Youth, church grant helps homeless in Tehama County

Julie R. Johnson, Corning Observer, Calif.
·4 min read

Apr. 26—What started as a simple idea for Paula Anderson as she drove down the highway months ago has blossomed into a service project and partnership the exemplifies the very meaning of "charity," — a word that is at the core of the new Tehama County PATH Plaza Navigation Center in Red Bluff.

"I knew about the PATH Plaza Navigation Center, and was at the same time trying to find ways to for my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in this area to truly serve the community in meaningful, lasting ways," Anderson said. "I just knew there had to be a way to connect the two needs."

Anderson's idea came to fruition on Saturday, April 20 when more than 30 youths, ages 11-18, and their leaders from the Anderson Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints met at the PATH Plaza on Lay Avenue in Red Bluff to help prepare the center for its April 27 grand opening.

The youths, from Corning, Red Bluff, Anderson, Cottonwood and Palo Cedro, spent the morning planting 40 fruit and nut trees, building and planting garden boxes, planting a flower garden, sewing pillowcases and making dozens of blankets.

Ron Panich, board president of P.A.T.H., an acronym of Poor and the Homeless, in Tehama County said the service provided by the youth was priceless in not only helping to prepare the plaza, but directly helping those in need that the plaza will serve.

The plaza is home to a 10,000 square foot building that can daily feed and house homeless individuals and families in the community of Tehama County.

Panich said the purpose of the navigation plaza is to provide mental and physical health services, alcohol and drug abuse services, food, laundry, educational, self-reliance and basic life-skill classes, and much more to the homeless, as well as beds for men, women and families to stay overnight on a limited basis.

"This isn't a place for the homeless to live, but a place where they can have their basic needs met and at the same time we can provide the services and programs to help them get back on their feet if they so desire," he added.

With the idea of helping PATH with the plaza, Anderson contacted the church's Bishop's Storehouse to see if the church could help with providing food to the navigation plaza.

"Our area Communications Director Robin Cook volunteers at the storehouse and suggested we write a grant asking for the church to provide one month of meals to the plaza," she said.

The idea of writing a grant snowballed from there and led to the church granting $75,000 to PATH for the purchase of bedding, beds and food for the plaza.

In addition to the hands-on service project provided by the youth and their leaders, and the grant funding, Panich said it was surely full-filling the Lord's commandment to "love one another."

One of the youth, Nicolas Mackintosh, 17, of Corning said he believes he was getting as much out of the service project as those he was serving.

"I have so much and there are people out there who have so little. If I can give up a Saturday morning to help my fellowman and give a hands-up, I'm happy to do it. It feels good, it really does," he said.

One of the girls who was planting flowers around the plaza said she was trying to live up to the Christ's admonition to "love one another."

In addition to the church youth giving their time and service, the children in the Anderson Stake created artwork that will be framed and placed on the walls of the plaza's interior to help brighten and liven-up the facility, Anderson said.

"The people this place will help, they either don't have a home or have lost their homes, they don't have the financial stability to take care of themselves, and so we are just helping out and I hope these flowers we are planting will somehow help them feel better and bring a smile to their faces," she added.

Alfred Drum, one of the leaders in Anderson Stake Young Men's organization, spearheaded the effort, along with Gabriel Hydrick, Anderson, Linda Espinosa, Teresa Martin and many others in partnership with the directors of PATH.