‘Love Costa Mesa’ seeking helpers with heart for annual day of community service

When the citywide day of community service Love Costa Mesa first launched in 2018, hundreds of volunteers rolled up their sleeves to help out with about two dozen service projects in locations throughout the city.

That effort has since expanded to include up to 1,500 community members, who faithfully meet outside Costa Mesa City Hall one Saturday morning each year before heading out to as many as 100 individual service projects at local schools, parks and residences. Most volunteers have signed up in advance.

Youth aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty during a Love Costa Mesa community service day in 2024.

(Courtesy of Love Costa Mesa)

Once at their posts, volunteers will spend the morning washing windows, assembling care packages, landscaping and repairing the homes of senior citizens, painting murals and beautifying schools throughout Costa Mesa, before returning to City Hall for a celebratory lunch with free meals and live performances.

“Love Costa Mesa is a way to encourage neighbors to come out, get to know their neighbors, and maybe invite a neighbor to give back to the community,” said Reina Cuthill, city catalyst director for the nonprofit Trellis International, which organizes the event.

Love Costa Mesa’s day of service takes place Saturday, May 17, from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., meeting at Costa Mesa City Hall.

(File Photo)

“It’s also a great way to meet your civic leaders, local nonprofits and get a glimpse of all the different ways you can make a difference in your city.”

This year’s event takes place Saturday, May 17, with a rally outside City Hall planned for 7:30 a.m. before the work begins, with a lunch to follow the projects scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. A sign up list of as many as 70 different projects can be found online at lovecostamesa.org.

Although Love Costa Mesa started as a single day of volunteerism, it is now a broader umbrella that encompasses four main initiatives — Prayer, Education, Neighboring and City Challenge — each of which employs a similar model of collaboration all year round.

Local volunteers help plant trees outside a Costa Mesa apartment complex as part of Love Costa Mesa 2024.

(Courtesy of Love Costa Mesa)

Each campaign brings together local neighbors, churches, nonprofits, schools and businesses willing to mobilize support in real time to address the needs of stakeholders throughout the community, whether they are referred from a school, residential complex or other organization, Cuthill said Friday.

“The ripple effect of Love Costa Mesa and what Trellis has been up to lately is incredible,” she said. “When humans get together we can make a collective impact that can last a generation and even make a generational impact — I’ve seen that.”

Love Costa Mesa’s annual day of citywide service takes place Saturday, May 17, from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more details, visit lovecostamesa.org.

Volunteers gather outside Costa Mesa City Hall for a group photo during Love Costa Mesa’s day of community service in 2024.

(Courtesy of Love Costa Mesa)