Working Wardrobes’ Laguna Niguel boutique marks 14th anniversary
Working Wardrobes’ Laguna Niguel Hanger Boutique recently celebrated its 14th anniversary. To commemorate the occasion, the boutique hosted a one-time clothing drive and garnered over $10,000 in sales.
The store is one of four shopping locations operated by Working Wardrobes, an organization that, among other services, offers secondhand treasures for jobseekers.
Working Wardrobes helps people overcome barriers to find meaningful employment and enables them to experience the dignity of work. Shoppers at the boutiques are supporting the organization and the jobseekers it serves.
Summer Harvest and Angels player David Fletcher raise $75,000 to feed children
Summer Harvest Food 4 Kids teamed up with Los Angeles Angels player David Fletcher to host a charity poker tournament. The event raised more than $75,000 to help feed hungry kids this year and beyond.
More than 150 poker players and guests attended the event, which featured a special meet and greet with Fletcher for VIP attendees, as well as food and drinks, a silent auction with one-of-a-kind sports memorabilia, and dining and entertainment items.
The mission of Huntington Beach-based Summer Harvest Food 4 Kids is to provide nutritious food to families with children who are on the free and reduced lunch program at local schools during the summer and winter breaks, when kids do not have access to breakfast and lunch provided by their schools.
“It’s a true honor to support worthwhile causes like Summer Harvest Food 4 Kids,” Fletcher said. “I’m so thankful for the community’s support for the event.”
“Our partnership with David on the poker tournament has transformed our organization,” said Summer Harvest board member Daniel Logue. “The funds raised through the event have essentially quadrupled our operating budget since I first started with the organization. This has significantly expanded our ability to provide food to families who need it most in our community.”
The event was such a success, Fletcher and Summer Harvest plan to team up again in 2024 to host the third annual poker tournament. Save the date for Jan. 19, 2024, in Seal Beach.
For more information on Summer Harvest Food 4 Kids and the organization’s mission, go to summerharvest.us.
Students’ social service projects highlight Dragon Kim Foundation’s 2023 fellowship class
The Dragon Kim Foundation, an Orange County-based nonprofit, selected 47 teams for its 2023 Dragon Kim Fellowship Program. The 82 teenagers comprise the foundation’s seventh fellowship class.
Serving as a social entrepreneurship incubator for high school youth, the Dragon Kim Foundation inspires youths to impact their communities while they discover and pursue their passions.
The creative social service projects were culled from those submitted by more than 400 students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds and ethnicities attending over 90 high schools throughout Arizona, California and Nevada.
Teens proposed projects that channel their talents and interests into service projects that help their communities. Projects come from a diverse set of subject areas, ranging from medical clinics, dance workshops and technology, to homelessness, environmental advocacy and more.
The teams receive three weekends of leadership training and hands-on guidance from invested professionals. This summer, the teams are implementing their projects, supported by grants of up to $5,000 from the foundation. The projects have the potential of benefiting thousands of people, including many living in challenged neighborhoods.
At the end of the program, the top teams will present their projects to a panel of judges at the annual Dragon Challenge in September. One team will win up to $5,000 in additional funding to continue its project.
– Submitted by the the Dragon Kim Foundation
OC students win prizes in C-SPAN video documentary competition
Students in Irvine, Santa Ana, Rancho Santa Margarita and Anaheim are among winners in C-SPAN’s national 2023 StudentCam competition.
Sharon Chen, a student at Portola High School in Irvine, and Amber Khauv, a student at Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana, will receive $750 as third prize winners for the documentary “Evolving With Artificial Intelligence: Navigating the Challenges and Opportunities.”
The following students are honorable mention prize winners and will receive $250:
Orion Bentley and Micah Reiss, students at Las Flores Middle School in Rancho Santa Margarita, won for the documentary “The Wildfire Problem.”
Kaleel Nabi, a student at Las Flores Middle School, won for the documentary “Restoring American Optimism.”
Evan Spence, Darwin Lopez and Christin Kim, students at Western High School in Anaheim, won for the documentary “Farming Our Future,” about environmentalism.
C-SPAN, in cooperation with its cable television partners, asked middle and high school students to engage in a national conversation on the challenges our country is facing with the theme: “If you were a newly elected member of Congress, which issue would be your first priority and why?”
Now in its 19th year, this project-based learning experience gives students the opportunity to explore multiple perspectives on topics that are important to them and consider solutions to address them. In response, nearly 3,000 students participated, and C-SPAN received more than 1,500 entries from 40 states, Washington, D.C., and Abu Dhabi.
The most popular topics addressed were:
Health care (16%)
Environment (14%)
Education (12%)
Economy (10%)
Gun Violence and Firearm Policy (8%)
More than 300 students from across the country are winning a total of $100,000. C-SPAN is awarding one grand prize, four first prizes, 16 second prizes, 32 third prizes and 97 honorable mention prizes. The winning videos will receive cash awards of $5,000, $3,000, $1,500, $750 and $250, respectively.
The 150 winning videos can be viewed at studentcam.org.
The Bravo! section highlights achievements of our residents and groups. Send news of achievements for consideration to ocrbravo@gmail.com.
