PASADENA– It’s a deeply beloved tradition in Pasadena: each Thanksgiving and Christmas, more than 850 volunteers of all ages – adorned with hair nets, aprons and plastic gloves – lovingly serve turkey with stuffing, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and pie to those less fortunate in Pasadena’s Central Park. The tradition known as Dinner-in-the-Park began in 1972 when a group of local volunteers organized a free holiday meal to feed homeless and poor people in the community.More than four decades later, Union Station Homeless Service continues to organize the annual meal as an expression of compassion and care for those who otherwise might not see such holiday fare.
This year, the tradition continues. Union Station Homeless Services expects to serve more than 4,000 plates of food, along with the help of volunteers, and key community partners, including Goldstar, Home Street Bank, Tsutayo Ichioka & Satsuki Nakao Charitable Foundation, Super King, Longo Toyoto-Scion-Lexus, Sprouts Famers Market, Centerplate, and the Pasadena Convention Center. This wonderful community event provides thousands of holiday meals and hope for all who attend, including homeless men, women, children, seniors, very low-income families, and those with no place to go during the holidays.
“We are so grateful to the caring volunteers who bring warmth and the true spirit of community to Central Park each year, said Marv Gross, CEO of Union Station Homeless Services. “Their efforts to help us feed thousands of people is truly inspirational!”
Volunteer registration for Thanksgiving is now closed, but the agency is still in need of non-perishable food donations. A Wish List of much needed items can be found at https://unionstationhs.org/?p=3570.The community is invited to drop off these supplies (in the indicated sizes) at 412 S. Raymond.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to Health Department regulations, Union Station Homeless Services is no longer able to accept turkey or prepared food donations at the event.
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Union Station Homeless Services, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is committed to helping homeless men, women and children rebuild their lives. Union Station Homeless Services is part of a premier group of human services agencies in Los Angeles County that are leading the way to ending homelessness in our community. We are the San Gabriel Valley’s largest social service agency assisting homeless and very low-income adults and families. We believe every person deserves a life of dignity and a safe place to call home. With 41 years of experience, we proudly offer a full continuum of eight programs in seven locations; services include street outreach, intake/assessment, care coordination and navigation, meals, shelter, housing, employment development, benefits enrollment, and referrals to medical and mental health services.
For 41 years, Union Station Homeless Services has hosted Dinners-in-the-Park, an incredible community-driven holiday event. Every Thanksgiving and Christmas Day, volunteers serve holiday meals to all who are hungry, including homeless and low-income adults and families, senior citizens, and those who are alone at the holidays or unable to afford a holiday meal.
Union Station will be holding its Christmas Dinner-in-the-Park celebration on December 25 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Central Park, in Pasadena, CA.
This event would not be possible without donors and volunteers. We invite the public to contribute in the following ways:
Donate Non-Perishable Food: Visit http://bit.ly/1iQ3a5q to see our Christmas Wish List, and help us gather everything we need to make a great meal. NOTE: Due to Health Department regulations, we may no longer accept home-cooked turkeys, side dishes, or desserts.
Donate Funds: Union Station serves more than 166,000 meals each year, and provides a full array of services to help people rebuild lives. Invest in transforming a life today:https://unionstationhs.org/help/donate/?program=dip/.
Donate a Pie: You can help two nonprofits at once! Purchase a pie through the Village Cookie Shoppe and you will also be providing valuable work experience to individuals living with mental illness! Visit http://bit.ly/1bxuI9X.
Become a Corporate Sponsor: Invest in our community and receive signage in the park by sponsoring Dinners-in-the-Park. Call (626) 240-4567 today. Current sponsors include Morongo Band of Mission Indians, Southern California Edison, Goldstar, Unified Grocers, Smart & Final, Sir Michael’s, Laborers’ Local 777, Pasadena Federal Credit Union, Paul Hastings, Pasadena Now, Valley Food Bank, Home Street Bank, Gonzalez Goodale Architects and Tsutayo Ichioka & Satsuki Nakao Charitable Foundation.
Volunteer Slots Are Full for this Event: Please check our website back after Jan. 1, 2014, for general volunteering opportunities in the coming year.
[Union Station Homeless Services is the San Gabriel Valley’s largest social service agency assisting homeless and very low-income adults and families. Our mission is help men, women and children rebuild their lives and end homelessness. Union Station provides comprehensive services to help homeless individuals achieve self-sufficiency, including intake and assessment, emergency shelter, case management, career counseling, transitional housing, medical and mental health services, women’s and family services, and housing resources.]
In 1962 my brother Fred started a band called the Perfections. They were rockers. When the heat and the beat got up on a Saturday night, he brought the house down and the East Cost Swing dancers would take off and hit the moon.
I was a 15-year-old punk conscripted as an indentured servant, schlepping equipment for the band. They had a gig at Glen Island Casino, the biggest musical venue in New York. They were playing for a benefit sponsored by the New York Yankees, raising funds to refurbish Frankie Frisch Field on Mosholu Parkway in the Bronx.All the rockers from the Bronx were there. People came for the Yankees and for Frankie Frisch Field, but mostly they came to dance.With Fred’s saxophone hanging around his neck, his hand on its keys, he grabbed the attention of the Perfections, shouting, “One, two, a-one-two-three!”The sax exploded! Glen Island Casino was rockin’. The Perfections brought the house down.It’s been 51 years since the Perfections played the Casino. However, the allure of rockin’ on a Saturday night for a worthy cause is alive in La Cañada. On Saturday, Nov. 2, Brad Schwartz is producing Rockin’ for the Homeless III. He’s raising funds for Union Station Homeless Services, the largest social service agency assisting homeless and low-income people.
Brad’s a homeboy from Brooklyn. Consequently I understand his commitment to service.
“I remember where I came from,” he said. “In La Cañada we’re blessed; we should give back. I want my children to realize, not far from here [there are] people much less fortunate than we are. The mission of Union Station is to help the homeless rebuild their lives and end the cycle of homelessness.”
A few years back, Brad and some guys were hanging out, brainstorming about throwing a party for their friends in La Cañada. At the end of the evening, it had evolved into a rock ‘n’ roll shoot-out with live music and a philanthropical endeavor. Great deeds have ridiculous beginnings. They are often born in a café over coffee.
“This is a La Cañada event.” Brad said. “It was invented in La Cañada, it will be at the Thursday Club, sponsored by La Cañada residents, attended by La Cañadans, and with a La Cañada band.”
Rockin’ for the Homeless I netted $20,000. It was meant to be a one-time thing. However, people wanted it back, subsequently II was born, bringing $50,000 for Union Station. What will Rockin’ for the Homeless III bring?
“This is a testament to La Cañada’s affection for Union Station,” Brad said.
He and I sat over a cup of coffee, trying to intellectualize the essence of this town that speaks to its uniqueness. What drives us to love our town? Its schools, its dancers and its athletes? What causes us to bond and come together for fun and service? The answer to such inquiries was beyond our pay grade. But Brad brought it home when he said, “Whatever makes La Cañada a home is what will bring us together at Rockin’ for the Homeless III. I believe when you try to intellectualize the magic, you lose it.”
Come to this event. Let your hair down. Go crazy. Howl at the moon. You’ll have a great time and you’ll help a bunch of homeless Americans just a couple miles away. Visit unionstationhs.org/event/rock to learn more. The suggested donation is $45.
I’ll never forget the night at Glen Island Casino. It was the first time I asked a girl to dance. After she said, no, I went to the bar and had my first shooter with Yankee Tommy Tresh, the 1962 Rookie of the Year. That night we even saved Frankie Frisch Field and I asked my second girl to dance and tore it up to the sounds of the Perfections.
By Joe Puglia, October 10, 2013 | 11:20 a.m.
JOE PUGLIA is a practicing counselor, a retired professor of education and a former officer in the Marines. Reach him at doctorjoe@ymail.com. Visit his website at doctorjoe.us.
The Pasadena Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers 27th Annual Home & Kitchen Tour
Sunday, October 6th, 2013
9:30 am – 5:00 pm
“A Day of Great Design”
Tickets currently on sale and benefit Union Station Homeless Services in their efforts to end homelessness in the San Gabriel Valley
Pasadena, California (August 1, 2013) – A group of local interior designers from the Pasadena Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) is gearing up for the 27th Annual Home & Kitchen Tour, “A Day of Great Design.” And for the first time in its history, leaders of this organization relate that they will be donating a portion of the tour’s proceeds to help end homelessness in the San Gabriel Valley.
Sunday, October 6th, 2013 is this year’s Home & Kitchen Tour featuring self-guided tours of professionally designed interiors of four spectacular homes in Pasadena, LaCañada and Arcadia. From warm contemporary to “green” up-country, the public can see first-hand an eclectic selection of top-trend kitchens and other living spaces using state-of-the-art appliances and materials. Event organizers say these homes are “prime examples” of the excellent work by the member interior designers. But what makes this year special, they say, is that ten percent of ticket proceeds will be donated to Union Station Homeless Services of Pasadena, to honor the nonprofit’s 40th anniversary of service to the homeless of the San Gabriel Valley.
“By purchasing a ticket for our Home and Kitchen Tour, our attendees are contributing to solving the problem of homelessness in our own community,” said 2013 Tour Chair Marlene Oliphant. “Designers are in the business of creating dream homes for their clients, but it is also our dream that everyone has a place to call home. We hope to make a difference in many people’s lives.”
Ticket holders can meet and talk with the designers and see the latest in-home products from event sponsors and industry partners. Attendees can also shop unique boutiques selling gifts, clothing and accessories and enjoy complimentary pastries and coffee, courtesy of Bristol Farms.
“We’ve been opening the doors of beautiful homes designed by our members to the public for more than a quarter of a century,” said Oliphant. “It’s easy to see the benefit of hiring one of our professional designers to create a home that suits the owner’s lifestyle and budget.”
Homes featured on this year’s tour:
LaCañada
“Green” Up-Country home, Eileen Atwood of Sierra Custom Kitchens, Inc.
Modern Ranch, Sara Ingrassia of Sara Ingrassia Interiors
Pasadena
French Colonial, Rozalynn Woods of Rozalynn Woods Interior Design
Arcadia
Warm Contemporary, Jennifer Bevan and Denise Ranalli of Jennifer Bevan Interiors
Tickets: $35 advance purchase, $40 day of the tour.
Bronze: Closet Factory, General Heating & Air Conditioning, Inc., Hansgrohe, J. S. Shiah
Company, Magistrale Construction, MD Appliances.
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About Union Station Homeless Services of Pasadena
Pasadena-based Union Station Homeless Services is the San Gabriel Valley’s largest social service agency assisting homeless and very low-income adults and families. Their mission is to help men, women, and children rebuild their lives and end homelessness. Union Station provides comprehensive, community-based programs to help homeless people achieve self-sufficiency, including intake and assessment, emergency shelter, case management, career counseling, transitional housing, medical and mental health services, women’s and family services, and housing resources. For more information, go to www.unionstationhs.org
About the Pasadena Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID)
A nonprofit organization, ASID is the design profession’s oldest and largest association, with members qualified by education, testing and experience. The Pasadena Chapter of ASID, formed in 1975, has a history of community involvement in its quest to be the definitive resource for professional education and knowledge-sharing. Its mission is to define excellence in the practice of interior design, to improve the value of the profession to the public and to work for a favorable environment for its members’ right to practice interior design. For more information visit www.asidpasadena.org.
