Mission:

Provide animal-assisted teams in therapeutic settings in Sacramento and surrounding areas.  Volunteers are dedicated to sharing hope and understanding through well-trained, certified pet/handler teams.  Trained therapy animals provide comfort and affection to people in retirement homes, nursing homes, hospices, schools, hospitals, disaster areas, or other stressful environments.  

Nominated by Ruth Rezos

Mission:

Provide performing arts training and opportunities to underserved communities, particularly African American residents in Sacramento. Provide drama, dance, and music productions and classes, allowing aspiring Black artists and communities to experience the performing arts where they are the central subjects. The training serves to develop critical thinking, comprehension, script and story analysis, character and movement studies, as well as presentations based on American history, ancestral heritage and contemporary times from Black perspectives.

Nominated by Carol Manson

Mission:

Provide art education for every child in every school in the Sacramento County Public School system by developing strategic partnerships and by advocating for the arts. Friends of Sacramento Arts also provides for teacher training and art supplies.  Art provides children a means of exploring and expressing their creative and mental health needs and enriches their lives. All kids deserve access to arts and music education. 

Nominated by Denise Holmes

Mission:

Ensure that every victim of a sexual crime who is seen at a Sexual Assault Response Team facility or who seeks medical attention and/or law enforcement involvement is provided with new clothing, toiletries, snacks and other items they need.  No victim of sexual violence should experience further suffering due to lack of clothing to wear home after receiving services from a Sexual Violence Service Provider.  

Nominated by Ruth Rezos

Mission:

Support teachers in effectively implementing a Holocaust curriculum that meets CA Social Studies and Language Arts standards which helps teachers to respond to a variety of challenges this complex curriculum presents.  CVHEN focuses on classroom strategies, resources, and lessons that inspire young people to embrace civic responsibility, tolerance, and social action as way of fostering moral adulthood.  

Nominated by Sally Scion

Mission:

Foster pride and enhance lives one song at a time.  SGMC envisions a community that uplifts its most marginalized members, a community that celebrates its amazing diversity, and a community where no one will be afraid to sing their own song.  Values include: diversity, support and connection to community, musical and artistic excellence, action for social justice and pride.  SGMC provides for a safe nurturing family, personal growth and transformation. 

Nominated by Pam Logan

Mission:

Mentor, employ, and inspire foster and at-risk youth, ages 18-24, in the Placer and Sacramento regions empowering them to achieve independence as well as financial and social prosperity.  Life enrichment classes offer career coaching, resume writing, budgeting, basic cooking and meal preparation.   Through their baking program, youth learn food packaging, customer service, cash handling, shipping processes, sales and marketing.  

Nominated by Sally Scion

Mission:

Provide affordable homes for adults with mental illness in an environment that fosters personal self-worth and individual development.  This approach recognizes that it takes more than a physical dwelling.  The client is supported and encouraged to develop and maintain life skills necessary for independent living.  Eventually, the resident retains adequate independence and develops a support system within the community which contributes to their wellness.  WHH’s goal is to provide permanent, not transitional, housing. While it is hoped that independent living is part of each resident’s goal, many find that communal living is a major part of their wellness.

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Nominated by Denise Holmes

Mission:

Distribute food and clothing assistance to those who are impoverished, particularly to Muslims in greater Sacramento. Ar-Razzaq is an all-volunteer, community-based organization that provides assistance to the needy in such a way as to minimize hunger and promote self-reliance. Beneficiaries include the unhoused, the WIND Youth Center in Oak Park as well as the community at large if resources permit. 

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Nominated by Denise Holmes

Mission:

Provide the City of Sacramento and community with CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) disaster emergency preparedness training through their 100% volunteer led team.  Under the sponsorship of the Sacramento Fire Department, CERT provides support to public safety and service personnel as an additional resource in emergency and non-emergency situations by working within the network of local and state ER Response Teams.  The volunteers  have helped with such local events as Farm to Fork, Junior Olympics, Fire Cadet Training, COVID testing and vaccines, missing children searches, and warming centers. 

Nominated by Brittany

Mission:

Provide youth and others in under-served communities to come together to grow food and improve their lives in West Sacramento.  They inspire and empower youth through learning gardening skills, having social support and by re-directing members away from gang-like activities.  Produce is then donated to individuals and non-profit food agencies.  Three Sisters believes that our community can begin to heal and thrive when all components (youth, adults and elders) are working together as one.  The organization is based on traditional Native American teachings of protecting Mother Earth and respecting all living things.

Nominated by Pam Logan

Mission:

Repair homes, revitalize communities, and rebuild lives. The vision is a safe and healthy home for every person made by improving the living conditions of Sacramento area homeowners through home repairs performed by volunteers. In addition, the mission is to improve homeowner’s independence and prevent at home injuries through home safety evaluations and installations for the disabled and/or elderly populations.

Nominated by Pam Logan