In keeping with their goal of serving the most vulnerable and neediest in the community, the Ventura County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. recently donated dozens of toys to the RAIN Project Transitional Living Center in Camarillo.
RAIN provides a safe, nurturing, clean and sober environment for homeless families and single adults in need of support to gain self-sufficiency and independent housing. RAIN's mission is to end homelessness one person at a time by renewing hope, restoring dignity and strengthening family bonds. Some of the services provided include meals, transportation assistance, parenting and self-sufficiency classes, job search assistance, and recovery support.
"We provide the support to help the families get re-established," said Summer Willison, RAIN's children's education and recreation coordinator. She said Delta's toy donation will bring happiness to a lot of children.
She said over half of the center's population are children ages 0 to 15 years old. The donated toys are used for several purposes. Administrators use the toys to welcome new families to the center by decorating their room with toys. They also use the toys as an incentive for the children. The children can earn so-called RAIN Bucks by making good grades and doing good deeds like helping others. The children redeem the RAIN Bucks at the RAIN Buck Store which is stocked with donated toys. The donated toys are also given as birthday presents to the children.
"This goes to the heart of our mission and goal as a chapter in serving the community," said Debra Bagley, outgoing president of VCAC. "Our donation directly benefits needy children."
VCAC selected RAIN as their charity to serve as part of the United Way of Ventura County's 2007 Day of Caring.
From donating food to the needy to mentoring teenage girls to lobbying elected officials in Sacramento, the Ventura County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. is at the forefront of social and political activism in the communities it serves.
The chapter, which was chartered in 1980, serves Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. The chapter's programs have varied as the communities it serves have changed. However, all programs and projects are related to Delta's national Five Point Program Thrust: Economic Development, Educational Development, International Awareness and Involvement, Physical and Mental Health, and Political Awareness and Involvement.
Posted By: Reginald Culpepper
Wednesday, July 23rd 2008 at 8:21PM
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