Students in service to area charity group

Brother and sister Lindsay and Michael Brown enlisted their friends and family for a daunting task that began bright and early Saturday morning.

The siblings, both students at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, set out to canvass their entire Balboa Island neighborhood ? all 1,400 houses ? collecting food and other items for a local charity.

“It’s just ? a direct way to help people,” Michael said.

Lindsay, 15, and Michael, 16, solicited donations on behalf of Friends in Service of Humanity, a charity that works to prevent hunger and homelessness in the community.

Students at Mater Dei have an 80-hour community service requirement; the students decided on Friends in Service of Humanity because they wanted to see their efforts go right into their own community.

“It keeps people from going homeless,” Lindsay said.

The charity group is always in need of as much as the community can provide, said board member and Balboa Island resident Tom Webber.

“It helps them learn and understand the idea of doing something for the community,” Webber said of the Browns’ efforts.

Lindsay and Michael, joined by fellow Mater Dei students, Mariah Jakosky, 15, and Kevin Hammond, 16, spread out to collect from the Balboa Island homes Saturday morning.

The kids made fliers and passed them out to every island home last week. They instructed residents to leave the donations in bags on their doorsteps.

Lindsay said they didn’t have a set goal, but hoped to get donations from 30% of the homes.

“Anything is a good turnout in my mind,” Lindsay said.

The Browns, who recently moved here from Chicago, are no strangers to giving back ? their mother, Linda Brown, said she’s always set an example for service.

“I’m proud of them; I think it’s wonderful,” Linda Brown said.

Friend Kevin Hammond, 16, a junior at Mater Dei, has already completed his service-hours requirement but decided to help out anyway.

“Just to do something for a good cause,” Kevin said. dpt.05-fooddrive-BPhotoInfoCA1OKFRK20060305ivmnt8knMARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Mariah Jakosky, 15, left, and Lindsay Brown, 15, both of Mater Dei High School, lift a bag of food into the back of an SUV during Saturday’s food drive for Friends in Service of Humanity.