3rd Annual Bowl-A-Thon
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| Stockings for Seniors 2009 |
Our 3rd Annual Stockings for Seniors Holiday Program was a Jolly Good Time for all.
Christmas time is the greatest time of the year
for all of us at Smiles for Seniors.
That is when we hold our Stockings for
Seniors Holiday Program.
Thanks to our wonderful senior sponsors and local
business who contributed
to our holiday program we have been able to
provide gifts and cheer
to the residents of nursing homes throughout the Inland
Empire
for the past 3 years.
This
year we visited over 200 seniors in three homes,
Yucaipa Valley Convalescent,Banning
Healthcare and Palm Grove Healthcare.
With close to 4 dozen little elves (most
of them children)
we passed out warm fluffy blankets to each resident,
along with tons of games,arts and crafts supplies,
music,movies and lots of other goodies.
The activities director of
each home was asked to make a wish list.
Two of them wished for a Karaoke
machine and the other a boom box
and Smiles for Seniors granted their wish.
The activity directors often have to reach in to their own
pockets for supplies so this is a very welcome sight to them.
The seniors really enjoy getting all of those hugs from our little volunteers,
they are so caring kind and sweet. We even got treated to a
private performance by Sasha Kronbeck on the clarinet and Soleil on the cello.
They played some of our favorite Christmas carols and they were very good
I might add.
Our little volunteers are what really
makes the holiday special for the seniors.
One of the residents saw our group
of children walk in and said
"Now That's what Christmas is all about."
Another one of the residents from Palm Grove an Alzheimers Facility
Smiled at me with a tear in his eye and said
"I
Really Like This " We do too sir I told him.
We always go in to homes
with Boxes and Bags of gifts and goodies
to give but we come out with
the greatest gift of all,
love in our hearts and the joy of giving.
I would like to thank all of our volunteers,sponsors,and supporters.
You truly made a difference in many lives this holiday season. Thank you.
Please visit our photo gallery for more photos
STATER
BROS RACEFEST
THANKS TO ALL WHO CAME OUT TO SUPPORT
SMILES FOR SENIORS AT STATER BROS RACEFEST
OCTOBER
8 TH AT AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY IN FONTANA
WE ARE SO EXCITED TO BE ONE OF THE FIVE
CHARITIES
BENEFITING FROM AN AUCTION HELD BY STATER BROS. CHARITIES
AND WE ARE HONORED TO
BE AMONG SUCH WONDERFUL ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS LOMA LINDA VETERANS
HOSPITAL, RONALD MC DONALD HOUSE,
THINK TOGETHER AND SAN BERNARDINO LIFESTREAM
WHAT A GREAT TURN OUT! RACE FANS HAD A CHANCE TO BID ON AUTOGRAPHED MERCHANDISE
SIGNED BY SOME OF THEIR FAVORITE NASCAR STARS.
ITEMS
INCLUDED A SIGNED KASEY KAHNE RACING HELMET,
A LEATHER JACKET SIGNED BY THE COCA COLA RACING TEAM,
SAMMY HAGAR
SIGNED GUITAR,
A MARK MARTIN SIGNED DICAST CAR, I PODS,BIKES AND ON AND ON
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO STATER BROS CHARITIES,
SARAH CAIN AND ALL THE GREAT GALS OF STATER BROS CHARITIES,
ALONG WITH THE WONDERFUL FANS WHO BID ON
THE ITEMS
AND OF COURSE SMILES PIT CREW FOR THEIR SUPPORT
2nd Annual Bowl-A-Thon was a striking
success!
WE WANT TO THANK ALL OF THE SPONSORS,BOWLERS,VOLUNTEERS
AND BOARD MEMBERS FOR YOUR SUPPORT FOR OUR 2ND ANNUAL BOWL-A-THON,IT WAS A BLAST.WE HAD 3 TIMES THE ATTENDANCE THIS YEAR FROM
LAST YEAR AND ANTICIPATE THAT NEXT YEAR WILL BE EVEN BIGGER AND BETTER. WE GAVE AWAY OVER $3,000 IN RAFFLE ITEMS
INCLUDING A TRIP FOR TWO, 2 NIGHT STAY AT THE INN AT DEEP CANYON IN PALM
SPRINGS,GOLF PACKAGES,SPA PACKAGES,SPORTS PACKAGES,GIFTS, AND TONS OF GIFT CERTIFICATES AND GIFT CARDS TO SOME OF OUR FAVORITE
RETAIL SHOPS AND RESTAURANTS.WE BOWLED FOR TWO HOURS AND TALLIED THE SCORES. JIM WON HIGH SCORE MALE AND ALICE WON HIGH SCORE
FEMALE. JIM ALSO WON MOST STRIKES WITH 15 STRIKES. A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL, SEE YA NEXT YEAR...PLEASE VISIT OUR SPONSOR PAGE
FOR A LIST OF OUR WONDERFUL SPONSORS. VISIT OUR PHOTO GALLERY FOR MORE PHOTOS FROM THIS EVENT 
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ALICE WON HIGH SCORE WOMEN 
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JIM WON HIGH SCORE MENS
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JIM ALSO WON MOST STRIKES
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OUR FIRST ANNUAL STOCKINGS FOR SENIORS
HOLIDAY PROGRAM WAS A HUGE HIT
12-15-07WOW... What an emotional and rewarding day.I can barely
type this because the tears are still running down my face.We just got back from our Stockings For Seniors Holiday Program,
and all I can say is "what a life changing experience this was for all of us". You could truly feel
your heart grow inside.
What an awe inspiring day,one that none of us will ever forget.
When we got to Palm
Grove Healthcare in Beaumont, right away you could tell that this place was not like any other senior home we've visited. It
is a very special place that cares for those with Alzheimers. The staff there are so very special, so very kind and so
very compassionate, full of warmth and love for their patients (more like family than patients, and more like home than
a hospital atmosphere).You can feel the love exuding from that place...everyone is so happy and full of life. Alzheimers may
have taken away their memories, but it has not taken away their joy. The home was decorated
so beautifully,with wreaths and lights and wonderful festive decorations all over the place. They had Christmas carols playing,
which really set the mood for the holidays.We passed out gifts and stockings full of goodies to all of the residents.
Boy
did the ladies love their baby dolls and teddy bears, and the men really enjoyed their sweats and socks and all of the other
goodies in their christmas bags, but I think what they enjoyed the most was the children. All of the little kids went around
and hugged and kissed each and every senior in Palm Grove, which really made it an extra special day.
There was not a dry eye in the house. We were all blubbering from the pure joy we felt, seeing those little children
hugging and kissing the seniors.The faces of the seniors just lit up brighter than a christmas tree. Even the grinch would
have gone through a dozen boxes of tissue. I just can't say how thankful we are to be a part of the joy of the season,
and how wonderful this place is. The staff, the residents, and the home is so fantastic, words alone are not enough to
express how special the people and this place are.WOW...
...After wiping our eyes well enough to drive safely, we
headed over to Ivy Retreat in Mentone. The seniors greeted us in the dining hall with a song of jingle bells. What a
wonderful group they are, so happy and full of the Christmas spirit. The children went around and put funny musical reindeer
antlers on everyone's head. They really got a kick out of that. Even the staff put them on. We passed out stockings full
of goodies and gave out hugs and kisses once again, and once again we all became very emotional. This whole experience
is one of the best times we've ever had. One of the older children said "This was one of the
saddest things I've ever done, and one of the greatest." Out of the mouths of babes, as they say. A lot
of these seniors don't get many visitors, and some none at all. It was our pleasure,our honor and our hearts will never
be the same . We walked in to these senior homes with boxes and bags of gifts to give, and walked out with the biggest gift
of all, LOVE in our hearts, souls and memories that will last a lifetime.
We Truly Are Blessed. Thank You,Thank You,Thank
You, from the bottom of our hearts. Please see the bottom of this page for some of pictures from this event.
And a very special Thank You to all of the businesses and people who so generously
gave to our Stockings for Seniors Holiday Program. We couldn't have done any of this without you.
A special
Thank You To Pechanga Resort and Casino,Target,Walmart,Catholic Charities
and all of the other wonderful sponsors listed
on our sponsor pages. You are the greatest friends that anyone could ask for, we are forever grateful.
STOCKINGS FOR SENIORS HOLIDAY PROGRAM 2007
THE DATE ON SOME OF OUR PICTURES ARE WRONG. I FORGOT TO SET THE DATE
ON THE CAMERA; DUH
OUR EVENT WAS SATURDAY THE 15th OF DECEMBER 2007
| A STORAGE ROOM FULL OF GIFTS |
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| WE BETTER TAKE TWO SLEIGH TRIPS |
| LIL MIKEY WONDERING? YEP, STILL GOT EM' |
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| I THOUGHT I GOT RID OF THESE THINGS IN THE PARKING LOT |
| LIL FREDDIE IS FULL OF HUGS AND KISSES |
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| AND A HUG FOR YOU TOO |
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| NICK SAYS YOU SURE LOOK PRETTY TODAY |
| A WONDERFUL FAMILY VISIT |
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| NOT A DRY EYE IN THE PLACE |
Smiles for Seniors Foundation. Helping seniors through acts of kindness. We gave away $25.00 gift
cards to the seniors that were shopping at Stater Bros. to help with their Thanksgiving holiday. Here are a
couple photos of the recipients
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| THANKS TARGET |
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| BOARD MEMBERS CATHY ,PATTY,MELINDA |
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| HERES NICK (AKA) BIG PUP |
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| WITH ONE OF OF THE PUPPIES IN HIS LITTER |
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| JESSIE SAYS YOU CAN TOUCH MY BELLY |
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| BUT IT WONT JIGGLE LIKE A BOWL FULL OF JELLY |
| THESE BOYS ARE SO SWEET |
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| FULL OF LOVE AND KINDNESS FOR OTHERS |
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