Thanks to the generosity of the Pacifica community, 127 families with 258 Pacifica children had happy holidays, receiving gifts from our holiday donors through our 2011 Adopt A Family program.

We especially thank Brownies Troop 329, Cabrillo Family Dental, Gangster Book Club, Genentech, Genesis Developmental Services, Girl Scouts Troop 29, IBL Middle School, Karen Yee DDS, Manzanita Elves, Mizpah Fellowship, The Natural Disasters, N.W. Administrators, Nu Master/Beta Sigma Phi, Oceana Interact Club, Orteqa Elementary School, Pacifica Baptist Church, Pacifica Democrats, Pacifica Fog & Wine Book Club, Pacifica Libraries, Pacifica Mothers Club, Pacifica Parks Beaches and Recreation Dept., Pacifica Playschool, Pacifica Public Works Dept., Pacifica Quilters, Pacifica Realtor Community Services Group, Pacifica School District, Seaview Baptist Church, St. Peter Church Women’s Guild, Terra Nova Interact Club, Wells Fargo, and Xi Beta Zeta, as well as 79 families and individuals that “adopted” PRC families for the holidays.

In addition to providing gifts for Pacifica children whose families are struggling, we thank those who assisted with our Thanksgiving program, both at the American Legion Hall and at the PRC last month. Special thanks to Boy Scouts of all ages from the Pacific Skyline Council who collected, sorted, and stocked our pantry selves on November 19th with 2,025 pounds of food, including Jared Hansel, Cameron Langsjoen, Casey Langsjoen, Martin Gouchon, Zach Cummings, James Saitz, AJ Ornelas, Luke Ornelas, Theresa Hansel, Pat Langsjoen, Craig Cummings, Sheile Ornelas, and Colm Quinn in preparation for our Thanksgiving distributions the following week.

We also must thank Recology of the Coast for their financial donation to help fund our Thanksgiving program and to Cabrillo School Student Council, Christian Science Church, Coastside Community Church, Epsilon Theta Master, F.D. Roosevelt Elementary School, Good Shepherd, IBL Middle School, New Life Christian Fellowship, Ocean Shore School, Oceana Market, Ortega Elementary School, Pacifica Garden Club, Pacifica Playschool,  Pacifica Spindrift Players, Pacific Skies Estate, Rotary Club of Pacifica, St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, St. Peter Catholic Church, St. Peter’s Women’s Guild, and Vallemar School for organizing food drives and donating food to the PRC, as well as the numerous volunteers who picked up and sorted food donations, making sure our pantry was stocked.

The generosity of our neighbors and our donors make our Holiday Programs possible. Thanks again to all of you who helped make our 2011 holiday season another great success. Happy New Year!

Over 160 people attended our 1st Annual Rockaway Beach Stroll fundraiser on October 2nd and helped us raise over $15,000 to use to provide a safety net for Pacifica residents struggling to make ends meet.

Our goal for the Stroll was to raise money for the PRC, while also highlighting local, Pacifica businesses. We accomplished this goal thanks to the Rockaway Beach merchants, especially our business hosts – A Grape in the Fog, Christmas by the Cove, Generations, Remax Star Properties, Ressurected, Rock ‘N Fit, Rock ‘N Rob’s, Sirens, and Sterling Spa – for opening their doors to us; our food and beverage donors – A Grape in the Fog, El Grano De Oro Taqueria, The French Patisserie, John Boulland, Luigi’s Restaurant, Mazzetti’s Bakery, Moonraker Restaurant, Oceana Market, Pacific Java, Rock ‘N Rob’s, Starbucks on Hickey, and

Rock'N Rob's - Rockaway Beach Stroll Business Host

Vy’s Café – for providing good, local tastybites; our in kind business donors – John the Sign Guy, Pavilion of Flowers, and Rick Loeper Graphic Design; our entertainment – the Humpbacks who played live music during the Stroll, Eddie Raymond who played live music in the Cove Room, and Joe and Diane Munoz who performed the Tango for our entertainment; and our sponsors – Recology of the Coast at the San Pedro Mountain level, Blyele Elevator and Nancy & Robin Crawford at the Mori Point level, Acupuncture Works and Ken Thomas of Eureka Square Chiropractic at the Muscle Rock level, Marriage and Family Therapist Lynn Gallo, Martin and Jennifer Carp, Michele Trausch, Nancy Morrison & Peter Loeb, Norma Lambert Macleod, Rod Muscio Electrical Contractor, and Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Pacifica in honor of Pacifica Firefighters at the Beachcomber level.

Many, many thanks to the nearly 100 local businesses and neighbors who donated our awesome live and silent auction items and door prizes, as well as to Suzanne Lamar of More Than Multimedia for her energetic and entertaining auctioneering.

We also thank Penny Blackwell of Skin Reflections who built, furnished, and donated the amazing Grand Beacon Hill dollhouse that helped us raise over $1,100 toward our total Stroll proceeds. The dollhouse was won by a “day tripper” from Fremont who was inspired by our Stroll and plans to use it to raise money for the holidays for a local shelter in her area.

Cove Room at the Rockaway Beach Stroll. From R to L in green PRC shirts, Advisory Board members Kay Carter, Chuck Evans & Marcia Settel, volunteers Heather Tanner, Alex Higgins, Ramon Castellanos & Cindy Abbott, and staff member Dulce Adonis

And last, but definitely not least, we thank our event committee and Advisory Board, our staff, and our volunteers  (in our new signature green shirts) for working hard to organize the Stroll before, during, and after Sunday. Our event committee chair Ginny Janes kept us on track with the support of committee member Avis Freedman, Advisory Board members Bill Mullen, Cathy Sweetman, Chuck Evans, Julie Stewart, Kay Carter, Marcia Settel, and Veronica Romeyn; PRC staff Marina Castellanos, Ann Cooney, and Dulce Adonis; and over 20 volunteers on the day of the Stroll.

For those of you who missed our Stroll, there’s always next year! In the meantime and/or to relive the Stroll, check out Pacifica Patch’s coverage, including a video, of the Stroll or visit our Facebook page for pictures, videos, and updated information.