SDR Charity Activities

SDR Charity

 

Charity Overview

San Diego Region has been supporting Charities within San Diego County since the region was formed in 1957. As a club, we feel it is important to give back to the community and those who may need support or a helping hand. In the last decade we have worked with the San Diego Food Bank, Wounded Warriors, Rady Children’s Hospital, Monarch School, Braille Institute, schools for under served populations, and more. Below are a few of the Charities we have supported recently.

San Diego Food Bank

When the pandemic began, so many lives changed overnight. Food insecurity increased significantly in San Diego County. San Diego Region members wanted to help. We started the Virtual Food Drive campaign to benefit the San Diego Food Bank. The Food bank saw an increase in demand that was unprecedented, a 77% increase of those who were now food insecure. Since we started the Virtual Food Drive in 2020, SDR members have directly donated over $46,000 which equates to over 232,000 meals. The Region also held a Food Drive for the SD Food Bank and collected over 445 pounds of Food.  Although the economy has begun getting “back to normal” that is not true for many people who were affected by the pandemic.

SDR is committed to helping those who are hoping to put food on the table for their families and will continue to raise funds and collect food for the San Diego Food Bank. Our next Virtual Food Drive will kick off on April 1 – if you would like to donate today , please use this link to help those in need https://www.fooddriveonline.org/sandiegofoodbank/PCASDR.

 

Rady Children’s Hospital

Rady Children’s Hospital offers comprehensive care to children, so far nearly 2 million sick and injured children have been treated at Rady’s. SDR began supporting Rady’s in the 1990’s, working together with one of our Premier Dealerships here in San Diego. During that time, the dealership would set aside a percentage of the sale of a Porsche to be donated to Rady’s. When the Dealership changed owners, the program ended, but the region found new ways to support Rady’s. every year a Toy Drive was held in November and December. Region members brought Toys to events and often donated money for the Charity Chairs to go out and purchase more toys. Breakfast with Santa was held at one of our local restaurants. A SDR member would dress as Santa Claus and meet with children from the club and those inside the restaurant. After Breakfast members in their Porsche would tour to Rady Children’s Hospital to deliver the toys with Santa in the lead car. SDR would collect over 4-5 large laundry bins of toys each year. With the pandemic, these activities are on hold, but we look forward to resuming our work with Rady Children’s Hospital.

Monarch School

The Monarch School is based in downtown San Diego and is dedicated to serving homeless and at-risk children, ranging in ages from 5 – 18 years old. San Diego Region started helping Monarch School in 2008. SDR would hold a “Socks and Underwear” drives, collect donated items from club members at different events, and then donate these items for the Schools Butterfly Boutique . The Butterfly Boutique services the children attending the school. Most of the children need the basics, so the kids can choose items they need, such as socks, underwear, to take with them. Typically, the club donated about 500-600 items per drive. In 2008 the region was awarded the Monarch Miracle Award which was presented at a Friends of Monarch luncheon. Many members donated funds for the Charity Team to go and purchase anything that might be in short supply – like sizes. The club held these drives twice a year and after dropping off the donations, the club would host an after-school dinner for the children, parents, and staff. We would typically get between 100-150 people at the dinners and the meals were served by Club members. The school has grown dramatically, and their needs have changed, we look forward to working with them again to help this under served community.

 

Wounded Warriors Program

The Military has a large presence in San Diego County. Multiple branches of the military are stationed here training to defend land and sea. The Wounded Warriors Project was spearheaded by retired Navy and Air force members to show those recovering warriors we honor their service. Those who were able to participate joined region members in their Porsche for a tour on some nice roads. After the tour, the region would host a lunch for all those who wanted to participate. This was a very popular event for the service men and women who had been injured while serving our country. In addition, the Region has participated in a fund raising for the Wounded Warrior Project and most recently participated in a Golf Tournament to raise funds for the organization.