Joint community service day planned for Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach

A joint community service day will see 25 projects pop up across Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach later this month.

Hundreds of volunteers will be needed to cover the projects, each requiring at least 10 and up to 200 willing and able volunteers to complete them.

The ninth annual community service day will take place the morning of April 22, with most projects scheduled to be completed by noon. Projects will include neighborhood cleanups and restorative efforts, food donations, park improvements and more.

To view a list of available projects and sign up, those interested can visit justserve.org.

Fountain Valley projects include a food donation delivery to nonprofit trucks at the Center at Founders Village, painting a house at the center of Heritage Park, and a Mile Square Park improvement calling for 200 volunteers to oversee the revitalization of part of the city’s central gathering area. The Mile Square Park project will include the planting of 500 plants, spreading of wood chips and weeding.

“The purpose of the event is to serve those in need and enhance the quality of life in the community as a collaborative effort and side by side with others,” Jynene Johnson of the Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council, a sponsor for the community service day, said. “... It brings a great spirit of inspiring each other to be a part of the community, and to help our youth, to foster [in] them a sense of service for the future.”

Mayor Kim Constantine read a proclamation declaring April 22 to be Community Service Day in the city and recognizing the volunteers that will contribute to the projects.

April is “Donate Life Month” in Fountain Valley

Another proclamation named April as “Donate Life Month” in Fountain Valley.

Among the clauses read from the proclamation by Mayor Pro Tem Glenn Grandis, it was noted that more than 100,000 people nationwide and more than 20,000 in California are on the national organ transplant waiting list.

The proclamation encouraged residents to sign up to become organ, eye and tissue donors.

Maria Jimenez, an ambassador for OneLegacy, lost a son at the age of 22. She addressed the City Council after the reading of the proclamation, sharing that organ donation was among the final wishes she was able to follow through on for her child.

“I never thought that I would be put in this path in life, but here I am, and I continue to be my son’s voice,” Jimenez said. “He was a very strong advocate for organ donation in his young life, and unfortunately, we lost him at 22 years old to bacterial meningitis. Only six weeks prior to that, he had said yes to organ donation, so once he was in the hospital, we knew what his wishes were. It was one last thing that we could do for our son.

“I’m actually very proud of that decision, so I hope that in sharing his story and in proclaiming Donate Life Month in April that we can get more people on board in saying yes. Organ donation is very rare, but the need is great.”

Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.