Poplar and Tule River Communities Come Together to Help More than 400 Families
POPLAR – Grateful parents, smiling faces, and happy children is what Poplar’s Central Valley Empowerment Alliance accomplished Friday during it’s ‘Healthy Season’ event where more than 400 families, including 110 families from the Tule River Indian Reservation, received dinner baskets with a turkey and the trimmings for a holiday dinner. In addition, more than 400 children and youths received gifts. The families were served at two locations, in Poplar at the Larry Itliong Center, and at the Tule River Reservation.
Dennis Townsend, Tulare County Board of Supervisors, District 1, volunteered to help distribute the food and gifts at the reservation and said it was such a joy to see the smiles on the children.
“As any child would be, they were really happy to receive something,” Townsend said. “We set up in the morning and in a couple of hours, we had given away all the gifts. They weren’t wrapped so the child got to pick what they wanted. It was a lot of fun. I enjoyed greeting people. I had a really good time.”
Parents were also grateful, he said, for the food baskets they received.
While Townsend and volunteers were at the Reservation, other volunteers were busy taking care of a large crowd in Poplar.
Kaweah Health’s Street Medicine offered urgent care and referrals to 30 individuals. In addition, 60 COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters were given. Information and help for homeowner and renter relief was also offered.
“When a community comes together, nothing seems impossible,” said Mari Perez-Ruiz, executive director of CVEA at the Larry Itliong Research Center in Poplar. “It was our third event but the first from the Itliong Research Center. They’ve been smaller in the past but this year we went to the Tule River Reservation and asked to partner with them.”
Perez-Ruiz credits Red Cloud Manuel from the Reservation and Dennis Townsend for their help in making it a successful event, especially since the small community of Poplar is still trying to recover after it was hit by a destructive rogue fire on July 9 that took several downtown businesses, vehicles, and homes, leaving at least 12 people displaced.
Offered were turkeys and hams, and all the trimmings, Perez-Ruiz said, and plenty of families went by to pick up the toys for their children.
“We want to help the community especially during the pandemic,” Perez-Ruiz said.
She also acknowledged Tule River Reservation for partnering with them for the event. In addition, Art Rodrigues, communications and organizing director of CVEA and president of the Poplar Community Service District, said, they received donations from United Way, Proteus, Tulare Kings Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Latino Rotary of Tulare County, League of Latino Voters, and Dennis Townsend and the Tulare County Board of Supervisors.
Perez-Ruiz especially credited some of the town’s elders, and local youth, for their help.
“One of the most beautiful things of the event is the role youth played with outreach, coordinating and hosting of Healthy Season,” she said. “One and a half years ago, I asked youth what they wanted to be when they grew up and I got back blank stares. And now, four of them have been employed (for Poplar) and have the opportunity of becoming leaders in our community.”
Youth Organizer Isabel Rodriguez, along with four young adults from Poplar, were instrumental in the success of the program, Perez-Ruiz said.
“They canvassed the area and did the outreach themselves,” Perez-Ruiz said. “These youth were hired from the community and are reflective of the community. They helped plan and organize the day and did a lot of the wrapping of gifts.”
Many in the community had been hesitant about vaccinations for a variety of reasons and beliefs, but after elders and the youth reached out to the community about the vaccines and urgent care, Perez-Ruiz said they had many “First timers” receiving vaccinations.
Dr. Omar Guzman and three physicians, along with medical students, provided a “No Barriers” walk-up urgent care center on site, Perez-Ruiz said.
“They took care of prescriptions, referrals to clinics and hearing-aid referrals. And it was all ‘No Barriers’ – no questions asked. It was for anyone who needed help and are not able to get it.”
The community is still healing, Perez-Ruiz said.
“We’re coming together – taking care of each other, getting ahead of the pandemic,” Perez-Ruiz said. “We believe in our community. This holiday event was about that – opening the doors of our youth to dream. That’s what makes the work we do unique. We are community members helping community members.”