Taking Pride in Community Service

Re “Pride in Service: (June 16): You wanted community stories. I have one.

In Agoura Hills, we have had the good fortune over the last decade or so to support a chartered Disaster Response Team. After the Northridge quake, our team was out in minutes, checking infrastructure, damage, injury, water supply, etc. It can be such a relief and a blessing to know that we are all out there together for the benefit of the community.

In 1996 (as in 1994, and other years), we were also hit by incredible fires at the skirts of the city. The surrounding areas of Monte Nido, Calabasas, Topanga and others asked for assistance, and so we went to evacuate horses, dogs, stereos, people.

It will always remain a memory of comradeship and community like no other.

SANDY ADAMS

Agoura

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“Pride in Service” was a great article. My local school district (Saddleback Unified) requires community service hours for graduation, but only 10 hours, far too few to be effective and meaningful. I would love to see these requirements increased, but have heard there is resistance for reasons of “public intrusion into private life.” Nearby Santa Margarita Catholic High School has requirements for 100 hours, and I’ve heard of their wonderful projects like building block houses in Mexico.

Reading “Pride in Service,” I wondered about the parents of the kids doing community service--are they setting a good example by doing community service work themselves? I have to admit cynicism about this from my vantage point as a volunteer in our local schools and district. Too few parents are participating.

Your article today inspired me to do an online search for the previous articles in Lynn Smith’s “Neighbor to Neighbor” series. I liked “Friends for Life” even more. These articles are community service in and of themselves. I hope readers are taking them to heart.

BARBARA LIND

Saddleback Valley