Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary Helps Vets!

Every two years, our Rotary club has the opportunity to make a difference for our local vets by volunteering with East Bay Stand Down (see details below). We had about 30 individuals through our club join together to serve breakfast and make a big impact for over 400 homeless or at-risk Veterans. For breakfast, we had eggs, ham, watermelon, and orange juice.

The event was held at the Alameda County Fair Grounds and is an opportunity to bring needed resources to these Veterans who served our country. These include bringing judges, dentists, career counselors, and other needed community individuals to the event to help Veterans. For more information, you can look on the East Bay Stand Down website at eastbaystanddown.org.

This event is one of many events the Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary does on a monthly basis. Our vision is to assist in the health and wellness of our community and abroad. Past projects have included assisting in opening an annex to Discovery Counseling Center in San Ramon, painting US Maps on local school playgrounds, rebuilding schools in India, digging wells in Kenya, and much much more.

In two weeks, our Chapter will be hosting a pumpkin patch and sponsoring the Bay Area Step Up for Down Syndrome Connection at Pleasant Hill Middle School. We will have both our Rotarians and Interactors (high school students from Dougherty Valley High School) at this event.

Our chapter meets every Tuesday at 7am to 8:15am at Crow Canyon Country Club. We have exciting and engaging speakers along with a strong group of Rotarians who are looking to connect with other civic minded individuals. If you are interested in coming to a meeting or being a part of one of our events, please contact Daniel at daniel@dsvrotary.com.

More information about our chapter and the great things we do can be found on our website at dsvrotary.com.

Additional details about East Bay Stand Down are below from their website (eastbaystanddown.org):
While its primary goal is helping homeless Veterans access the resources needed, including housing, to regain their highest level of independence; its secondary goal is to bring our community and service providers together in a collaborative format that can build relationships throughout the year that positively benefit homeless Veterans. Ultimately, it is our hope that such events can bring forth the awareness, political/community will and consistent data necessary to assert the on-going resources it will take to end Veteran homelessness once and for all.

Serving those who have served our Nation is the primary goal of the East Bay Stand Down. We treat the Veteran participants with respect and dignity. Their former service to our nation is evidence of their ability to succeed and is also reason enough for our community to support them in regaining success.

Nationally, it is estimated that there are over 250,000 needy and homeless Veterans on the streets on any given night. Within the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) estimates that there are over 7,000 needy or homeless Veterans. In the Northern California area, estimates are as high as 15,000 or more. A significant number of these Veterans have had little or no contact with the VA for either monetary or medical benefits. Nor have they had much contact with any other agency offering assistance. Aiding or helping to improve their situations, especially for combat Veterans, is a difficult process, but one, which cannot be ignored.

Since the first Stand Down was held in San Diego, in 1988, Stand Downs have taken place in over 200 cities nationwide. Over 100,000 Veterans and their families have benefited from Stand Downs. These events have proved to be very effective in breaking the cycle of homelessness among Veterans and their families.
Since the first East Bay Stand Down in 1999, our goals have been to provide a respite from the streets so that needy and homeless Veterans can examine avenues of assistance. We help to place the participants into residential programs, offer employment, and to provide follow-up programs of various types. During recent East Bay Stand Downs, we have "bumped it up a notch" by providing more services and higher quality services. We offer all new clothing, boots and other basic needs. Through the support of local dentists we offer quality oral health care, as well as follow up care after the event.

The East Bay Stand Down will be funded primarily through monetary and in-kind donations. All monetary donations will be applied to the needs of the Veterans. No donated money will be used for salaries. All donations are tax deductible.

A community is often judged by how well it takes care of its own. Serving those who have served our Nation is the primary goal of the East Bay Stand Down.