GIA Helps Families in Need

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Sept. 24, 2009 –The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) recently joined forces with North County’s Community Resource Center (CRC) to help families struggling to make ends meet. The Institute issued a challenge for its staff and students to donate “gently used” clothes for the CRC’s Holiday Baskets program.

The reward: A free concert and the knowledge they were doing something practical to help their community.

The GIA Green Team came up with the idea of “recycling” clothes for the program, said Angela O’Hara, a GIA co-chair of the event. “It was a win-win situation on all fronts. We thought it might be easier in this economy to go through our closets, than it would be to write a check. A clothing drive makes it possible for people to help in a meaningful way and prevent items that still have a lot of good use left in them from going into our landfills.”

Semisi and Fula Bula, a local band known for its Tonga rhythms, donated its time to support the initiative. They played an hour mix of rock, reggae, calypso, jazz, Latin, hip-hop and folk music – what group leader Semisi Ma’u calls “Bulu Music” – as participants dropped off donations.

CRC’s Holiday Baskets program, which has been in existence for the past 27 years, is the largest distribution of its kind in San Diego County, according to Laurin Pause, the program’s executive director. Last year, more than 5,000 people received food, blankets, outer wear, baby items and gifts. Pause expects a record number of families to be in need this year.

“People are looking for ways to help their neighbors, and all you have to do is look in your closet for items you no longer want,” Pause said. “That coat or blanket you’re not going to use can keep someone else warm.”

More than 150 GIA staff members and students donated six car loads of jackets, blankets, and other items to the program. “This definitely gets our Holiday Baskets program off to a great start,” Pause said. “The outpouring of GIA’s generosity in support of the Community Resource Center was wonderful. From the GIA president on down, it shows that GIA understands the value of community.”

The GIA Green Team was created to promote environmental awareness and encourage employees to reduce, reuse and recycle at work and at home.

For Holiday Baskets volunteer and collection opportunities, please contact CRC at (760) 230-6305 or scolby@crcncc.org.