Volunteers work through heatwave

GOLDEN AGE FOUNDATION

A recent heatwave kept the usually large crowd away from the Golden Age Foundation’s (GAF) bi-monthly Salvation Army donation event, but volunteers still collected items from 356 vehicles on Aug. 8. At the end of the event 9,785 pounds of unwanted items were collected for the Salvation Army to sell at its thrift stores, which support its adult rehabilitation programs.

The donations filled three Salvation Army trucks, with most cars donating an average of 4-5 bags of items of small kitchen items, small house appliances, luggage, men’s suits, shoes, CDs, books, women’s handbags, miscellaneous items, plus small furniture.

The program, dubbed “Salvation Saturdays,” brings Salvation Army donation trucks into Leisure World every other month, providing a convenient and cost-effective way for residents to donate unwanted items. The program also saves shareholders money since it cuts down on expensive haul-away costs for cast-offs that were previously disposed of at the 1.8-Acre site.

The GAF thanks the three Salvation Army workers at the event and the GAF volunteers: Anna Derby, Dave Forney, Tonette Kadrmas, Rosemarie Da Roza, Vicky Burman, Charlie Dunn, Geneva Potepan, Carol Ostergaard, and Shari and Bob Dunn for their hard work under the warm sun. The GAF also thanks everyone who generously donated tips at the program for the GAF.

Pennie Mitten, donation coordinator of the Salvation Army’s Phoenix Adult Rehabilitation Center thanked Leisure World for its remarkable volume of donated goods throughout the year.

Beginning in 2027, the event will be held from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. For more information, go to www.goldenagefdn.org.