Joe Gutierrez Office of Strategic Communication (909) 537-5007 joeg@csusb.edu
More than 420 Cal State San Bernardino students, alumni, staff and faculty joined forces as volunteers on and off campus to help local nonprofit organizations and community agencies as part of the seventh annual Coyote Cares Day on April 13. CSUSB student volunteers were shuttled in 10 school buses and 10 vans to locations throughout the area, including as Loma Linda, Colton, Redlands and San Bernardino, to help community organizations and nonprofit agencies, schools and parks do repairs, pack supplies and take care of other needs. Prior to the students being sent out to their volunteer assignments, CSUSB President Tomás D. Morales praised them for their efforts. “I want to thank you all for being here. This is so meaningful, so meaningful for you to be here,” Morales said. “To see so many clubs and organizations, so many sororities and fraternities, so many athletic teams here to give back, to give service. “We are obligated, because we are blessed to be in this university setting,” Morales said. “We are so fortunate and you are the future of this region, and so I just want to thank you. You may not realize how important your contribution is.” On campus, the volunteers served at two sites, helping at the 12th annual C.A.S.A. (Court Appointed Special Advocates for children) Heart of Hero Run, and, for the fourth straight year, CSUSB Alumni Relations partnered with the Office of Community Engagement to pack boxes for the Community Action Partnership of San Bernardino. More than 120 volunteers, most of them alumni, packed 1,700 boxes of food in less than two-and-half hours, breaking last year’s record of packing 1,500 boxes. The Community Action Partnership will distribute the food to families in need throughout San Bernardino County. Coyote Cares Day is a day of volunteer service that provides CSUSB students with an understanding of the work of nonprofit organizations, and engages the students through volunteer service. Coyote Cares Day took place at the end of National Volunteer Week, an annual celebration observed in many countries, to promote and show appreciation for volunteerism and volunteering. The participating community organizations where the volunteers served included:
- Option House
- Ronald McDonald House Charities – Inland Empire
- San Bernardino City Mission
- San Bernardino Neighborhood Association - Wildwood Park
- SOAR Charter Academy
- CASA of San Bernardino County
- Central City Lutheran Mission
- Family Service Association of Redlands
- Veteran’s Exploration Garden
- Hutton Community Center
- Helping Hands Pantry
- Helping Hands Pantry-Garden
- Huerta Del Valle
- Inland Empire Resource Conservation District
Visit the CSUSB Office of Community Engagement website, or call at (909) 537-7483, for moreinformation on Coyote Cares Day and other community projects. For more information about the CSUSB Alumni Relations visit its website or call (909) 537-3700.