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Summer 2000
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Lessons From
Priscilla
by Ray Castellani
I have stated on many different occasions the freer I became of self
the more acutely I felt the surroundings of life - the beat of the soul -
the joy of another’s triumph - the agony of a tear from a lost being -
to be of service to the Master - this is the only reason for the existence
of human beings - the disobedience of His order - will result only in
disharmony - where selfishness - deceit - impurities of mind - body - soul
-stand forever maligning His Will -
I wrote this little passage not long ago - what a paradise humanity
would exist in - if this were the rule of the day - I cried as a little
boy out of loneliness - nothing stood between my loneliness and life so
the tears were always streaming down my face - here I am one more time
many years later - loneliness fills my heart - tears are shed - nothing
standing between my Priscilla
and my self - the smell of her coat - the touch of her coat - the strength
of her body - the ears back as she speeds to my arms - the keen eyes - the
protective nature - the way she speaks to let us know what she wants -the
uncomplicated and simple devotions she radiates from her persona - she
never lies - she never cheats - she is never dishonest - she never has
impure thoughts - she just loves -
Priscilla is my dog - my mind knows this but the lonely feeling inside
my heart does not - it just hurts - there are no rationalizations nor
justifications - that will take away the sorrow - nor can I compromise the
feelings - they just are - this is what I bring to the people of Skid Row
- a human being stripped of self - so that the language of the heart - is
ever so prevalent - and the power of the Master ever so present -
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Frontline to Find
& Build New Kitchen
Frontline Central, the kitchen facility housing
Frontline since 1990, has been sold recently to Public Storage. The
kitchen, along with the 6-7 adjoining industrial units, will be torn down
near the end of the year and turned into storage units.
Word had already reached Frontline of an impending
sale, but in June Frontline received a letter confirming it. After several
phone calls to Steve Greenberg (owner of the building), his attorney and
Chandler Associates (property manager), we were reassured that Frontline
would receive adequate notice to relocate. In fact, Chandler Associates,
the company that manages the units, have said that they would do
everything possible to find us a location within one of their other units.
We also were able to make contact with Paul Hoffman at Public Storage who
is offering to help Frontline in some way with the relocation.
Over 3,000 meals are served each month. We only hope that bridging the
closing of one facility and the opening of a new one, will be a small
window, being ever cognizant of the humanity on the streets. But, for
Frontline to relocate means to literally build a new kitchen. Many of you
will remember the months it took to turn our kitchen into what it is
today. Hundreds of people were involved in the labor of installing
plumbing, gas lines, electricity, and the actual moving of all of our
supplies and foods. We also refuse to use resources designated for
food to relocate and re-build. A move is a monumental undertaking,
financially and emotionally!
Unfortunately, with our large annual Swing 2001’
fundraiser in January, a move in the late winter could not only disrupt
our one fundraiser, it will definitely disrupt our meal servings downtown,
as well as split the already fractured focus of founder Ray Castellani. We
can only hope that the good intentions turn into actions on the part of
Public Storage and Chandler Associates.
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Swing 2001’
Update
The Swing 2001’ crunch is on! With only 5 months to
go we need to sell 300 tickets! Our goal is to have 500 people or 50
tables sold this year.
The band is lined up and ready to play! Last years
event was amazing, with over 400 people attending. The food was
unbelievably delicious, the energy in the room was overwhelming. And
everyone loved our raffle!
The
Sheraton Universal truly helped to make our event a phenomenal success.
We’d love to have you there with us this year. You
can order tickets by phone, email, web site, mail. 362 people have
reserved already (the room holds 500) and 145 people have already paid for
the tickets. A special thanks to all of those 145 who have already paid
for their reservations.
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No Where To Go But Up
by Tex
I was putting forth a good effort
and I started to ignore my responsibility and once again, I landed back in
jail and unhappy, with a few weeks to go I feel happy that I am getting
out. This time around I saw something that I never saw before - racial
conflict and riots. But now it is over. I have come to the end of my time
as of July 3, 2000. I will once again team up in the partnership that Ray
and I have in being a part of people’s lives on Skid Row. For 12 years
Ray and I have been feeding people from 5th and San Pedro to 5th and
Crocker to many back streets of the city. And everywhere we stop, people
are glad to see us. People see Ray as being from the old school - he has
the same attitude every time he arrives: love and respect for the people
on the street. After we get through feeding he may stand around and talk
to people for 30 or 40 minutes, which is something that most people come
down here don’t do. And to me that comes from having lived in both
worlds, being on top and on the bottom. We need a lot more people like
him. This is his life down here and these are his friends down here and I
think he is going to be down here until he dies. I figure when he and I
met 12 years ago I could see there was something special about him and
660,000 meals later I know this is true. |
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Special
Thanks
Gaterie Bakery
in Los Angeles has been spoiling the people downtown with gourmet
desserts. Thanks to Ben Gomberg who picks up the delicacies and a
special thanks to Joanne Adirim, owner of the bakery.
Schools continue to help out. Just before the end of
school in June, Vintage Magnet held a fruit cocktail drive that
brought in over 630 pounds of fruit cocktail!!!! Valley Beth Shalom
continues its tremendous support as does Noble Avenue and Fairfield
Avenue.
Max Gitnick at Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream
called with exciting news: They donated fify 5 gallon tubs of ice cream!
Arin at the warehouse has helped arrange weekly pick-ups for Frontline at
their Sherman Oaks store. If you’ve ever tried any flavor of Ben and
Jerry's, you know what a treat this donation is!
Linda McDonnell at
Currie’s Coffee Shoppe in Granada Hills has donated a case of
oranges each week for the people downtown. Our friends downtown just love
them! Currie’s also has a donation canister at the restaurant. Thank you
Linda!
Thank you, Karin
Paulsen at Beverly Glen Deli. She’s been such an incredible
supporter. She’s sold hundreds and hundreds of raffle tickets, gotten
great prizes donated, and has gotten so many people to come to Swing night
this year and last. Thank you Karin!
The brothers at California Fresh Foods in the
Northridge Mall just keep on giving and giving. Over 200 people each week
are served with foods they donate. Bob and Andy Jacobson give us
teriyaki chicken, taco meat, taquitos, hot dogs, hamburgers, and so much
more. The food is just savored downtown.
Continuing thanks to Arin Coyl (soup and pasta),
Omar Dominguez (tuna), and Tommy Rhett (celery and apple
sauce) for your tremendous donations of food. You’re serving the tummy
and the heart. Thank you.
Thank you to all the Three Dollar Club Members and
Frontline 80 members. Your generous and consistent support must be
recognized! $3 Club participants give $3 monthly to help secure Frontline’s
existence. The goal is to have 1,000 members which would secure the
program in the future. Frontline 80 members have been an incredible group
for about 10 years now, donating $10 monthly specifically for the rental
of our kitchen facility. With the rent stabilized each month, Frontline
has never had to worry about not having a place in which to prepare food.
A most special thanks to all those who pre-reserved their swing 2001’
tickets and have already paid for them. By doing it early, before
September, you’ve helped alleviate a lot of work for Ray. Out of 362
pre-event reservations, 145 have already sent in their money. Thank you so
much.
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A Variety of
Raffles Give Frontline 75% of Pot and Winner 25%
Frontline doesn’t have corporate sponsors or giant
donors. Most of you know we survive through the generosity of individuals.
Funds trickle in, and over 650,000 meals have been served. In a way to
increase our funding a bit, Frontline has had and is having some raffles.
Generally, 1,000 tickets are sold and the winner
receives $250. This works out to give the winner 25%of the pot raised. The
first winner was Ann Ramos, an employee at Dunlap Enterprises. Maura
Moelter, Frontline volunteer and awesome ticket seller had sold her the
ticket.
Thanks to some great minds though, there is a small
variation to some of these raffles. Both Gibson and Associates Realtors
and the Beverly Glen Deli have held their own, in-house raffles. This
means that one person at these places sold a number of tickets and a name
was drawn directly from the group at these businesses. The winner received
25% as in our regular raffle but these private raffles enabled someone
directly from the office or business to win. It definitely is more fun for
all involved, knowing that one of them will win.
Karin Paulsen at the Beverly Glen Deli has always been
a great ticket seller. She herself sold 1,000 tickets to her friends and
customers up at the deli. When her 571 tickets were sold, Ray Castellani
went up with our beautiful raffle drum and held the drawing. Nicki
Durlester, a deli regular, won the raffle. This raffle and all of the
tremendous support from the employees and customers would not be possible
without the love and care that owners Loretta and Barry Cockeran have
given to Frontline for over a decade.
At Gibson and Associates Realtors, an outsider -
Frontline volunteer Ed Schieber - actually came in and pitched the raffle
idea to the staff. They were really excited about the thought of
supporting Frontline as well as knowing that one of them from the Encino
office would win. Ed, office manager Bonnie Strassman, and the staff there
decided to have a $5 minimum ticket purchase. When their tickets were
sold, Andrew Montoya’s name was drawn. The office was really into this
raffle and their support is so appreciated. It was an extra treat to have
Michael Gibson himself at the drawing.
If you’d like to help coordinate a raffle at your
business or workplace, it’s so easy, and your odds are fantastic! In
fact, you already know someone from your group will win. PLEASE give us a
call if you know a place. These raffles will help us continue serving our
food downtown. |
We
Need Sponsors and Raffle Prizes - Can You Help?
Frontline continues to need help in a few vital areas for our
fundraiser to be the success it was last year. Please take a look below
and see if there is some way you could help us. This is our only
fundraiser so we do depend heavily on it to bring in needed funds.
Celebrity Host/Guests
Do you know any celebrities? How about T.V. or radio personalities? Do
you know any news people? Do you know anyone who knows anyone? Having
special guest appearances at our event makes selling the reservations so
much easier. Please call if you know anyone!
Obtain Sponsors
Donations from sponsors actually underwrite the costs of the event so
that all of the ticket sales can be completely applied to Frontline’s
meal program. Sponsors have their names on all flyers, invitations, press
releases, public service announcements and our web site. They can
contribute any amount of money towards funding the costs of the Swing 2001’.
Anyone can be a sponsor - a company, an individual, family, group. So, ask
away!
Secure Reservations
The Sheraton Universal Grand Ballroom can accommodate 500 people. At
the time of printing, 145 reservations have been paid for. Some good
suggestions might be to get a a group from work together to buy a table
($500 for 10 people) or have your family have their get together at the
event. What about your church or temple group? Make a night of it!
Get Prizes
Our raffle last year was a huge success. We had amazing prizes. This
year we would love some help getting them. Here are some ideas:
hotel stays, trips, art work, event tickets, stereo & computer
equipment, massages, car washes, make overs, sports equipment - anything
is possible! Do you work at a travel agency where a trip can be donated?
Do you work in the movie industry and have access to some great
memorabilia? Do you regularly
go to a theatre or restaurant or salon or gym or store and can ask for
gift certificates? Think hard! You must know someone or be someone who can
get some kind of prize or gift certificate donated.
If you can assist us in any way, please give us a call at
(818)780-1995. |
Many of you will recall
the Spring newsletter in 1992 when we introduced our girl Priscilla to you
as the Frontline mascot. She has been with us all of these years and has
given inexplicable joy and during these years has brought us laughter and
unabridged love. She basically grew up in the kitchen with the volunteers
and I’m sure most will recall what a loud and expressive voice she has.
She is one feisty girl with a spirit of G-d in most everything she does.
In fact, as I sit here writing this, she is lying on the floor next to my
desk whining and talking. What is she saying? "Arruh, whaaauu, ruff
RUFF, ROUGH" Translated this means "I love you mommy, pay
attention to me. Please play with me. Now!" She was recently
diagnosed with cancer and our hearts have been shattered. Our lives have
now been filled with tears and prayers. She is still rambunctious and full
of life and really on most days has no idea she is "dis-eased."
She’s been getting chemo from Dr. Ayl, an oncologist at Animal Specialty
Group and also acupuncture and herbal support from Dr. Taylor and Dr.
Limehouse, homeopathic veterinarians at Limehouse Pet clinic. All of our
efforts, and the efforts of the doctors just don’t seem to be enough. It’s
just not. Priscilla needs a miracle, and I know there’s only one who can
provide it. We need some help. I know it may be asking a lot, but I wanted
to ask all of the Frontliners to add her to your list of prayers. She’s
only 8 and we need to have her until she reaches 12. Maybe with all of our
voices G-d will hear it a little louder. Thank you.
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A\ Frontline
T-Shirts For Sale
Available
in: cypress green, red, true blue, white, nickel, green clay
Sizes
M, Lg. XL
$15
($17.00 if shipping to you)
call
(818)780-1995 or order on back page or on web site
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Enter Frontline’s
raffle
today ! win
$250 Cash !
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Only 1,000
tickets will be sold. Your odds of winning are
fantastic!
Tickets cost $1.00
winner gets
« $250
«
frontline gets $750
Order on back Or On Net
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