Resonate Church members, Oliveira Elementary School staff, parents and other volunteers joined hands to spend a day sprucing up the campus. Nagging repairs had been put off due to budget constraints that have affected most schools during the economic downturn, so Linda Anderson, Principal of Oliveira, was pleasantly surprised when asked what could be done to help.
Fremont's Oliveira Elementary School Makes a List and Checks it Twice
Kathy Kimberlin, Secretary, and Anne Damron, Attendance, helped craft a wish list of tasks volunteers could accomplish to help the Oliveira Elementary School become a safer and more aesthetic place to teach their students. Items included:
- pave a highly trafficked muddy walkway
- build a planter box and add plants
- pave around the marquee
- do general landscaping, gardening and cleaning up
- paint blue trim around the windows
- paint the basketball and tether ball poles
- paint new numbers on the playground
- hang plants outside the office
- paint the picnic tables
- provide emergency snack bins
- provide emergency buckets
- wash the outside windows
- help with office work
Resonate Church Organizes Volunteer Force in the City of Fremont
Christine Szeto of Resonate Church orchestrated the workday. She divided the jobs among teams led by Steve Mills, Val Saito, Todd Walker, Marco Marquez and Steve Davis. A press release soliciting further volunteers was sent to Tri-City Voice, one of Fremont's local newspapers.
Workers were instructed to bring painting and gardening tools, and a truck went to Dale Hardware to pick up $500 worth of donated supplies. Those desiring to provide emergency kits for students in the event of an earthquake or other natural disaster were asked to bring a gallon size ziplock bag filled with non-perishable snacks, a bottle of water and five dollar bill. Volunteers then worked during a morning or afternoon shift, with lunch provided at noon for all.
The day began with Connie Lin, a school parent, logging in the eighty volunteers and giving each a nametag. In the gym, coffee, donuts, bagels, cream cheese and pastries generously donated by Starbucks, Francis Donuts and Panera Bread welcomed the workers before they set about their tasks.
Who says there is no free lunch? Sweet Tomatoes donated salads and foccacia bread, Lucky's gave a meat and cheese platter, and Subway discounted their deli sandwiches to Resonate Church for all the workers' lunches.
Resonate Church Completes Tasks at Oliveira Elementary School
The adage "many hands make light work" ruled the day. Mud puddles from recent rains were filled and paved. Touch up paint was applied to window trim, the playground, picnic tables, and basketball and tether poles. Rachel Murray, a student at Oliveira, helped plant flowers in hanging baskets. "I know why they picked blue and white flowers," she said, "because those are our school colors."
Parents of students, like PTA President Carole Bornath and Liza Oswald, also worked alongside Resonate Church. Ivy Wu, a board member of the Fremont Unified School District, came to help and was assigned to landscaping duty. "I am not a gardener," she joked, tossing weeds and prunings into garbage bags. Garrett Yee, a member of the Ohlone College Board of Trustees and candidate for the 20th District of the California State Assembly, also showed up to help out.
Twenty-one students from California State East Bay, pledges from Alphi Phi Omega, heard about the community service event, and also pitched in. By the end of the day, the volunteers had finished the list of tasks and the campus sparkled.
Resonate Church Aims to Benefit Local Community of Fremont
Resonate Church, a new church in the City of Fremont, California, has a mission that includes serving the surrounding community, including Union City. It adopted Oliveira Elementary as a service project and hopes to continue providing support when needed.
Read more about Fremont:
- Resonate Church Plants Trees
- The First Easter Service of Resonate Church in Fremont
- Red Cross Bestows Community Service Award on Resonate Church
- Saving the Niles Post Office
- Niles Art Walk in Fremont, California
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