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KP Volunteers, Community Partners Team up for Day of Service

“Everybody can be great… because anybody can serve.” — The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

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On Monday, January 18, Kaiser Permanente Southern California employees and physicians honored the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by volunteering in many different capacities for the 2016 National Day of Service.

Dozens of service projects were available to Kaiser Permanente employees and physicians throughout the month, but the majority of volunteers came together on January 18 to serve their local communities. Below is a roundup of activities that took place across Kaiser Permanente’s Southern California service areas:

Regional employees in Pasadena hosted a week-long canned food drive benefitting the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. Donations are being accepted through Friday, January 22, and may also include pet food to be distributed to animal shelters. Additionally, employees joined forces with LA Works on January 18 for a local school beautification project, which included Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and O’Shea Jackson, Jr. (of “Straight Outta Compton” fame) as participants. Click here for a photo album.

Employees and physicians in Anaheim and Irvine worked to enrich and impact the clients living at one of four Grandma’s House of Hope (GHH) homeless shelters. As a result of these efforts, GHH now has an exceptionally clean, organized, and stocked donation center that will cater to hundreds of individuals in need of basic supplies. Not only does GHH now have an organized warehouse, but their offices are clean and filled with furniture donated by Kaiser Permanente. Click here to view photos.

Baldwin Park Medical Center sponsored the San Gabriel Valley NAACP and the City of West Covina’s 17th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration at the West Covina Civic Center. The event was attended by more than 250 participants and government and community leaders. Baldwin Park Medical Center provided the “Wheel of Health” education game and distributed health education materials targeting chronic conditions that impact the community, including diabetes, cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Healthy eating and drinking tips were available as well. Click here to view photos.

Kaiser Permanente’s Downey and South Bay medical centers partnered with The Foodbank of Southern California for their Day of Service opportunity. More than 40 volunteers from both medical centers spent their day cleaning, sorting and packing food items to help provide an adequate food supply to those in need. Click here to view photos.

In South Los Angeles, employees from Kaiser Permanente’s Educational Theatre and Kaiser Permanente Watts Counseling and Learning Center kicked off their two-part beautification project at Weigand Elementary School in Watts. KP educators rolled up their sleeves to help with landscaping, cleaning, and mural painting in partnership with a community artist. Click here to view photos.

Panorama City medical center area physicians and employees signed up to volunteer their time for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Homeless Count on January 27. This data is critical to the process of providing programs and services to those experiencing homelessness in our region. Additionally, employees and physicians hosted a food and supply drive to benefit three local nonprofit organizations: Domestic Violence Center of Santa Clarita Valley, Single Mother’s Outreach, and Bridge to Home Shelter. Antelope Valley volunteers in Lancaster also donated their time to help clear the yard, install an irrigation system, and build boxes for raised garden beds at the Joshua Wellness Home. Click here to view photos.

In Riverside, employees and physicians hosted a collection drive to assist local veterans and their families at risk for homelessness. This effort was a partnership between the United States Veterans Initiative and Kaiser Permanente Riverside Cultural Diversity & Inclusion Committee. Click here for photos.

Employees from Kaiser Permanente’s San Diego service area spent the morning of January 18 at the Jacobs and Cushman San Diego Food Bank cleaning, sorting, bagging, and boxing food items for distribution to those in need. In addition to this effort, staff and physicians provided health screenings and health education to more than 150 community members at the City of San Diego’s 6th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Community Celebration and Sports Fest on January 19. Click here to view photos.

On January 18, approximately 30 staff members from the San Bernardino County service area rallied to support the following nonprofit agencies: Mary’s Mercy Table in San Bernardino, Inland Valley Hope Partners in Ontario, and the Rescue Mission in Victorville. Volunteers at these organizations did everything from sorting donated clothes, preparing meals, organizing food pantries, and helping to distribute food to families and the homeless. Click here to view photos.

West Los Angeles employees joined 150 community volunteers for a cleanup and beautification event at Baldwin Hills Elementary School on Saturday, January 16. On January 18, a team of more than 20 volunteers jumped on a retrofitted bus called the “Do Good Bus” to take part in a mystery service project in honor of Dr. King. The volunteers arrived at a Santa Monica park to assemble more than 100 lunches and distribute them to homeless individuals in the Venice Beach area. West LA also hosted a two-day diaper drive to collect diapers, bottles, bibs and other baby supplies to benefit families receiving assistance from the Westside Food Bank. Click here for photos.

Employees and physicians from Woodland Hills and West Ventura honored Dr. Martin Luther King's legacy on January 18 by serving dinner to the homeless at Hope of the Valley’s Winter Shelter at the Greater Community Missionary Baptist Church in Pacoima. Additionally, on Tuesday, January 19, they served dinner to residents of The Lighthouse for Women and Children, an outreach of the Rescue Mission Alliance which provides emergency service and recovery programs for the poor and homeless. Click here to view photos.

Kaiser Permanente’s mission is centered on making our communities healthier, and volunteerism is encouraged year-round through its volunteer website for employees: www.kpcares.org. To learn more about Kaiser Permanente’s community giving, please visit: http://community.kp.org/be-informed.