Organizations Stepping Up to Serve the Community
The COVID-19 pandemic has turned the world upside down. Lives have been lost, jobs have been put on hold, and classrooms have been moved to kitchens. We see the heartache and sadness every day, but we’ve also seen the good. We’ve been surrounded with love and help in our community—people and places making a difference, putting smiles on faces, food in stomachs, and helping those in need. Here are just some of organizations giving back locally. (We know there are so many more who have helped, and we THANK YOU!)
WHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit in El Dorado County that provides food to those in need.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: With assistance from local businesses, restaurants and the community, they’ve fed hundreds of people every day and thousands every month since the shelter-in-place mandate.
WHO THEY ARE: City leaders and community members launched this program on May 4 to help feed families (one person or more) during the COVID-19 crisis. Bayside Church donated 500 face masks for volunteers, while Roseville Citizens’ Benefit Fund, Placer Community Foundation, Sutter Health Foundation, Rotary Club of Roseville, and Roseville Firefighters (among others) provided funding; and Roseville Transit offers delivery service.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They’re providing weekly meals to more than 400 Roseville households. In turn, they’re helping residents in need of food and struggling restaurants stay in business. So far, Nixtaco Mexican Kitchen (nixta.co), The Monk’s Cellar (monkscellar.com), and Randy Peter’s Catering (randypeterscatering.com) have participated.
FYI: A $20 donation can provide four meals and support local restaurants.
WHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit, community-based organization serving seniors in Northern California.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They hold ongoing volunteer efforts, including Eskaton’s Telephone Reasurrance Program where trained volunteers call isolated and homebound seniors. More than 600 lives have been touched by these phone calls.
FYI: You can donate or volunteer by visiting their website.
WHO THEY ARE: They collect and distribute food in Placer, El Dorado, and Nevada Counties.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Offering drive-thru distribution at local farmers’ markets. They’ve given fresh produce and perishable items at no cost to those who need food assistance.
WHO THEY ARE: Sisters Parmis and Amitis Pourarian founded this women’s group with the goal of contributing to their community. They support local charities and donate thousands of dollars annually.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Members of their group donated to feed hundreds of hospital staff at Kaiser Roseville and Sutter Roseville along with Bennett's Kitchen Bar Market (bennettskitchen.com) and Sienna (siennarestaurants.com).
FYI: Join them, support them, or donate.
WHO THEY ARE: A Folsom-based food bank serving the region that provides nutritious food and social assistance.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They have been doing drive-thru grocery pickup that includes canned goods, nutritional shakes for seniors, and kid-approved food items. During the pandemic, they have served twice the number of households than they do on a normal basis. Many community organizations and faith-based organizations have organized food drives to directly support them too, including Folsom Sikh Community, Folsom Masonic Lodge #64, Mercy Hospital of Folsom, Vista del Lago High School, Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary, Folsom Sports Complex, Lakeside Church, Bayside Church Folsom, Community Bible Church, Oak Hills Church, Trinity Episcopal Church Folsom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mount Olive Lutheran, The Gathering Place Church, Rotary Club of Folsom, MCF Muslim Community of Folsom - Masjid/Community Center, Disciples Church, and Jesus Culture Sacramento.
WHO THEY ARE: A charitable organization started by a seven-year-old boy that fundraises for important causes and provides niceness for those in need.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They created “Project GrubHug,” whose proceeds feed those in need, like seniors, families with lost income, and health care workers.
WHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit dedicated to helping children and communities in need.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: During the COVID-19 crisis, they initiated a fundraising effort specifically to benefit Twin Lakes Food Bank and generously matched the donations.
FYI: Follow their website and Facebook page for future fundraising initiatives.
WHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit that supports numerous local charities and fundraising efforts.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They’ve been doing curbside meal fundraisers and collecting donations and items for charities severely impacted by COVID-19, including Mercy Multiplied (mercymultiplied.com), Julie’s Purse Project (juliespurseproject.org), Mj’s Project (mjsproject.org), Blessings in a Backpack (bibsac.org), and Orangevale-Fair Oaks Food Bank (orangevalefoodbank.org).
FYI: You can help by donating and/or stopping by their curbside meal fundraisers; follow their FB page for details.
WHO THEY ARE: They support local youth, people in need, and other organizations who serve the less fortunate.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Through donations, they’ve been able to purchase and donate PPE’s to hospital workers, first responders, and those providing essential services. In addition, they hosted one of the “Stop Pop & Go” Food Drives to benefit Twin Lakes Food Bank.
FYI: Visit their website for information on donating.
WHO THEY ARE: They provide food assistance to residents in need throughout El Dorado County.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Due to the school closures from COVID-19, they partnered with Rescue Union School District and Buckeye Union School District to provide nutritious meals to families. As a result, they added six distribution sites and have fed more than 500 families each week.
FYI: If you can help support their cause, or if you need support, visit their website for information.
WHO THEY ARE: They’ve been serving frozen yogurt since 2008.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: All proceeds from their weekend sales in April went straight to local charities like St. Vincent de Paul (placersvdp.com), Allegiant Giving (allegiantgiving.org), Arts Council of Placer County (placerarts.org), and Placer SPCA (placerspca.org).
FYI: Even before COVID-19, they were supporting the community in various capacities by holding fundraising nights and hosting Arts Council of Placer County pop-up shows. Follow their Facebook page for future events.
WHO THEY ARE: A brewery and restaurant in Granite Bay.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They started a program called “Feed the Frontline” where customers can donate pizzas to health care workers. They even write the names of those who donated on the pizza box.
FYI: If you’d like to donate a pizza, visit their website, then click on “Granite Bay: Order Food & Beer” and “Feed the Frontline.”
WHO THEY ARE: A Roseville restaurant that serves healthy and affordable farm-to-fork dishes.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: With help from community sponsors like La-Z-Boy of Sacramento (la-z-boy.com/sacramento), Bayside Church Adventure (adventure.baysideonline.com) and Center of Praise Ministries (cop.church), among others, along with countless individual donors, they’ve provided “thank you meals” to health care workers, medical personnel, teachers, firefighters, and police officers.
WHO THEY ARE: A group of volunteers helping others in their community during disasters and times of crisis.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They’ve given thousands of hand-made masks to people and businesses. They’ve also helped people get hard-to-find items like toilet paper, paper towels, and distilled water. On top of that, they raised more than $2,000 for The Gathering Inn, a nonprofit that helps the homeless in Placer County.
WHO THEY ARE: Shopping, dining, and entertainment center in Folsom.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Donating to and partnering with their center’s restaurants, Palladio at Broadstone has organized a meal program to thank health care workers. Close to 1,000 meals have been given to Mercy Folsom Hospital, Kaiser Permanente’s Folsom Medical Office, and first responders.
WHO THEY ARE: A full-service planning and catering company and restaurant in Sacramento.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Delicious, home-style meals purchased by patrons have been prepared by Jackson Catering & Events and delivered to health care workers in ER and ICU units across Sacramento-area hospitals. For just $12, fresh, hot meals including meatloaf and bbq chicken have made their way to grateful hospital staff.
FYI: Call 916-483-7300 or visit their website to donate meals to hospital workers.
WHO THEY ARE: A restaurant and sports bar in Roseville.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: At the request and donation of a generous customer, Goose Port prepared and donated food for a local nonprofit of their choice. Goose Port picked The Taylor House (thetaylorhouse.org) in Roseville—a transition home for former foster and at-risk girls. Not only did the organization receive meals but the promise of a fun-filled night at Goose Port when things get back to normal.
WHO THEY ARE: Roofing, decking, siding, and window contractors in Shingle Springs.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Straight Line Construction teamed up with other businesses like Malone's Painting & Deck Restoration (facebook.com/malonespaintinganddeckrestoration), California Overhead Door (cohd.net), Solar Savings Direct (solarsavingsdirect.com), ABC Supply Co. (abcsupply.com), Kleen Air (gotkleenair.com), Wayside Lumber (waysidelumber.com), and Burne Engineering (burneengineering.com) to provide $125,000 worth of fantastic home improvement services for lucky winners of a draw—all nominated by locals. Improvements included complete deck replacement, roof repair, and painting services for first responders and medical professionals, small business owners, and others in need.
mrdjservice.com
WHO THEY ARE: Since 1989, their talented team of DJs has been creating extraordinary weddings and events.
Calling all local heroes! Know an individual or business who has stepped up for their community during the current crisis? We want to hear about them—email us at [email protected].
Steve and Natalie Brown
Upper Room Dining Hall
upperroomdininghall.orgWHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit in El Dorado County that provides food to those in need.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: With assistance from local businesses, restaurants and the community, they’ve fed hundreds of people every day and thousands every month since the shelter-in-place mandate.
FYI: Since they are focusing on supporting their community during this time, all of their regular fundraisers have been put on hold, so donations are extremely helpful right now.
Family Meal Roseville
familymealroseville.orgWHO THEY ARE: City leaders and community members launched this program on May 4 to help feed families (one person or more) during the COVID-19 crisis. Bayside Church donated 500 face masks for volunteers, while Roseville Citizens’ Benefit Fund, Placer Community Foundation, Sutter Health Foundation, Rotary Club of Roseville, and Roseville Firefighters (among others) provided funding; and Roseville Transit offers delivery service.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They’re providing weekly meals to more than 400 Roseville households. In turn, they’re helping residents in need of food and struggling restaurants stay in business. So far, Nixtaco Mexican Kitchen (nixta.co), The Monk’s Cellar (monkscellar.com), and Randy Peter’s Catering (randypeterscatering.com) have participated.
FYI: A $20 donation can provide four meals and support local restaurants.
Family Meal Roseville
Eskaton
eskaton.org/give-backWHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit, community-based organization serving seniors in Northern California.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They hold ongoing volunteer efforts, including Eskaton’s Telephone Reasurrance Program where trained volunteers call isolated and homebound seniors. More than 600 lives have been touched by these phone calls.
FYI: You can donate or volunteer by visiting their website.
Placer Food Bank
placerfoodbank.orgWHO THEY ARE: They collect and distribute food in Placer, El Dorado, and Nevada Counties.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Offering drive-thru distribution at local farmers’ markets. They’ve given fresh produce and perishable items at no cost to those who need food assistance.
FYI: You can find out about volunteer opportunities and also donate on their website.
Delivering 100 meals to Sutter Roseville's ER Department
Power of 100 Women
powerof100women.comWHO THEY ARE: Sisters Parmis and Amitis Pourarian founded this women’s group with the goal of contributing to their community. They support local charities and donate thousands of dollars annually.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Members of their group donated to feed hundreds of hospital staff at Kaiser Roseville and Sutter Roseville along with Bennett's Kitchen Bar Market (bennettskitchen.com) and Sienna (siennarestaurants.com).
FYI: Join them, support them, or donate.
Twin Lakes Food Bank
twinlakesfoodbank.orgWHO THEY ARE: A Folsom-based food bank serving the region that provides nutritious food and social assistance.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They have been doing drive-thru grocery pickup that includes canned goods, nutritional shakes for seniors, and kid-approved food items. During the pandemic, they have served twice the number of households than they do on a normal basis. Many community organizations and faith-based organizations have organized food drives to directly support them too, including Folsom Sikh Community, Folsom Masonic Lodge #64, Mercy Hospital of Folsom, Vista del Lago High School, Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary, Folsom Sports Complex, Lakeside Church, Bayside Church Folsom, Community Bible Church, Oak Hills Church, Trinity Episcopal Church Folsom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mount Olive Lutheran, The Gathering Place Church, Rotary Club of Folsom, MCF Muslim Community of Folsom - Masjid/Community Center, Disciples Church, and Jesus Culture Sacramento.
FYI: There are many ways to help, including donating food items and money; visit their website for more info.
Tower of Niceness
Tower of Niceness
towerofniceness.orgWHO THEY ARE: A charitable organization started by a seven-year-old boy that fundraises for important causes and provides niceness for those in need.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They created “Project GrubHug,” whose proceeds feed those in need, like seniors, families with lost income, and health care workers.
FYI: They have partnered with Randy Peters Catering (randypeterscatering.com) and are able to deliver meals for $10 each. Donate toward this cause by visiting their website.
Kiwanis Club of Folsom Lake
folsomlakekiwanis.orgWHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit dedicated to helping children and communities in need.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: During the COVID-19 crisis, they initiated a fundraising effort specifically to benefit Twin Lakes Food Bank and generously matched the donations.
FYI: Follow their website and Facebook page for future fundraising initiatives.
Folsom Fraternal Order of Eagles
Folsom Fraternal Order of Eagles
facebook.com/folsomeagleWHO THEY ARE: A nonprofit that supports numerous local charities and fundraising efforts.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They’ve been doing curbside meal fundraisers and collecting donations and items for charities severely impacted by COVID-19, including Mercy Multiplied (mercymultiplied.com), Julie’s Purse Project (juliespurseproject.org), Mj’s Project (mjsproject.org), Blessings in a Backpack (bibsac.org), and Orangevale-Fair Oaks Food Bank (orangevalefoodbank.org).
FYI: You can help by donating and/or stopping by their curbside meal fundraisers; follow their FB page for details.
Rotary Club of Folsom
folsomrotary.comWHO THEY ARE: They support local youth, people in need, and other organizations who serve the less fortunate.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Through donations, they’ve been able to purchase and donate PPE’s to hospital workers, first responders, and those providing essential services. In addition, they hosted one of the “Stop Pop & Go” Food Drives to benefit Twin Lakes Food Bank.
FYI: Visit their website for information on donating.
Food Bank of El Dorado County
foodbankedc.orgWHO THEY ARE: They provide food assistance to residents in need throughout El Dorado County.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Due to the school closures from COVID-19, they partnered with Rescue Union School District and Buckeye Union School District to provide nutritious meals to families. As a result, they added six distribution sites and have fed more than 500 families each week.
FYI: If you can help support their cause, or if you need support, visit their website for information.
Big Spoon Yogurt Roseville
bigspoonroseville.comWHO THEY ARE: They’ve been serving frozen yogurt since 2008.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: All proceeds from their weekend sales in April went straight to local charities like St. Vincent de Paul (placersvdp.com), Allegiant Giving (allegiantgiving.org), Arts Council of Placer County (placerarts.org), and Placer SPCA (placerspca.org).
FYI: Even before COVID-19, they were supporting the community in various capacities by holding fundraising nights and hosting Arts Council of Placer County pop-up shows. Follow their Facebook page for future events.
New Glory Eatery & Taproom
newglorybeer.comWHO THEY ARE: A brewery and restaurant in Granite Bay.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They started a program called “Feed the Frontline” where customers can donate pizzas to health care workers. They even write the names of those who donated on the pizza box.
FYI: If you’d like to donate a pizza, visit their website, then click on “Granite Bay: Order Food & Beer” and “Feed the Frontline.”
Garden of Eat’n
gardenofeatn.netWHO THEY ARE: A Roseville restaurant that serves healthy and affordable farm-to-fork dishes.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: With help from community sponsors like La-Z-Boy of Sacramento (la-z-boy.com/sacramento), Bayside Church Adventure (adventure.baysideonline.com) and Center of Praise Ministries (cop.church), among others, along with countless individual donors, they’ve provided “thank you meals” to health care workers, medical personnel, teachers, firefighters, and police officers.
FYI: You can sponsor a lunch through their website.
Saundra Romo, Nancy Klevickis, Scott Alvord, and Chris Worden
Roseville Volunteer Force
rosevillevolunteerforce.comWHO THEY ARE: A group of volunteers helping others in their community during disasters and times of crisis.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: They’ve given thousands of hand-made masks to people and businesses. They’ve also helped people get hard-to-find items like toilet paper, paper towels, and distilled water. On top of that, they raised more than $2,000 for The Gathering Inn, a nonprofit that helps the homeless in Placer County.
FYI: You can join their group or receive help by visiting their website.
Buckhorn Grill at the Palladio
Palladio at Broadstone
gopalladio.comWHO THEY ARE: Shopping, dining, and entertainment center in Folsom.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Donating to and partnering with their center’s restaurants, Palladio at Broadstone has organized a meal program to thank health care workers. Close to 1,000 meals have been given to Mercy Folsom Hospital, Kaiser Permanente’s Folsom Medical Office, and first responders.
FYI: Support the Palladio and the center’s meal program participants by dining at Back Bistro (backbistro.com), Buckhorn Grill (buckhorngrill.com), Chicago Fire (chicagofire.com), Petra Greek (petragreek.com), The Chocolate Architect (chocsilk.com), Icing on the Cupcake (icingonthecupcake.com), and Pretty Sweet (prettysweet.co).
Jackson Catering & Events
jacksoncateringevents.comWHO THEY ARE: A full-service planning and catering company and restaurant in Sacramento.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Delicious, home-style meals purchased by patrons have been prepared by Jackson Catering & Events and delivered to health care workers in ER and ICU units across Sacramento-area hospitals. For just $12, fresh, hot meals including meatloaf and bbq chicken have made their way to grateful hospital staff.
FYI: Call 916-483-7300 or visit their website to donate meals to hospital workers.
Goose Port Public House
gooseport.comWHO THEY ARE: A restaurant and sports bar in Roseville.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: At the request and donation of a generous customer, Goose Port prepared and donated food for a local nonprofit of their choice. Goose Port picked The Taylor House (thetaylorhouse.org) in Roseville—a transition home for former foster and at-risk girls. Not only did the organization receive meals but the promise of a fun-filled night at Goose Port when things get back to normal.
Straight Line Construction
straightlineconstruction.comWHO THEY ARE: Roofing, decking, siding, and window contractors in Shingle Springs.
HOW THEY’VE HELPED: Straight Line Construction teamed up with other businesses like Malone's Painting & Deck Restoration (facebook.com/malonespaintinganddeckrestoration), California Overhead Door (cohd.net), Solar Savings Direct (solarsavingsdirect.com), ABC Supply Co. (abcsupply.com), Kleen Air (gotkleenair.com), Wayside Lumber (waysidelumber.com), and Burne Engineering (burneengineering.com) to provide $125,000 worth of fantastic home improvement services for lucky winners of a draw—all nominated by locals. Improvements included complete deck replacement, roof repair, and painting services for first responders and medical professionals, small business owners, and others in need.
MR Dj Event Services
MR DJ Event Services
WHO THEY ARE: Since 1989, their talented team of DJs has been creating extraordinary weddings and events.
HOW
THEY’VE HELPED: By hosting “pop-up dance parties” at driveways across
town, they not only generated smiles and laughter, but also raised over
$4,000 for C.A.F.F.E.—a volunteer-based group that helps the less
fortunate and homeless in our community by providing clothing, food, and
survival necessities.
by Julie Ryan