Kids pack special picnic
Amanda Anderson has become a well-known presence in her Rancho Santa
Margarita neighborhood. Every year, the 14-year-old posts fliers
around the block, asking neighbors to donate backpacks, which she in
turn passes on to charities. To build the stash in her garage, Amanda
also goes door to door for contributions.
“A lot of people in our neighborhood are expecting it, because
this is the sixth summer she’s done it,” said her mother, Sheri
Anderson.
On Tuesday, Amanda’s gifts found their rightful places -- in the
hands of perfect strangers. At a picnic at Vista Park hosted by A
Light in the Window, a nonprofit organization for which her mother is
a board member, Amanda donated 25 backpacks to Costa Mesa families --
and her gift was matched by others in the community, who donated
about 100 more.
The four-hour event, organized largely by Amanda herself, offered
a back-to-school boost to children from the Orange Coast Interfaith
Shelter, Families Costa Mesa, Mika and other outreach groups. On a
hot afternoon, with a firetruck and carnival games surrounding the
field, dozens of young residents stood in line to receive stuffed
animals and backpacks filled with supplies for the upcoming school
year.
The backpacks were a welcome gift for the recipients. Jason
Ambriz, 11, said that he hadn’t had a backpack since two years ago,
when the zipper on his old one broke. In its place, Jason had found
another method of packing his schoolbooks.
“I have a sports bag that carries stuff,” he said, adding that he
had found a way to sling it over his shoulders.
Amanda, who began collecting backpacks in the third grade, comes
from a charitable family. Her father Gary serves on the board for
Goodwill Industries, while her mother served on other nonprofit
groups before joining A Light in the Window earlier this year.
Part of Amanda’s inspiration for the backpack drive, however, came
from an outside source.
“I was reading an article about a girl who gave out prom dresses,
and I thought I could do something,” she said.
She estimated that in six years, she had collected about 2,000
backpacks. Some of her neighbors provided new ones, while others
donated their children’s old ones. The only requirement, Amanda said,
is that the zippers function properly.
“I like to listen to the kids laughing,” she said. “It makes me
feel good inside.”
While Amanda organized most of the Tuesday picnic, even stitching
bean bags and painting backdrops for the carnival games, others lent
a hand as well. The Costa Mesa Fire Department donated the stuffed
animals, while Newport Harbor Lutheran Church and several individuals
provided more backpacks. The newly formed Rotary Club of Costa Mesa
served hot dogs and other food.
The picnic marked one of the first public events for A Light in
the Window, which formed in January to offer services to Costa Mesa
families going through difficult times. The group’s ultimate goal,
according to Executive Director Kathy Haze, is to prevent
circumstances that could lead to domestic violence.
In addition to offering supplies to children, A Light in the
Window hosts social nights for parents and operates what it calls a
clubhouse in Costa Mesa -- a house in an undisclosed location in
which one family lives full-time. Haze said a donor in the community
was underwriting the cost of the rent.
“When I started the nonprofit in January, I went to the other
nonprofits in Costa Mesa and told them I wasn’t trying to duplicate
their services -- just adding to them,” Haze said.
When Sheri Anderson joined the board of directors this year, Haze
got another ally in her daughter. Last year, Amanda donated around
700 backpacks at an event sponsored by the Orange County Child Abuse
Prevention Center, where her mother then worked.
“We’re a very philanthropic family,” Anderson said. “We live in a
nice area of Orange County, and my husband and I wanted our kids to
understand that not everyone is as fortunate as we are.”
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