For Lynette Blumhardt, volunteering with the Sacramento chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association wasn’t just a nice thing to do—it was a matter of survival.
The College Glen resident and Sacramento native found herself turning to the association—the country’s leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer’s and dementia care, support and research—when her father was diagnosed with the disease in 2012.
If Bruce Mattos could encourage Sacramentans to do one thing, it would be to join a sports team.
“If we got more people involved in sports, we’d have a better sense of community,” says Mattos, longtime manager and now referee assignor of the Land Park Soccer Club. “Sports bring fellowship and comradery. Children are too connected to their devices—they need to build relationships.”
For Melinda Carson, relationships are key. Whether in her former capacity as executive director of the Sacramento and Northeastern California Make-A-Wish Foundation or as current volunteer extraordinaire for the Albie Aware Breast Cancer Foundation, Carson knows that connecting with the community is crucial.
Nereo Rebellato is one of those kind-hearted souls who not only talks the talk, he walks the walk.
The former Raley’s executive has volunteered for the Sacramento SPCA for the past four years doing a myriad things—one of which is befriending dogs who catch his eye at the shelter, “fixing them up” if they need medical attention or socialization, and then getting his many friends and colleagues to adopt them.
When Fruitridge Manor resident Susan Just started volunteering with AARP Foundation’s Experience Corps—an intergenerational tutoring program that helps children become grade-level readers by the end of third grade—she chose to work with kindergartners because she has “a lot in common” with them.
As a 74-year-old white male, I sometimes fear being profiled by my appearance and lumped into a demographic group. In reality, my experience is exactly the opposite. Every day, I am reminded of the gifts that come from getting to know people of different religions and cultures.
