionality is core to the foundation’s training model addressing injustices that are intrinsically linked.  In 2010, the Dolores Huerta Foundation launched the Weaving Movements campaign to promote working across silos.  They are also a leader in a wide range of education, civic engagement, and civil rights coalitions in low-income communities in Kern and Tulare counties and statewide. The Dolores Huerta Foundation is connecting its groundbreaking community-based organizing to state and national movements to register and educate voters; advocate for education reform; bring about infrastructure improvements in long-neglected communities; advocate for greater equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community; and create a strong leadership development pipeline.

California’s Business Volunteer Program of the Year – San Francisco Giants
This award honors an outstanding California business with an innovative, high-impact volunteer program that exemplifies collectively giving back to the community.  In a collaborative effort, the Giants Community Fund, the club’s 501(c)(3) non-profit, and the team’s Community Relations Department, work to identify, develop, support and raise awareness for people, issues and programs that are important to fans and communities throughout the Bay Area and Northern and Central California. The Giants’ work in the community translates into a variety of unique and progressive programs dedicated to addressing some of the most pressing needs of Northern California children and their families, including health, violence prevention, youth fitness and recreation, education and literacy.  Each season, the Giants hold more than 375 community outreach and awareness programs and events. In addition, thousands of community organizations and groups gather at AT&T Park each season to celebrate their shared culture, heritage, and diversity while raising funds to support their school, organization or non-profit, including Girls Day, Bullying Prevention, and Step Up to the Plate for Homelessness. The Giants Community Fund’s flagship program, Junior Giants, serves nearly 25,000 boys and girls in 90 underserved communities throughout northern and central California and southern Oregon.  It is a free and non-competitive baseball program that has served as a model for MLB youth initiatives.  Using baseball as the hook, Junior Giants provides opportunities for children to learn the meaning of leadership, teamwork, confidence and integrity, as well as the importance of education, health and bullying prevention. Over 6,000 coaches, team parents and representatives of community organizations, generously dedicate their time and efforts to improve the lives of Junior Giants in their communities.  Giants employees, from the players to the front office staff are expected to give back to the community.

Service Spotlight Award – Rita Holiday, Intel Corporation, Silicon Valley
This award honors a group or individual who has uniquely met a community need with the power of service.  Rita Holiday and Intel know volunteering builds goodwill and good business. Their global corporate volunteer program—Intel Involved—identifies worthwhile opportunities for individual volunteers and team projects, as well as days of community service.  Intel employees make a difference around the globe by helping educate and train people of all ages. They advance initiatives to foster safe and healthy communities and use their technical knowledge to support endeavors where it is most needed. Intel has made an innovative connection with philanthropy linked to volunteering.  When Intel employees commit hours, Intel commits dollars. The “Intel Involved” Matching Grant program awards cash grants to eligible organizations based on the number of hours that Intel employees volunteer. After a minimum of 20 hours has been accrued by Intel employees volunteering at a school or qualified nonprofit organization, a donation or “match” of $10 per hour volunteered will be triggered from the Intel Foundation with a maximum of $15,000 for schools, and $10,000 for other nonprofits, per eligible organization per year.  In 2016 alone, volunteer hours in California totaled more than 305,000 hours.

CaliforniaVolunteers is the state office that addresses state and community challenges by investing in high impact service solutions, while leveraging public, private, and nonprofit partnerships and resources. Through AmeriCorps, Disaster Volunteering, and Community Partnerships, CaliforniaVolunteers transforms small investments into community impact. For more information, please visit www.CaliforniaVolunteers.org.

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Kathy McKim Honored for Outstanding Leadership and Support for National Service

Commissioner Recognized at Annual Friends of National Service Awards

WASHINGTON, DC –Voices for National Service today honored CaliforniaVolunteers Commissioner Kathy McKim with the Citizen Service Award for her tireless efforts to strengthen service locally, statewide, and nationally, as well as for her ongoing efforts to help enhance the skills of AmeriCorps members and alumni.

McKim was honored along with 17 other distinguished leaders in government, business and journalism at the 14th Annual Friends of National Service Awards in Washington, DC. Previous award winners include Senator John McCain, General Collin Powell, Chelsea Clinton, Caroline Kennedy, and more.

“Kathy McKim is the premiere role model for a bold and caring corporate leader,” said CaliforniaVolunteers Chief Service Officer Karen Baker.  “Her passion for service has greatly benefited her city, her state, and the nation.  It’s leaders like Kathy who start making a difference in one market, and before you know it, she’s innovating an entire field.”

“Kathy McKim has been instrumental in bringing results-driven national service programs to her community,” said AnnMaura Connolly, President, Voices of National Service.  “Kathy’s passion for service is seemingly endless. She chaired the local boards of both City Year Sacramento and Teach For America, spearheads the AmeriCorps Advantage Program which helps AmeriCorps members effectively navigate career options, and actively engages AT&T employees in one-on-one mentoring. In recognition of her tireless efforts to advance service initiatives in California, Voices for National Service is proud to honor Kathy McKim with the Citizen Service Award.”

The annual Friends of National Service Awards is an opportunity for Voices for National Service to recognize leaders from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors who have contributed to building a culture of citizenship, service and responsibility in America. A full list of the 2017 awards and honorees is available here.

In communities across the country, national service members of all ages and backgrounds provide critical services to fulfill unmet needs.  National service members tutor and mentor struggling students, help Americans lead healthier lives, provide job training and other services to returning veterans, preserve the nation’s parks and public lands, offer disaster relief and recovery assistance after natural disasters and support independent living for seniors and Americans with disabilities.  For every federal dollar invested in national service, there are returns to society of nearly four dollars in terms of higher earnings, increased output and other community-wide benefits.

Congress created the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that oversees national service programs such as AmeriCorps and Senior Corps, to be a public-private partnership that invests limited federal dollars to leverage substantial private investment to improve lives and communities.  In 2015, CNCS generated $1.26 billion in outside resources from private businesses, foundations, and other sources, an amount exceeding the federal appropriation.  Furthermore, a recent survey of AmeriCorps alumni found that eight out of 10 alumni say AmeriCorps benefited and advanced their career path, and that AmeriCorps alumni are more likely to attain a bachelor’s degree or higher than the average American adult.

The 14^th Annual Friends of National Service Awards is sponsored by Comcast NBCUniversal and CSX.

Kathy McKim, the Vice President of External Affairs at AT&T, is the Vice Chair of the CaliforniaVolunteers Commission.

About CaliforniaVolunteers

CaliforniaVolunteers is the state office that manages programs and initiatives to increase the number of Californians involved with service and volunteering, including the state AmeriCorps program and the management of volunteers and monetary donations during times of disasters. For more information, please visit www.CaliforniaVolunteers.org.

About Voices for National Service
Voices for National Service is a diverse coalition of national and local service programs, state service commissions and individual champions, who work to ensure Americans of all ages and backgrounds have the opportunity to serve and volunteer in their community. Founded in 2003, Voices for National Service has built strong bipartisan support among our nation’s leaders and helped to elevate national service as a powerful strategy for tackling unmet needs, preparing young people for work, uniting our country and developing civic character.

 

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California to Receive $34.5 Million to Fund AmeriCorps Programs

Funding will help AmeriCorps programs address community needs 

CaliforniaVolunteers announced today that the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) has awarded California more than $33.2 million in competitive and formula grants to 57 projects that support the environment, educational and economic opportunities, and disaster assistance throughout the state.

CaliforniaVolunteers has also received nearly $1.3 million to fund planning grants for 18 different programs. Planning grants provide one-year funding to design and develop new AmeriCorps programs that can address community problems and demonstrate significant impacts.

“This is a banner year for AmeriCorps in California,” said California’s Chief Service Officer, Karen Baker. “We will be putting nearly 4,000 AmeriCorps members to work making a difference in high-need communities, all while having a dynamic service experience.”

One of the many programs funded, City Year Sacramento, will be serving over 4,000 of Sacramento’s most vulnerable students. “By improving key drop out indicators, we are helping to keep more students on track to graduate high school on time and college and career ready,” said City Year Sacramento Executive Director Jeff Owen. “This work would not be possible without the incredible investment of CaliforniaVolunteers.”

Since 1994, more than 120,000 California residents have served more than 150 million hours and have earned more than $360 million in education scholarships. CaliforniaVolunteers oversees AmeriCorps programs that engage nearly 4,000 AmeriCorps members who serve through nonprofit, faith-based, and local government at nearly 900 locations across the State of California. They are part of the nearly 8,000 AmeriCorps members who serve throughout the state.

“AmeriCorps members make a powerful impact on the toughest challenges facing our nation,” said Wendy Spencer, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that administers AmeriCorps. “Building on California’s strong tradition of neighbor helping neighbor, AmeriCorps members will improve lives and strengthen communities across the state. As they serve others, AmeriCorps members will also expand opportunity for themselves – gaining skills and experience to jumpstart their careers. We congratulate all the California organizations who received funding this year, and thank all AmeriCorps members for their service.”

A complete list of the 57 California programs that were awarded AmeriCorps competitive and formula grants can be found below:

Program Name	Legal Applicant City	Focus Area	Grant Amount	Grant Type
ACE Trails Enhancement	Santa Cruz	Environmental Stewardship	$417,101	Competitive, Continuation
AmeriCorps Housing Support Partnership	Eureka	Economic Opportunity	$306,444	Formula, New/Recompete
AmeriCorps Lectura	Thermal	Education	$752,927	Formula, Continuation
Backcountry Trails	Fortuna	Environmental Stewardship	$386,044	Competitive, Continuation
BAYAC	San Rafael	Education	$1,949,648	Formula, Continuation
Birth and Beyond	Sacramento	Healthy Futures	$1,206,437	Competitive, New/Recompete
Borderlands	El Centro	Education	$468,000	Competitive, New/Recompete
Building Healthy Communities	Bakersfield	Education	$444,499	Formula, Continuation
California Disaster Services Corps	Los Angeles	Disaster Services	$399,968	Formula, New/Recompete
California Safe Corps	Los Angeles	Disaster Services	$302,222	Competitive, Continuation
CalSERVES Expanded Learning	Rohnert Park	Education	$489,850	Competitive, Continuation
CalSERVES Expanded Learning	Rohnert Park	Education	$339,175	Formula, Continuation
CalSERVES VIP	Rohnert Park	Capacity Building	$1,611,600	Competitive, New/Recompete
Career Connections AmeriCorps	San Rafael	Economic Opportunity	$365,402	Competitive, Continuation
Child Welfare System Improvement	Sacramento	Healthy Futures	$603,310	Competitive, Continuation
City Year LA	Los Angeles	Education	$2,500,000	Competitive, Continuation
City Year LA	Los Angeles	Education	$348,000	Formula, New/Recompete
City Year Sacramento	Sacramento	Education	$849,948	Competitive, New/Recompete
Civic Spark	Sacramento	Environmental Stewardship	$638,267	Competitive, Continuation
Climate Corps AmeriCorps	San Rafael	Environmental Stewardship	$410,555	Formula, New/Recompete
Community Arts Partnership AmeriCorps Scholars & Fellows Program	Valencia	Education	$335,606	Formula, New/Recompete
Disaster Resiliency for Vulnerable Populations	Santa Ana	Disaster Services	$335,471	Formula, Continuation
Education Outside	San Francisco	Education	$660,766	Formula, Continuation
Elev8 Youth Program	Oakland	Education	$760,699	Formula, New/Recompete
First 5 Service Corps	Alameda	Education	$1,137,384	Competitive, Continuation
Food Literacy Center’s AmeriCorps Program	Sacramento	Healthy Futures	$273,314	Competitive, New/Recompete
Forest Aid Corps	San Bernardino	Environmental Stewardship	$256,273	Competitive, Continuation
Healthy Choices AmeriCorps	San Francisco	Education	$493,890	Formula, Continuation
Hope for the Homeless	Los Angeles	Economic Opportunity	$297,683	Formula, New/Recompete
Jumpstart California	San Francisco	Education	$1,341,327	Competitive, New/Recompete
JusticeCorps	San Francisco	Justice	$1,083,740	Competitive, New/Recompete
Lake County	Lakeport	Education	$288,850	Formula, Continuation
Los Angeles Promise Corps	Los Angeles	Education	$583,070	Competitive, Continuation
Monterey County United for Literacy	Salinas	Education	$477,023	Formula, Continuation
Muslim & Arab-American Resource Corps (MAARC)	Anaheim	Healthy Futures & Economic Opportunity	$161,850	Formula, Continuation
North State Rural Assets	Redding	Healthy Futures	$252,208	Competitive, Continuation
OCASA AmeriCorps	San Rafael	Education	$274,743	Formula, Continuation
Our City Forest AmeriCorps	San Jose	Environmental Stewardship	$741,442	Competitive, New/Recompete
Partnership for Veterans and Homeless	Santa Barbara	Economic Opportunity	$320,160	Formula, New/Recompete
PASS AmeriCorps	San Diego	Education	$505,479	Competitive, New/Recompete
Playworks CA	Oakland	Education	$939,125	Competitive, Continuation
Promise Zone [Operation AmeriCorps]	Los Angeles	Education	$165,326	Competitive, Continuation
Reading Partners	Oakland	Education	$1,027,000	Competitive, Continuation
Reading Partners	Oakland	Education	$338,000	Formula, Continuation
San Francisco Teacher Residency	San Francisco	Education	$546,960	Formula, Continuation
Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership	South Lake Tahoe	Environmental Stewardship	$363,309	Competitive, Continuation
Super Stars Literacy	Oakland	Education	$363,958	Competitive, Continuation
Tree Mortality Mitigation Corps (CCC)	Sacramento	Environmental Stewardship	$855,553	Formula, New/Recompete
UECC	Riverside	Education	$289,602	Formula, New/Recompete
Up2Us Sports –  California	Los Angeles	Healthy Futures	$235,655	Competitive, New/Recompete
VIP Service Enterprise	Rohnert Park	Capacity Building	$805,805	Competitive, New/Recompete
Viva Bien, Coma Bien, Sientase Bien	Hayward	Healthy Futures	$274,600	Competitive, New/Recompete
Water Action Corps	Sacramento	Environmental Stewardship	$274,600	Competitive, New/Recompete
Watershed Stewards Project	Fortuna	Environmental Stewardship	$426,950	Competitive, Continuation
Work Success Now!	Santa Cruz	Economic Opportunity	$268,292	Formula, Continuation
Young Scholars	San Bernardino	Education	$317,292	Formula, New/Recompete
Youth Investment Center	Sacramento	Education	$366,637	Competitive, New/Recompete
		Total Formula & Competitive:	$33,229,039
		Total Planning Grant:	$1,273,059
		Grand Total:	$34,502,098

About CaliforniaVolunteers: CaliforniaVolunteers is the state office that manages programs and initiatives to increase the number of Californians involved with service and volunteering, including the state AmeriCorps program and the management of volunteers and monetary donations during times of disasters. For more information, please visit www.CaliforniaVolunteers.org.

About AmeriCorps: AmeriCorps is administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund, and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the President’s national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit www.NationalService.gov.

 

 

 

 

CaliforniaVolunteers Now Accepting AmeriCorps Planning Grant Applications

One-Year Grants with up to $75,000 in Funding Available 

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – CaliforniaVolunteers announced today that it is now accepting applications for 2016-17 AmeriCorps state planning grant funding in support of community partnerships that will engage AmeriCorps members to meet state and local challenges through service and volunteer action.

“CaliforniaVolunteers is committed to helping communities with the power and talent of AmeriCorps members,” said Chief Service Officer Karen Baker.  “This new round of federal planning grant funding will allow for organizations to create new and innovative AmeriCorps programs to address challenges within their neighborhoods.”

The AmeriCorps planning grants provide funding to design and develop new AmeriCorps programs that can address community problems and demonstrate significant impacts. A one-year planning grant can support staffing costs, travel, materials, and other costs necessary to conduct a community needs assessment, bring together community partners to help design appropriate service activities to address community needs identified, develop financial plans to support cost share, and develop high quality plans for managing program implementation.

The optional Notice of Intent to apply is due May 20, 2016 at 5:00 pm and the hardcopy application deadline is June 3, 2016 at 5:00 pm.

Informational call-in sessions will be held on both May 13 and 19, 2016, where interested applicants can learn more about the application process.

For more information, please visit www.californiavolunteers.org and click the “2016 AmeriCorps Planning Grant Applications” link under “Highlights.”

2016 California Governor’s Volunteering & Service Awards

Eight Honorees to Receive Prominent Awards for Making Positive Impacts in Communities

 Today, April 7, 2016, California will be presenting the 2016 Governor’s Volunteering and Service Awards and the Hoffman Prize to honorees that have gone above and beyond in the world of service and volunteerism.

“The men and women that we recognize today are California heroes,” said California Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr.  “Their generosity and dedication are a real inspiration.”

Chief Service Officer Karen Baker will present the awards to the honorees in the Governor’s Council Room in the State Capitol in Sacramento today at 4 PM.

“We have the pleasure to be able to recognize these amazing men and women, who are dedicated to volunteerism and service,” said Karen Baker, California’s Chief Service Officer.  “Our communities are made better and more resilient thanks to these remarkable honorees that inspire us with their selfless acts of service, and we are excited to present them with these awards.”

The 2016 Governor’s Volunteering and Service Award winners and the Hoffman Prize winner are the following:

Hoffman Prize – Bobbi Silten, Executive Vice President of Global Talent and Sustainability at Gap Inc.
The Hoffman Prize recognizes an exceptional California business executive who demonstrates outstanding and impactful work fostering volunteerism in his or her local community, the State of California, the nation, and the globe. Bobbi Silten has led Gap Foundation at Gap Inc., overseeing its global community investments in women’s advancement and youth first jobs, and volunteer programs for employees worldwide.  Bobbi was tapped to lead Gap Inc.’s Global Sustainability practice, where she is tasked with vendor monitoring and capability building, environmental sustainability, global stakeholder partnerships, and sustainable innovation.  She served as a member of the White House Council for Community Solutions, which provided advice to President Obama on the best ways to mobilize citizens, nonprofits, businesses and government to work more effectively together to solve specific community needs. She co-led the Youth Employment Program working group, which developed the Connecting Youth & Business toolkit.  She co-founded “Reimagining Service,” a five-year national cross-sector initiative to increase the impact of volunteerism, and served as the chair of the Reimagining Service Council until 2014. She serves on the Leadership Council for Opportunity Nation and is also a volunteer mentor to alumni of Summer Search, a national youth leadership program.

 
California’s Volunteer of the Year – Cheryl Antony, Shelter Cove
This award honors an outstanding Californian whose volunteer service is exemplary and inspirational.  Cheryl Antony is a well-known asset in her Shelter Cove community, a small town in Humboldt County.  She is a firefighter, a first responder, a duty officer, a public information officer, a member of the Shelter Cove Community Emergency Response Team, a basic life support trainer, an EMT, and more.  She is also active with Meals on Wheels, with her church, and as a Board Member.  Cheryl received nine letters of support with her nomination.  She inspires others by her dedication and devotion.

Catherine Milton California AmeriCorps Member of the Year – Desiree Farnal, YouthSERVE (a program within CalSERVES, VIP at the Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County)
This award honors a California AmeriCorps member who has made a substantial impact to their community.   As a third year AmeriCorps member with more than 3,500 hours served, Desiree Farnal currently serves at YouthSERVE in Santa Cruz.  She supports more than 400 teens to be the difference in their community with a number of service projects.  For example, under her leadership, these teens tutored 100 seniors in personal technology through weekly sessions at the local senior center and community hospital.  She always finds a way to say “yes” to teens who are interested in community service.

California’s Governmental Agency of the Year – The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
This award honors an outstanding state, county, or city agency or department that has demonstrated a remarkable dedication to engaging volunteers.  Under the Community/Law Enforcement Partnership Programs Unit, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has one of the largest Law Enforcement Volunteer Programs in the nation with over 3,500 volunteers assisting over 18,000 employees, who in turn serve over 10 million residents.   The Community/Law Enforcement Partnership Programs Unit’s extensive experience with volunteer roles and best practices has become a “go-to” resource for California agencies wanting to create or revitalize their respective volunteer programs.

California’s Disaster Volunteer Program of the Year – The San Francisco Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (SF NERT) Disaster Corps Unit
This award honors an outstanding California disaster volunteer program that has demonstrated an unwavering service commitment to the local community.  Volunteers from the San Francisco Neighborhood Emergency Response Team Disaster Corps Unit deployed to two areas of California – Lake County and Tulare County – that were experiencing a declared disaster and had an impact directly on residents, as well as assisted County officials by becoming a force multiplier for their efforts when there were too few staff to meet the need.

California’s Nonprofit of the Year – NextGen OC, Jewish Federation and Family Services of Orange County
This award honors a California nonprofit that has shown an extraordinary ability to leverage volunteers in service to their organization.  NextGen OC, Jewish Federation and Family Services of Orange County is a 100 percent volunteer organization of 21-45 year olds who work on a number of service projects.  One of their successful events was “Tikkun for Troops” in which over 2,000 care packages were assembled for those deployed in service to our country by volunteers from the Orange County community.  The care packages were assembled for the troops by over 200 volunteers, in 4 hours.  They now have plans to double the amount of care packages for the 2016 year.  (Special note: the nomination was submitted by a serviceman in Iraq.)

 California’s Business Volunteer Program of the Year – The Sacramento Kings
This award honors an outstanding California business with an innovative, high-impact employee volunteer program.  With values of “Do good,” “Impact the world,” and “Make Sacramento proud,” the Sacramento Kings engage volunteers to meet community needs focused on health, sustainability, and education.  By investing their time, resources, talent, and passion, they are not only about rallying the community around their team, but also rallying them around meeting community needs.

Service Spotlight Award – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Los Angeles
This award honors a group or individual who has uniquely met a community need with the power of service. The 2015 Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles came with a need for tens of thousands of volunteers.  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Los Angeles stepped in offering more than 10,000 volunteers for nearly two weeks, who worked tirelessly in different capacities along with the Southern California community. It was known as “one of the largest outpourings of community service in church history.”

2015 California Governor’s Volunteering & Service Awards, Hoffman Prize, & National AmeriCorps Swearing-In

Eight Honorees to Receive Prestigious Awards for Impacting Communities, and Hundreds of New AmeriCorps Members to be Sworn-In

On October 15, 2015, California will be presenting the 2015 Governor’s Volunteering and Service Awards, and the Hoffman Prize to honorees that have gone above and beyond in the world of service and volunteerism.  In addition, hundreds of the more than 7,600 new members in California will be sworn-in as a new year of service has begun.

“It’s a privilege to be able to recognize these amazing men and women who are dedicated to volunteerism and service,” said Karen Baker, California’s Chief Service Officer.  “These remarkable honorees are making our communities better and stronger and it is our pleasure to present them with these awards.”

Chief Service Officer Karen Baker will present the awards to the honorees on the West Steps of the Capitol in Sacramento at 10 AM.   The 2015 Governor’s Volunteering and Service Award winners and the Hoffman Prize winner are the following:

Hoffman Prize – Susan Portugal, Bank of America’s Senior Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility Philanthropy Director

The Hoffman Prize recognizes an exceptional California business executive who demonstrates outstanding and impactful work fostering volunteerism in his or her local community, the State of California, the nation, and the globe.  Susan Portugal is responsible for key employee engagement initiatives including the company’s nationally recognized global volunteer program and United Way Campaign. Under her direction, Bank of America Community Volunteers have driven more than 2 million hours annually of volunteerism by employees across the globe – from America to Singapore, India, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. Her leadership led to the company successfully achieving this impressive milestone, which gained national recognition as a top organization within Points of Light Foundation’s Civic 50 annual ranking. Susan is responsible for the company’s national United Way Campaign, through which Bank of America employees pledged $18.6 million to support thousands of nonprofits across the country in 2014.  Additionally, under Susan’s leadership, the company has made advances in integrating its volunteerism as a key component of broader corporate social responsibility initiatives, including campaigns focused on hunger, military, and financial education.

California’s Volunteer of the Year – Donna Johnson, East Porterville

This award honors an outstanding Californian whose volunteer service is exemplary and inspirational.  Donna Johnson, known to her East Porterville neighbors as the “Water Angel,” saw a need to bring attention to the disaster the current drought has become in her community.  Donna worked with local businesses to collect donations of water, paper products, and containers to be used for storing water.  She purchased pallets of water with her own funds and began delivering families bottled water to their doorsteps.  She went door-to-door introducing herself and offering drinking water along with her smile.  Donna developed routes and delivery schedules to deliver her gift of water.  Her list of water recipients has grown to nearly a hundred households.  The increasing need only fueled her desire to help.  As a result of her efforts, over 80 countries and dozens of both local and national media outlets have taken an interest in the small community of East Porterville.  Response efforts increased as local agencies, governments (Federal, State and Local), non-profit organizations, and the faith-based community, began a coordinated relief effort that has resulted in further development of both short and long term water solutions.

Catherine Milton California AmeriCorps Member of the Year – Sara Kokkeleberg, Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership/Eastern Sierra Land Trust

This award honors a California AmeriCorps member who has made a substantial impact to his or her community.  Sara Kokkeleberg has made a substantial impact to her community through her work and through her incredible attitude and personality.  Sara’s work on the Eastside Pollinator Garden Project has been exemplary.  Through her dedication, expertise, and organization, she has been the main reason the project has been so successful.  In just two short seasons, she co-created the project, which included promoting and educating our community about the importance of pollinator-friendly habitats, generating funds for this project in her service term, and certifying 37 gardens in the first year, with another 20 in progress for this year.  Through this project, Sara has helped broaden the Community Connections Program and has provided outreach to many youth groups and community members, instilling them with an appreciation for the Eastside that she has discovered.  Sara has exhibited professionalism, excellent communication skills, the ability to assimilate new information quickly, and how to then teach others this information.  Due to her engaging personality, many members of our community have increased their engagement with gardening, land conservation and volunteerism.

California’s Governmental Agency of the Year – LEAP (Lake Evacuation and Animal Protection) [Under Lake County Animal Care and Control Department]

This award honors an outstanding state, county, or city agency or department that has demonstrated a remarkable dedication to engaging volunteers.  LEAP (Lake Evacuation and Animal Protection), under the Lake County Animal Care and Control Department, worked tirelessly for 120 hours with nearly no rest to evacuate and shelter 400 large and small animals from the explosive Rocky Fire, which burned 69,438 acres and destroyed 96 buildings, including 43 homes.  Some of the notable animals rescued included and Italian-speaking parrot named Rupert who would wish his temporary caretakers ‘good night’ each night, and an exceptionally heavy tortoise that volunteers needed to help lift so it could be evacuated.

California’s Disaster Volunteer Program of the Year – San Bernardino County CERT (Community Emergency Response Team)

This award honors an outstanding California disaster volunteer program that has demonstrated an unwavering service commitment to the local community.  San Bernardino County CERT has strengthened countywide preparedness by coordinating a comprehensive program where residents receive CERT training, attend subsequent training throughout the year, and utilize this training in significant contributions of service during actual disasters. Two new unincorporated programs, four municipal programs, and one campus CERT program have been newly created, with another seven unincorporated programs and six municipal programs being revitalized. Additionally, a Spanish-based preparedness curriculum, Listos, has been delivered by CERT volunteers in two communities, training over 150 Spanish-speaking residents in its first year. This extensive training helped with the ability to activate CERT volunteers, most recently during the Lake and North Fires.  Eight different CERT programs were activated; utilizing 83 CERT volunteers to donate 1,636 hours of volunteer service.

California’s Nonprofit of the Year – ElderHelp of San Diego

This award honors a California nonprofit that has shown an extraordinary ability to leverage volunteers in service to their organization.  ElderHelp of San Diego delivers direct services to seniors through dedicated volunteers.  Through their services, they help seniors save thousands of dollars each year. Their services include free in-home services, which replace expensive services offered by home care agencies, as well as constant monitoring combined with strong health advocacy to keep seniors out of expensive nursing homes. Last year, ElderHelp assisted 5,592 seniors, either through direct services or by providing resources, and expect to serve thousands more in the future. In addition, ElderHelp services contribute to cost containment for the healthcare industry by providing continuing care, reducing hospital days for clients by nearly one-third, and preventing hospital readmissions due to falls by 91 percent. ElderHelp volunteer visits and caring assistance make a significant difference in reducing loneliness and isolation by two-thirds, as shown through impact studies.  Another vital service ElderHelp provides is a ride service called Seniors-A-Go-Go, which provides transportation for seniors from home to the store, to doctors or therapy appointments, or even to movies and social outings. Last year alone, ElderHelp volunteers logged over 10,000 hours serving seniors in the community.

California’s Foundation of the Year – Syar Industries Foundation, Napa

This award honors a California-based foundation that has made a successful investment in service and volunteering models in addressing community needs.  Syar Industries Foundation has valued civic involvement by encouraging employees, customers and foundation awardees to increase volunteerism. In the past, Syar Industries’ employees have participated in numerous days of service or holiday opportunities. To highlight a few, employees have participated in coat drives, fundraisers, women shelters, and many others. Syar and their subsidiaries host annual drives to produce toys and coats for local families.  Syar understands that an agency cannot successfully deliver on their mission without the funding for the sustainability of strong volunteer programs. Syar Industries Foundation provided the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership’s Napa office funding in the amount of $29,000 each year for three years to provide Service Enterprise Initiative (SEI) training to nonprofit agencies in Napa County. The funding resulted in expanding SEI to Napa County with 13 local agencies in the first funding year. The generous three-year commitment provided by the Syar Foundation in support of this project has been instrumental to early success.

California’s Business Volunteer Program of the Year – AT&T California

This award honors an outstanding California business with an innovative, high-impact employee volunteer program.  AT&T has taken steps to encourage students to successfully complete high school and go on to college or a career.  Their Aspire Mentoring Academy provides flexible options to mentor students, designed to work around our employees’ schedules. Last year in California, AT&T employees attended 70 work and school events, impacting 5,800 students including over 26,000 hours of mentoring.  AT&T has also taken steps to assist in drought relief efforts.  In 2014, the leadership of AT&T California asked employees to reduce water usage, including a reduction in the washing of AT&T’s California fleet of more than 15,000 vehicles, reducing facility landscape irrigation by half, and turning off all decorative water fixtures in buildings.  Last year, AT&T reduced water use in California by almost 10 percent, equaling approximately 70 million gallons. Furthermore, AT&T supported a team of five robotics students from a Fresno Elementary school, nicknamed the “Fab 5,” who wanted to improve the way people learn about water conservation. They researched and conceived a mobile application to help local residents track their water use in real-time using their mobile device. AT&T’s $25,000 contribution, along with support from the City of Fresno and the Fresno Chamber of Commerce Foundation, provided full funding to develop and deploy the app in the City of Fresno. This commitment also jumpstarted additional fundraising efforts, now being led by the Fresno Chamber of Commerce, to support a public education and marketing campaign to promote use of the app among residents.

California to Receive $26.4 Million in AmeriCorps Grant Funding

Funding will help AmeriCorps programs address community needs

CaliforniaVolunteers announced today that the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) has awarded $26.4 million in grants to 47 projects that support the environment, educational and economic opportunities, and disaster assistance throughout the state.

“California continues to be an innovation hub of high-quality, impactful programs, all using the power of AmeriCorps members and volunteers to get things done,” said California’s Chief Service Officer, Karen Baker.  “It is exciting to see the more than 13 percent increase in funding coming to our state.”

Annually, CaliforniaVolunteers oversees AmeriCorps programs that engage more than 3,000 AmeriCorps members who serve through nonprofit, faith-based, and local government at more than 900 locations across the State of California.  They are part of the nearly 7,600 AmeriCorps members who serve in more than 1,600 sites in California.

Since 1994, more than 900,000 Americans have provided more than one billion hours of service addressing critical challenges from poverty and hunger to disasters and the dropout crisis.  In California, nearly 120,000 AmeriCorps members have served close to 150 million hours and earned almost $341 million in education scholarships. California AmeriCorps members supported by these grants are eligible to earn approximately $15 million education scholarships to help pay for college or to pay off student loans.

“AmeriCorps members make a powerful impact on the toughest challenges facing our nation,” said CNCS CEO Wendy Spencer.  “Building on California’s strong tradition of neighbor helping neighbor, AmeriCorps members will improve lives and strengthen communities across the state.  As they serve others, AmeriCorps members will also expand opportunity for themselves – gaining skills and experience to jumpstart their careers.”

Of the 47 grants, 30 were awarded new grant funding for programs that will improve communities in the following priority areas:

• Disaster Services – Programs in this area will help communities when disasters strike, as well as assist in pre-disaster training.
• Economic Opportunity – Members will assist in job placement and training in these programs.
• Education – Various tutoring methods will be used within these programs to assist high-need students from kindergarten through high school. Tutoring will include areas such as reading skills, anti-bullying, behavioral, and school gardening.
• Environment – Programs in this area will improve the environment through restoration of watersheds and trails, as well as making wilderness areas safer and more accessible.
• Health and Human Service Needs – Members in these programs will connect communities to healthcare and education resources, as well as strengthen parental education for positive impacts in families.

A complete list of the 47 California programs awarded AmeriCorps grants can be found below:

Legal Applicant City	Program Name	Focus Area	Grant Amount	Grant Type
Santa Cruz	American Conservation Experience (ACE) California	Environmental Stewardship	$         417,101	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Thermal	AmeriCorps Lectura (Promote)	Education	$         676,000	Formula, New/Re-compete
Santa Barbara	AppleCorps	Education	$         285,701	Formula, Continuation
Fortuna	Backcountry Trails AmeriCorps Program	Environmental Stewardship	$         386,044	Competitive, New/Re-compete
San Rafael	Bay Area Workforce AmeriCorps	Economic Opportunity	$         365,402	Competitive, New/Re-compete
San Rafael	BAYAC (Bay Area Youth Agency Consortium) AmeriCorps	Education	$      1,470,628	Formula, New/Re-compete
Sacramento	Birth & Beyond	Healthy Futures	$         979,889	Competitive, Continuation
El Centro	Borderlands	Education	$         485,395	Formula, Continuation
Bakersfield	Building Healthy Communities	Education	$         328,825	Formula, Continuation
San Francisco	CA JusticeCorps	Education	$         919,942	Formula, Continuation
Los Angeles	CA Safe Corps	Disaster Services	$         302,222	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Napa	CalSERVES	Education	$         489,850	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Napa	CalSERVES II (Augment-Fixed)	Education	$         339,174	Formula, New/Re-compete
Napa	CalSERVES PREP (Fixed-Amount)	Education	$         537,200	Formula, Continuation

Napa	CalSERVES VIP	Capacity Building	$      1,300,000	Competitive, Continuation
Sacramento	Child Welfare Service Improvement	Healthy Futures	$         603,310	Competitive, Continuation
Los Angeles	City Year Los Angeles	Education	$      2,500,000	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Sacramento	CivicSpark	Environmental Stewardship	$         638,267	Competitive, Continuation
Santa Ana	Disaster Resiliency for Vulnerable Populations	Disaster Services	$         160,000	Formula, New/Re-compete
San Francisco	Education Outside	Education	$         549,160	Formula, New/Re-compete
Oakland	Elev8 Youth Program	Education	$         694,980	Formula, Continuation
Alameda	First 5 Service Corps	Education	$      1,137,385	Competitive, New/Re-compete
San Bernardino	Forest Aid Corps	Disaster Services	$         256,273	Competitive, New/Re-compete
San Francisco	Healthy Choices AmeriCorps	Education	$         454,997	Formula, New/Re-compete
Los Angeles	Hope for the Homeless	Economic Opportunity	$         261,729	Formula, Continuation
San Francisco	Jumpstart CA	Education	$      1,168,322	Competitive, Continuation
Lakeport	Lake County AmeriCorps	Education	$         157,978	Formula, New/Re-compete
Los Angeles	Los Angeles Promise Corps	Education	$         583,070	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Salinas	Monterey County United for Literacy	Education	$         330,009	Formula, New/Re-compete
Anaheim	Muslim & Arab American Resource Corps	Healthy Futures & Economic Opp.	$         150,000	Formula, New/Re-compete
Redding	Northstate Rural Assets Project	Healthy Futures	$         252,208	Competitive, New/Re-compete
San Rafael	OCASA AmeriCorps	Education	$         251,049	Formula, New/Re-compete
San Jose	Our City Forest	Environmental Stewardship	$         987,871	Formula, Continuation
San Diego	PASS AmeriCorps (Fixed-Amount)	Education	$         452,845	Formula, Continuation
Oakland	Playworks California	Education	$         939,125	Competitive, New/Re-compete

Los Angeles	Promise Zone Operation AmeriCorps	Education	$         164,205	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Oakland	Reading Partners II (Augment-Fixed)	Education	$         390,000	Formula, New/Re-compete
Oakland	Reading Partners California	Education	$         819,000	Competitive, New/Re-compete
San Francisco	San Francisco Teacher Residency	Education	$         525,000	Formula, New/Re-compete
South Lake Tahoe	Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership	Environmental Stewardship	$         363,309	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Oakland	Super Stars Literacy	Education	$         363,958	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Riverside	University Eastside Community Collaborative (UECC)	Education	$         272,860	Formula, New/Re-compete
Los Angeles	Veteran Resource Corps	Veterans & Military Families	$         294,000	Formula, Continuation
Fortuna	Watershed Stewards	Environmental Stewardship	$         426,950	Competitive, New/Re-compete
Watsonville	Work Success Now!	Economic Opportunity	$         276,640	Formula, New/Re-compete
San Bernardino	Young Scholars	Education	$         323,040	Formula, Continuation
Sacramento	Youth Investment Center	Education	$         383,184	Competitive, Continuation
		Grand Total	$    26,414,097

Volunteers of the Refugio Oil Spill

A wonderful overview done by the California Office of Emergency Services, highlighting volunteer efforts with the Refugio Oil Spill.

CaliforniaVolunteers Now Accepting 2016 AmeriCorps Grant Applications for State Priorities, Including Drought Efforts

CaliforniaVolunteers announced today that it is now accepting applications for 2016-17 AmeriCorps state grant funding in support of community partnerships that will engage AmeriCorps members to meet state and local challenges through service and volunteer action. This year’s grant program will add drought relief efforts as a funding preference priority.

“CaliforniaVolunteers is committed to supporting partnerships that effectively engage AmeriCorps members to address community problems,” said Chief Service Officer Karen Baker.  “With California entering its fourth year of extreme drought conditions, we felt it necessary to add drought efforts as an additional priority for funding, as this is one of the biggest challenges California is currently facing.”

Today’s Request for Applications comes about six months earlier than normal to give applicants additional time to prepare a well-thought-out and complete application. The extended timeline also allows CaliforniaVolunteers extra time to work with applicants to strengthen their proposals, if funded, for successful implementation and to be more competitive in securing federal grants.

Informational sessions will be held in the month of May, where interested applicants can learn more about the application process, as well as more about the specific priorities for funding, including drought relief.  For more information, please visit www.californiavolunteers.org.

For more than two years, California has been dealing with the effects of drought. To learn about all the actions the state has taken to manage our water system and cope with the impacts of the drought, visit Drought.CA.gov.

Every Californian should take steps to conserve water. Find out how at SaveOurWater.com.

CaliforniaVolunteers Announces Launch of Volunteer Coordinator Guidance Documents for Times of Disasters

CaliforniaVolunteers today announced new Volunteer Coordinator Guidance Documents as part of California’s emergency management system.  These tools will help emergency managers across the state to better coordinate volunteer resources during disaster response operations.

“These first-in-the-nation guidance documents will allow more volunteers to be used more efficiently during disasters,” said Chief Service Officer, Karen Baker.  “These materials will help begin to professionalize volunteerism by formally integrating volunteer assets into emergency management planning and implementation.”

“I commend CalVolunteers for their continuing efforts to work with Cal OES to incorporate the numerous benefits of volunteerism into emergency management and disaster recovery programs in California,” said California Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) Director Mark Ghilarducci.

The Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) Advisory Board approved the new guidance today, after more than 25 meetings and workshops were held to solicit feedback from hundreds of stakeholders across California, including local government, state agencies, nongovernmental organizations and tribal governments.  The concept for the documents is based on the principles of SEMS, following the resource request process.  CaliforniaVolunteers will work to provide key training to help emergency managers develop volunteer coordinators within their own jurisdictions.

Together, these resources will provide guidance on the roles and responsibilities of a Volunteer Coordinator at all levels of the emergency management system and will help increase the use of volunteers for disaster response and recovery efforts.