Employee resource groups seek community support for holiday drives

Several employee resource groups (ERG) – including the UC Davis Health African American Faculty and Staff Association (AAFSA), the Latinx Staff and Faculty Association (LSFA), and the Asian Pacific American Systemwide Alliance (APASA) – are gearing up for their holiday drives.

AAFSA Penny Drive

The 24th annual AAFSA penny drive is raising funds for children at the Oak Park Head Start program.

James Aboagye, chair of the AAFSA employee resource group at UC Davis Health, shared, “The penny drive guarantees that the children have at least one gift under their Christmas tree. We want to help take some of the stress off our parents who may be financially strained during this time. All the donations we collect will go towards gifts for children at the Oak Park Head Start programs."

Approximately 120 children from the Oak Park neighborhood benefit from the preschool programs. Proceeds from the drive will be used to purchase classroom gifts on a wish list provided by the program’s preschool teachers.

Deadline to contribute to the penny drive is Friday, Dec. 9.

Click here to view flier with details on how to support Oak Park Head Start

LSFA Toy Drive

This year marks the 20th anniversary of LSFA’s partnership with La Familia Counseling Center. Proceeds from the drive will be used to purchase toys for the kiddos and blankets for families.

The La Familia Counseling Center, Inc. (La Familia) has been providing multicultural counseling, outreach and support services to low income, at-risk youth and families in Sacramento County for more than 40 years.

Daniel Marenco, chair of LSFA, said, “We have a long-standing relationship with La Familia, and they provide much needed items to the families they serve. With your help, we can ensure that La Familia’s reach expands to as many community members as possible.”

The deadline to donate to the toy drive is Thursday, Dec. 1.

Click here to view the LSFA toy drive flier for more details

APASA River City Bank Food Drive

Lynette Mendoza, vice chair of the APASA ERG, said, “For most of us at UC Davis Health, holidays are spent and celebrated with family, loved ones or friends over a scrumptious, hearty meal. Sadly, there are thousands in our community who are experiencing food insecurity year-round, not just during holidays.”

APASA wants to focus on giving the gift of sustenance to those in need, and will donate goods and supplies to the River City Food Bank (RCFB) this year. 

RCFB is Sacramento’s oldest food bank and has multiple programs with the mission to alleviate hunger in Sacramento. In 2021, RCFB provided more than 2.2 million pounds of healthy food to 206,523 people facing hunger in the Sacramento community. 

Mendoza added, “I’ve been volunteering at RCFB for about a year now and I am currently a member of the board of directors. So, I know first-hand the great work that they do for our community.”

APASA’s goal is to collect at least 50 pounds of RCFB’s most needed items on their list. Boxes will be placed in selected locations, or as requested by departments, in case employees would like to participate.

Food donation boxes will be collected on Monday, Dec. 19.

For more information about how you can support APASA’s RCFB food drive, contact Lynette Mendoza at lynmendoza@ucdavis.edu.