Lending a Hand in Menlo Park

By Nacole Barth-Ellis, Shelter Network Committee Member

(Photo Left: Haven House residents, Right: Ashlin Mahood, Shelter Network Committee Member)


Who the heck am I? I'm a fraud. I've never been homeless. What can I possibly contribute this evening?
These were the thoughts running through my head on 1-11-11. I was expected to take an active role and lead a session on Time Management at Shelter Network's Haven Family House in Menlo Park and I was really nervous. Why? Please refer to the first sentence above.

A hand up, not a hand out is one of the cornerstones of Shelter Network. I am a strong believer in this concept and it helped me in making my decision to join the Shelter Network committee. But that belief didn't help me as I was en route to the shelter a few weeks ago. I didn’t feel like I had a lot to offer these people who were living in a situation that I could only imagine.

Two hours later I drove home both exhilarated and humbled. The residents of Haven House welcomed us and engaged us in their conversations, shared their lives with us. They each had different backgrounds and different current circumstances – much like those of us working on the Shelter Network committee.

I'm not sure who gained more that night, the residents or the committee members. I was proud to be a member of this committee where everyone shared their own experiences and insights to assist those living at Haven House. For we volunteers, we had an up close and personal look at what homelessness in our community looks like. I can't speak for my fellow committee members, but it's nothing like what I expected. I feel incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to help these individuals who are working to re-build a life of self-sufficiency.

To learn more about our Shelter Network Community Project and our other League Projects, Click Here

Community Advisor's: Their Role in our League

By Nandini Gondhalekar (Community Outreach Member-at-Large, Board of Directors, JLPA•MP 2010-2011) and Summer Brill (Web Marketing Assistant Chair/Social Media, 2010-11)

Tonight at our General Membership Meeting, we will talk about community needs with a panel of our Community Advisors.

So, what is a Community Advisor and what role do they play in our League?

A Community Advisor is a business/professional person, approved by our Board of Directors to advise the Board on community, business, financial and legal matters, or any other area deemed appropriate for the League.

Not only does a Community Advisor bring breadth and depth of understanding community issues to our League, they also educate others in the community about the JLPA-MP.

The Community Member At Large (Community MAL) oversees the Community Advisors Program. This year (2010-11) the League’s Community MAL is Nandini Gondhalekar.

The League taps into the Community Advisor's expertise on various issues as needed, but the Community Advisors meet as a group once every year at the League's Community Roundtable held at the Gatehouse. This event is attended by the President, Community VP, Sustainer Community Advisor, Community Projects Co-Chairs and other guests.

We are fortunate to have the support of several Community Advisors, offering their expertise and guidance on a broad range of community topics. To see a list of our Community Advisor’s, click here.

This evening we welcome three of our Community Advisors as they join our meeting to talk about Community Needs.

Bill Somerville: President and Founder of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. Bill brings 50 years of experience in non-profit work, including 17 years as Executive Director of the Peninsula Community Foundation.Bill is nationally recognized as an expert on creative grantmaking. He has consulted at over 400 community foundations in the United States, Canada and abroad on effective operations and grantmaking. Bill publishes the periodical Building Community Foundations, distributed to 950 community foundations worldwide. He currently teaches courses on philanthropy at Stanford University, UC Berkeley's Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, and Laney Community College, in Oakland, CA.Bill is a recipient of the 2004 Gerbode Fellowship Award in recognition of outstanding achievement as a non-profit executive. He is a member of the National Advisory Board, Haas Center for Public Service, Stanford University, and the UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare Advisory Board.

Margot Malliard Rawlins: Margot has been with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation community for ten years. Currently, she oversees two initiatives. Fostering the Future was designed to help youth in foster and kinship care develop the skills and connections needed to become healthy, productive adults by age 25. Envision Bay Area’s mission is to strengthen the ability of Bay Area residents and community leaders to make informed decisions about the growth and development that will shape the future environment, economy and everyday life in their communities. She also works on public policy and large convenings for the community foundation. Margot went active with the Junior League of San Francisco in 1978 and went sustaining with our League in the early 90s. While here, she served as chair of several community projects and was also nominating chair and Community VP. Much of her local volunteer work has been as a board member for both TheatreWorks and the Environmental Volunteers and her major volunteer focus now is as a CASA volunteer supporting a 17-year old foster youth.

Carrie DuBois: Sustainer Community Advisor. Carrie went sustaining from the JLPA-MP in 2002. She is a past President's Cup awardee and has been a three time board member: Fundraising VP, Community Member at Large, and Community Outreach VP. Carrie also co-chaired the following committees in the League: Recovery Road, Holiday Boutique, Rosalie Rendu Committee. Carrie's other volunteer commitments include: elected School Board Member in San Carlos; Executive Board member, San Mateo County School Boards Association Delegate for California School Board Association; Current PTA volunteer at Carlmont High School. Carrie was awarded the 2003 San Jose Magazine Woman Making a Mark Award and was the 2005 San Carlos Citizen of the Year.

Move Over Beverly, There's A New Toffee in Town!

By Lisa Malloy, Website Chair 2010-11

It was my turn to provide drinks and dessert for the MarCom/Communications Council meeting last night. The wine rack still had a few bottles from the holiday stock-up, so beverages would be easy. Now, what to make for dessert? With Lila Jo, my one-year old cutting tooth #6 and clinging to my hip, it needed to be fairly quick and easy, yet tasty nonetheless. I settled on Saltine Toffee Cookies, a recipe my Mom picked up at Curves (there really is a reason to exercise) and emailed to me!

Less than 20 minutes later, my kitchen was filled with the delicious aroma of toffee, and the dishes were soaking in the sink! Not willing to admit that the holidays were over just yet, I pulled out my favorite (well, actually, my only) holiday tray and stacked it high with the homemade toffee treats. Off to the meeting I went! To my delight, everyone brought their sweet tooth to the meeting. "Oh my gosh, is that saltine toffee?" one quipped. "Who's counting...I'm going to be in double-digits by the end of the meeting! " proclaimed another - and she was true to her word. "You really can't eat just one piece, can you?" added a third. By meeting's end, there were a scant few pieces left for the Gatehouse staff to enjoy today and I'd somehow agreed to blog the recipe.

So, here goes: Saltine Toffee Cookies

Ingredients:
4 ounces (one sleeve) saltine crackers
1 cup butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped pecans (or your choice of nuts - last night's version was made with cashews)

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line cookie sheet with saltine crackers in a single layer. In a saucepan, combine sugar and butter. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Immediately pour over saltines and spread to cover crackers completely. Bake at 400 degrees for 5-6 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over the top. Let sit for 5 minutes. Spread melted chocolate and top with chopped nuts. Cool completely and break into pieces.

Enjoy!

Community Council Kick's off First Meeting in 2011 with White Elephant Exchange!

(L-R: Kyla Eller, Chair Fostering Families; Carla Cravalho, Co-Chair Shelter Network; Darice Koo, Co-Chair Project Development; Dawn Sullivan, Community Council Assistant; Marissa Levy, Co-Chair First Teachers; Amy Truel, Co-Chair Done in a Day; Front: Joy Peacock, Community Vice President)

The Community Council proudly displays their White Elephant gifts after exchanging during an ice-breaker before discussing business at their January meeting.

The Holidays: A Moment to Reflect

By Stefanie Bruggeman, President

Happy Holidays!

Our members have had a busy League year. In only a few months we have successfully . . . launched a new project (Shelter Network), welcomed 58 provisionals, executed eight "Done in a Days" (one-day, high-impact community projects and drives), celebrated our Shop’s 40th anniversary, held a tea with our Board of Advisors, gifted $1,000 in response to the San Bruno fire, started partnerships with Sprinkles Cupcakes and Tiny Prints, and ran a successful Holiday Home Tour.. . . just to name a few.

From being an active part of our community (through our projects) to raising funds to support our work (though our fundraiser), we have much to be proud of.

A giant “Thank You!” to all our members and community partners! In this time of giving, you are tops!

I wish you a safe and joyful Holiday.

Warmly,
Stefanie Bruggeman
President
The Junior League of Palo Alto•Mid Peninsula, Inc.