VUSD students help to feed hungry families.
Aera Energy teamed up with staff from the City of Ventura to put the “giving” in Thanksgiving by providing 140 families from the City of Ventura a full Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings.
For years the staff at the City of Ventura and students from the Ventura Unified school district. have collected canned goods, side items and monetary donations to purchase food for the Thanksgiving meals distributed at Westpark Community Center. This year however, Aera Energy stepped forward and offered to purchase more than 140 turkeys to complete the meals.
“The families benefitting from these donations are in great need and wouldn’t have a Thanksgiving at all if it weren’t for these donations,” explained Anita Diaz, Westpark Coordinator. “The City staff and the Teen Voice students have been collecting food and gifting Thanksgiving food baskets for years. This year, with Aera’s help, we are able to serve even more families.”
Teams of City staff, students and Aera employees gathered at Westpark to pack the brightly colored Aera bags with canned goods and other Thanksgiving items in preparation for Tuesday when they personally hand over the bags and a large turkey to top it off. The effort results from Aera’s long-time partnership with the City’s Westpark Community Center.
“We are part of this community and Westpark is the hub of Ventura’s westside which is right in our backyard,” says Michele Newell, Aera Public Affairs. “It is through our partnership that we have created opportunities to really make a difference in people’s lives. This work makes our community a better place to live because we invest in it as a company and as individuals. We look forward to continuing working with them to help our neighbors throughout the holidays.”
