CALAVERAS ROTARY CHRISTMAS FOOD BASKETS FOR THE NEEDY PROJECT

Sponsored by the Angels Camp Centennial Rotary Club and the
Rotary Club of  West Calaveras

HISTORY

During the holiday season in 1982 when Jordon Freitas was president of the Angels-Murphys Rotary Club, a decision was made to try to increase the quality of Christmas by making up Christmas food baskets and delivering them to needy county families. That year the Rotarians made up eight baskets consisting of a Christmas dinner, toys for the children and clothing. These baskets were funded by donations from the approximately 25 club members.

 From 1982 until 1987, funding for the baskets came exclusively from club members and one compassionate community member. In 1983, the decision was made to drop clothing from the baskets because of difficulty with sizes. In 1983 and 1984, 15 baskets were delivered each year. In 1985, 25 baskets were delivered and in 1986, 30 food baskets. In 1987 the number grew to 40 baskets valued at a total of $1,610.

 In 1988 when Alan Armstrong was club president, the Christmas Basket Coordinator Clayre Quick advised the Board of Directors that we probably could not increase the number of food baskets unless we could find additional funding. She recommended, and the Board approved, the concept of forming a team of Rotary, other service organizations, corporate, and individual community co-sponsors. This concept received a shot in the arm when member Craig Flanagan convinced the Board of the John and Beverly Stauffer Foundation in Los Angeles (he is a Board member) to join the Team. The foundation made $2,000 grant to be used for Christmas food baskets. In 1988 the first year the Team funded the project the club made up 100 baskets containing a Christmas dinner and additional food for a week and valued at $5,435.

 In 1989 the team raised a total of $8,299 which funded 211 baskets which Rotarians delivered throughout  Calaveras County. In 1989, the Stauffer Foundation satisfied by the way the team concept was working increased their grant to $4,000 (which it remained until 2006).

 In 1991, the Project Coordinator added another funding source by having the donated centerpieces on the tables at the club Christmas party auctioned. Since 1991, $2,823.50 has been raised by the auctions. In 1993, the coordinator devised another source of funding – The White Elephant Auction held at the first club meeting after Christmas when members and guests bring in those “unusual” and "unwanted" items they received as Christmas presents to be auctioned. The White Elephant Auction has raised $4,074 over the years. In 1995, Sherrie Lockhart, a former Rotarian and owner of the Avery Hotel, became a Team member and sponsored a fall golf tournament to benefit the Christmas Baskets for the Needy project. She has continued this golf tournament and as of 2001 has generously contributed a total of $5,321 to the project.  In 1997 the Calaveras Wine Association (CWA) became a Team member and sold commemorative wine glasses during their Christmas Open House and allowed the Rotary club to place donation cans in all their tasting rooms. In 2000 the CWA held a wine gift basket raffle which netted $948 for the Christmas Basket project. Since 1997, the CWA has generously donated a total of $1,611.98 to the project.

In 2001, the Project Coordinator, Clayre Quick, felt that we had raised sufficient funds to increase the Team's contribution to Santa's Express from food for 150 baskets to enough perishable food for 300 baskets. In 2001 Santa's Express received perishable food valued at more than $11,250 from the Rotary Christmas Food Basket Team. The Team also delivered baskets containing a Christmas dinner and food for an additional week to 152 families located throughout Calaveras County.

In 2002, the Angels-Murphys Rotary Club partnered with the Rotary Club of West Calaveras whose members volunteered to deliver all the baskets destined for the west county area. Based on this new partnership and donation history, the Project Coordinator, Clayre Quick, decided that we could increase the number of baskets by fifty families and still support Santa's Express with perishable food for 250 baskets. The one factor we hadn't considered was the faltering economy. Our donations for 2002 were down and several of our long term major supporters failed to respond to our request for a donation. While we were able to take fifty addition families from Santa's Express, we did not have funds on the date we had to order our groceries (first week in December) to support their efforts further. The 256 food baskets which the two clubs packed and delivered throughout the county were in keeping food quality and quantity-wise as in past years with each family receiving a full Christmas dinner as well as additional food for a week or more. Our baskets are easy to recognize since we use banana boxes exclusively. More and more we're hearing from our recipients that they had expressly asked that their family receive food from the Rotary banana box people. Every child in each family received a toy (chosen by age and gender) purchased by the members of the Rotary sponsored Bret Harte High School Interact Club. These same Bret Harte High School Interactors packed food baskets on both packing nights. We were joined for the first time by PG&E employees who came to see how their company's major donation was put to work-they also spent two evenings packing food baskets. The members of the Interact club at Calaveras High School also joined the effort in 2002, working on the second night of packing. The Calaveras High School Interact Club is sponsored by the West Calaveras Rotary Club. Another result of the two Rotary clubs partnering was that one of their Rotarians collected banana boxes from the supermarket in Valley Springs and brought them to Murphys each week. This effort proved vital to the success of the project with the addition of fifty more families we needed at least 100 more banana boxes as each family received at least two banana boxes full of food.

In 2003, the Angels-Murphys Rotary Club and the West Calaveras Rotary Club spent $17,674.17.17 on food for 257 baskets which they delivered. The project also donated perishable food valued at $3,241.00 to Santa's Express for their Christmas food basket distribution which equates to more than 250 food baskets. 2003 was a record year for donations with members of the Rotary Christmas Food Basket Team donating $26,824.88. The Calaveras High School Interact Club joined the team again this year and helped with packing both nights. The Bret Harte Interact Club also helped with packing and delivering as well provided toys to every child of the families to whom we delivered food baskets. In 2003 another new partner joined the team, a local group of motorcyclists held their first annual High Sierra Toy Run and donated more than $800 to the project. In 2004, they will contribute all their dollar proceeds, as well as all food and toys collected. Also, in 2004, the Angels Camp Provisional Rotary Club ( the new Rotary club forming in Angels Camp) joined the team as an additional Rotary partner.

 * Could not provide perishable food Santa's Express food baskets.

 PROJECT TIME TABLE

 In early October Rotarian John Holleman working with Fred Lavaroni and the produce people at Treat’s General Store in San Andreas starts stockpiling banana boxes. These boxes will  serve as the food “baskets” and John will collect between 350-400 boxes before mid-December. Banana boxes have become symbolic, throughout the county, as Rotary food baskets. In 2006, Angels Camp Rotarian Sally Molè volunteered to coordinate banana box collecting and the club set a goal of between 400 and 450 boxes. Storage of the banana boxes which had always been a problem was solved when Angels Camp Rotarian and Fair Manager Ray Malerbi provided the Project with banana box storage at the Fairgrounds.

In October letters will be sent to past co-sponsors inviting them to participate again this year. At the same time letters soliciting new co-sponsors are also sent. Each donation to the project is promptly acknowledged.

In November, letters with pledge forms are sent to Rotary club members requesting their monetary support. Press releases go out to the local media seeking additional new co-sponsors. 

December is the month that it all comes together. During the first week, names and family composition of needy families  are received from Santa's Express (Human Resource Council). Food lists for each family are developed and from them a master shopping list is made up. In the second week, the food is ordered from Sierra Hills Market. The former owner of the market, Ken Bourgault, had been a member of the Team for many years and supplied the food at near cost. The new owners of Sierra Hills Market have continued where Ken left off. The third week is critical. On Thursday, the food (less the perishables) delivered by the vendors directly to the packing building and stacked in alphabetical order. On Thursday and Friday evenings, Rotarians, spouses and community volunteers gather at the packing building and shop for individual families and pack baskets containing the Christmas dinner and food for an aditional week or more. The packed boxes are numbered and the recipient’s information attached and set out for delivery the next morning. In 1999, 75+ food baskets were packed each night. Friday and Saturday morning perishables are picked up at the market and added to the food baskets. Rotarians, Rotary family members and community volunteers load their vehicles according to a delivery schedule and deliver the 75+ baskets packed the evening before. The baskets are delivered all over the county not just in the Angels Camp and Murphys area.

 Because we were limited to the space in the packing building and number of volunteer delivery people the Team only can deliver to a total of about 250 families. Perishable food items for an additional food baskets are provided to Santa’s Express which they distribute.

Early in January press releases recapping the project are mailed to the local media and an ad thanking the Team members is published.

While most of the recipient names are received from Santa's Express, personal requests for food baskets to needy families known to Team members, schools and churches are also accepted and checked with Santa's Express to be sure they are not already scheduled to receive a basket.

The Bret Harte High School Interact Club, which is sponsored by the Angels-Murphys Rotary Club, provides a toy for the every child of each family that receives a basket delivered by the Team. This is their major community service project each year and costs their club in excess of $1,000 annually.

Since 1982, the Angels-Murphys Rotary Club and the Team has provided food baskets to 5,256 needy families in Calaveras County.

Every single dollar contributed to this project is spent to buy food, none is used for overhead. The Rotary clubs absorb all administrative expenses which is postage, stationery, and the thank you ad in  the local newspaper. All funding is derived from contributions from the Rotary members, individual and corporate co-sponsors. All money donated is fully tax deductible as the club’s charitable foundation is a 501(c)3 entity.