• Skip to main content

Leona Valley Sertoma

Making A Difference through Service To Mankind

  • Home
  • About
    • Officers, Directors, Committees
    • Scholarship Program
    • Sertoman of the Year – List
  • Blog
  • Members Only
  • Contact Us

Tom

Mar 07 2022

Community, St. Patrick’s Day, and Why I Like Sertoma

A Community Affair

The Leona Valley Sertoma St. Patrick’s Day Dinner is a long standing tradition and only one of the many good memories from my time as a Leona Valley Sertoman. As with most, if not all, of their events, the St. Patrick’s Day dinner is a fundraiser with funds going to support the community, the most significant of which is their scholarship program. This event, like all their events, brings people together giving them the chance to better know and, hopefully, care for each other. Isn’t that what a community is?

And you thought you were just getting a good meal for a good price.

Why I Like Sertoma

This didn’t just happen, it took planning, prepping, and work on the part of the members of Leona Valley Sertoma. The members volunteer their time and their talents to make this event, and everything they do, as successful as possible. This group of people with varying skills, life experience, and interest all have one interest in common; they love their community. That’s one of the things I liked about being a Sertoman. It gave me the opportunity to become a part of the community, to volunteer, to make new friends, and to contribute to the betterment of my new community. The name Sertoma is an acronym taken from the phrase, “SERvice TO MAnkind”, and through service the members work to “make a difference” in their community. That was another thing I liked about being a Sertoman.

Being a Part of a Community

Growing up I was a boy scout, I’m an Eagle Scout, so team work and community service is something I knew. As an adult, my career took me in a different direction and my ‘making a difference’ became writing a check for this or that charity, or fundraiser. Sertoma let me to go from being on the outside looking in to being a part of the team that made a difference with sweat equity. (I still write checks!) For me, that was a pretty good feeling. The video is from the 2004 St. Patrick’s Day Dinner and if you watch it you will see all the elements I’ve been talking about. People coming together to prepare the food, the community coming out and enjoying themselves and the clean up afterwards. All these things helped me become a part of the community and let me help make a difference. You will also see folks who may have moved away or are no longer with us, as well.

St. Patrick’s Day Dinner 2022

This year’s St. Patrick’s Day Dinner will be hosted a different way. Sertoma has had less physical manpower since the pandemic, so it has required being creative in order to continue their scholarship program. This year’s event will be held at Jack’s Place, the local restaurant on 90th street, in Leona Valley, (see the flyer below) thanks to the generosity of Dave and Bob, the owners of Jack’s Place.

The St. Patrick’s Day Dinner tradition continues bringing with it some much desired normalcy after the disruptions of the last two year. I hope you will be supportive and come out to spend time with your friends and neighbors, while enjoying a traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal of corned beef and cabbage. you will get a delicious meal and time with friends, but you will be giving so much more.

I hope you enjoy this video as much I did as I watched it again. If Sertoma sounds interesting and you would like to be involved in making a difference through community service, then I urge you to seek out a member to find out more. They meet on the 1st and 3rd Saturday of each month, at 8:00am, at Jack’s Place.


shamrock-traditional-corned-beef-dinner-sponsored-by-jacks-place-2022

Written by Tom · Categorized: Sertoma News

Oct 18 2021

Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts December Events

Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts December Events

Nobody needs to remind you that 2021 began pretty much the way 2020 ended, which is to say “not so great”, to put it mildly. However, Leona Valley Sertoma is determined not to let 2021 go out without some sense of normalcy as they host their annual 2021 Holiday Dinner, formerly called the Senior Christmas Dinner, and their 2021 Outdoor Holiday Food & Toy Drive. This is an opportunity for our Seniors to once again get together to swap stories, laugh, and enjoy good food. The Food and Toy Drive is an opportunity to once again help our neighbors who very well might not have the means to serve up a Christmas dinner or put toys under the tree this Christmas. We have all suffered in various ways due to the pandemic, but some more than others. If you have the means, we ask you to open your hearts to helping those less fortunate and we offer these events and our way to help. – thank you

Please Mark Your Calendar as Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts December Events

Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts FREE Holiday Dinner

Leona Valley Sertoma December event volunteers serve guest at the 2013 Senior Christmas DinnerSunday, December 5, 2021 ~~ from 1p.m. to 3p.m.
Leona Valley Community Building ~ 8367 Elizabeth Lake Road

All Senior’s (55 and Older) are invited to enjoy a FREE Meal INDOOR or OUTDOOR

If you need a ride or would like dinner delivered call:
Juanita Kirkpatrick 661-270-0588 or Charlene Moore 661-816-5177

*** PLEASE bring a canned good for our annual “Holiday Giving” distribution ***

Toys, toys, and more toys.
Toys, toys, and more toys.

Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts their Annual 2021 Outdoor Holiday Food & Toy Drive.

We hope people can out-do our 2020 Holiday Food and Toy Drive.

Saturday, December 11th from 10a.m. to 2p.m. at Hemme Hay & Feed (Corner of Elizabeth Lake Road and 90th Street West)
Sunday, December 12th from 10a.m. to 2p.m. at Hemme Hay & Feed (Corner of Elizabeth Lake Road and 90th Street West)

*** Grateful for ALL “In Date” NON PERISHABLES and children’s toys. ***

Laurie Millard and Daniel in front of the firetruck. Come out and get your picture with the firetruck as Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts this December events
Everybody loves a firetruck

Fire Station 140’s fire truck will be on Elizabeth Lake Road across from Jack’s Place for photo opportunities.

Santa arrives in style at the Leona Valley Sertoma 2011 Senior Christmas Dinner
Santa at our 2011 December event

 

 

 

 

IN ADVANCE, WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTION.

As we close out 2021, the Leona Valley Sertoma Hosts December Events is a reminder that getting back to normal is up to all of us. We look forward to seeing our community come out for these events, but more importantly, we want to see the good people of all our Lakes and Valleys communities come together and begin anew to look out for each other.

Sertoma wishes everyone a beautiful and joyful Holiday Season.

As always, we encourage you to share this post using the “Share ” button below this post and if you are not signed up to receive new posts, you can do so in the right-hand column. We hope you will!

leonavalleysertoma.org

Written by Tom · Categorized: Sertoma News · Tagged: Leona Valley Sertoma, Senior Christmas Dinner, Volunteers

Sep 26 2021

A “Mini Gala” Fundraising Event

A “Mini Gala” Fundraising Event featuring wine, beer, bourbon, and appetizer tasting. A $25 contribution, per person, includes all tasting and a wine glass.Tickets are scheduled to go on sale on by October 8th and while tickets will be available at the door, pre-sold tickets are advised, with cash or by check made out to “Sertoma”. You are also encouraged to contribute a canned good, or two, for Sertoma’s “Holiday Giving” program. For tickets, or information, contact Jan at 661-270-9268 or email her at 1grannyjanny@att.net. (see poster below for complete details)

Sertoma presents a special “mini gala” fundraising event, co-hosted and held at Jack’s Place, in Leona Valley, California on Saturday, November 20, 2021, from 3:00pm to 5:30pm. This outdoor event is an autumn welcome to a palette of wine, beer, bourbon, and appetizer tasting. It will feature beer from Braveheart Brewing and Luck Luke Brewing, wine from Stray Leaves Vineyard and Barrett Cellars, bourbon by The Broken Bit Steakhouse, and special appetizers by Jack’s Place, who is also the co-host of this event. This event is sponsored by AC Dave Heating and Air with proceeds being contributed to veterans and local scholarships. There will also be a MINI SILENT AUCTION!

We look forward to seeing you all at this event and encourage you to share this post via the link provided below. To receive all new posts from Leona Valley Sertoma simply complete the form in the right-hand column. You can also find us on Facebook at Facebook.com/LVSertoma.


With regard to veterans, Braveheart Brewing has provided the following information:

POW-MIA FAMILIES ~ misson to obtain the release of all prisoners and acquire the fullest accounting of all recoverable remains of those who died for our nation.

INTREPID FALLEN HERO’S FUND ~ serving United States Military personnel experiencing the invisble wounds of war, tramatic brain injury (TBI), and Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD).

SEAL FAMILY FOUNDATION ~ focused on the preservation of the Navy Special Warfare Force  and their families.

O3XX FOUNDATION ~ a peer mentor and support network serving infantry Marine Veterans and their Naval Corpsman, providing career transition services and emergency financial support.

mini gala fundraising event

Written by Tom · Categorized: Sertoma News

Sep 03 2021

Meet Laurie Millard

The Sunday our daughter was killed our world changed.Laurie Millard (Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Sertoman)

Who am I? I am Laurie Millard and I am all those things you see above, but I am also a survivor. In 2014, my oldest daughter Brianna Smith was killed walking along the shoulder of Highway 138, near Llano, CA. A semi-truck struck her when it veered onto the shoulder of the road striking her and killing her instantly. The Sunday our daughter was killed our world changed. Since the accident, I have raised my autistic, mentally ill, six-year-old grandson, Daniel, full time.

Two years after my daughter’s death, the Brianna Brandy Millard Smith’s Happy Children Memorial Scholarship Fund was founded by my husband David and myself. The fund helps families in recovery from addiction with food, toys, clothes and, when we can, a stipend towards rent.

Laurie Millard and Family Make a Move

In 2006, we moved from Valencia to Lake Elizabeth where David established his own heating and air company. Brianna helped David start the company with the DBA, business license, and various other things necessary to set up a business.  AC Dave Heating and Air was born fulfilling David’s dream to own his own business.

Not long after our move to Lake Elizabeth, we were introduced to Leona Valley Sertoma and soon were members. This lead to me becoming the editor for their newsletter, “Salutations”, something I enjoyed doing for many years.

A tragic event can bring out the best in people, as they will often reach out offering support. Sertoman do more than offer, they jump in to action. They are a force to be reckoned with. You don’t realize how much until you find yourself on the receiving end. Sertomans really know how to step up. Members picked up the food for Brianna’s service for us, and they set it up, and I think they helped serve, too. Honestly, I don’t remember as that day was a blur. I remember feeling overwhelmed at their support, generosity and love. It took my breath away what the members did for our family.

In Service to Others

Leona Valley Sertoma puts on a variety of events every year and one weekend, every year, my grandson Daniel and I join with other members of Leona Valley Sertoma in collecting toys, food and money. These items are distributed to families in our local toys, toys, toyscommunities that might need a little help. Daniel and I also help decorate tables at these events and I have often helped serve desserts at their annual Senior Dinner.

Leona Valley Sertoma continues to be there. From guiding my footsteps, helping with donations, and much more. With their help, BBMS Happy Children was able to help 11 families in 2020. We received turkeys, toys, canned goods along with other donations from our communities that we passed on to 11 grateful families. Sertomans are an amazing bunch of people. I should know, I have experienced it first-hand.

David, Daniel, and I are forever grateful to Leona Valley Sertoma for their support, leadership and, most importantly, the friendships we enjoy with the members. Going forward, my hope is to see the BBMS Happy Children Memorial Fund continues to grow and to make the Leona Valley Sertoma members proud of their efforts in helping to make that a reality.

For those who might not know, SERTOMA is an acronym for “SERvice TO MAnkind”, it’s what Sertoma is all about.


Laurie provided the information and photographs for this article. We look forward to bringing you more posts from our Sertoma members giving you the opportunity to know them better. If you haven’t already,  complete the sign up form in the right-hand column to be alerted to new blog posts from Leona Valley Sertoma.

– Tom Smith, Webmaster

Written by Tom · Categorized: Sertoma News

Apr 05 2021

Cow Chip BBQ 2003 in Leona Valley

One thing every Leona Valley Sertoma event has in common is good times and the Cow Chip BBQ 2003 was no different. There was good food, games and music, along with plenty of laughter and smiles. A lot of work and planning went into putting on this event and it showed. Because it was a big success this became an annual event for many years to follow. The inaugural event was held at the Pitchfork Ranch, located west of the community of Leona Valley. The owner of the Pitchfork Ranch was Bob Mallicoat, a founding member of Leona Valley Sertoma, and a past president of Sertoma International.

Putting on a successful fundraising event doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because a lot of work and planning go in to it. The initial idea was the bar-be-que, presented to members by the fundraising committee. Members loved the idea and immediately began the process of planning. It was accomplished through the talents of the many members of the Leona Valley Sertoma and, just as important, the hard work and generosity of the many volunteers.

Wondering how the cow chip part of this event came to be? Country living tends to include an abundance of cow chips.

The Cow Chip BBQ Video

The video opens telling you exactly what to expect. Food, games, and music. There was a trap shoot station and a cow paddy toss. There was music on the cabaret stage. The food was a mouth-watering BBQ.

I hope you enjoy the video, in addition to the food, games, and music, there were llamas and, of course, you can’t have bull drop bingo without a bull! Don’t know what bull drop bingo is? Ask a member of Leona Valley Sertoma. If you need some help finding one, take a look at the current Officers & Directors page.

Author’s Note: As the video cameraman and a Sertoma member, I was working the event, so I did not get to shoot as much footage as I would have liked. Too bad as I’m sure it was all a blast.

Written by Tom · Categorized: Sertoma News · Tagged: bar-be-que, BBQ, fundraiser, fundraising, Leona Valley, Leona Valley Sertoma, making a difference, Volunteers

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 12
  • Go to Next Page »

Copyright © 2023 · Leona Valley Sertoma