Downey is a giving community

This electrical box is just outside the Mimi's Cafe on Firestone Boulevard. It depicts the many facets of giving that the Assistance League of Downey participates in.

The one I'm most familiar with is the thrift store on Downey Avenue. My wife and I pass by it during our evening walks. We love to see the window displays. They always have a theme and are very creative. Go and check out what's inside sometime, and then support the Assistance League by purchasing something.

We have many posts of the thrift store here.

We have also posted regarding the Assistance League's Casa De Parley Johnson here. The house was designed for Parley Johnson and his wife Gypsy. After her death in 1986, the house was bequeathed to the Assistance League.

Casa de Parley Johnson

Today was an open house fund-raiser for the Assistance League of Downey. The event offered participants the chance to tour the 6,000 square foot Spanish Colonial Revival house designed by Roland Coate. It was an impressive visit. The style is very appealing with the archways and large rooms.

I love the balconies that virtually surround the house. The house was designed for prominent citrus rancher Parley Johnson and his wife Gypsy. After her death in 1986, the house was bequeathed to the  Assistance League of Downey.

Change that serves

There used to be three high schools in the Downey Unified School District, Downey High School, Warren High School, and Columbus High School. But three was too many, so Columbus was converted to a continuation school and now houses Downey Adult School (DAS). One program at DAS allows people who never graduated from high school to train and take the General Educational Development tests. Once they pass these tests they receive their high school equivalency certificate.

This is Minerva. She has been helping students pass the GED test for a long time at DAS. She is a pillar of the program.



The rest of Columbus is dedicated to helping adults be trained in a career. Massage therapy, dental assistance, pharmacy technician, and make-up academy are a few of the programs they offer. Check out these and many more here.

We're stronger together

October is breast cancer awareness month. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States (other than skin cancer).

The Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign was founded in 1992 by the late Mrs. Evelyn H. Lauder with the launch of the Pink Ribbon, the universal symbol for breast health. This year's slogan is "We're stronger together."

The Downey Assistance League in downtown Downey is doing its part to promote awareness. Tomorrow I'll show you what the city is doing.

Dressed for love

Looking back, I notice that I frequently post about the Second Tyme Around Shoppe. Just last month, I wrote about their winter-themed window displays. This month, the display, with hearts and pink and red clothes, is perfect for Valentine's Day. And this time, I finally realized what keeps me coming back.

It's not just that the displays are colorful and appealing. Rather, it's that somebody here (or most likely several somebodies) cares enough to take the time and thought to make the displays attractive. Somebody cares enough to want this thrift store to be a success.

And that's important, because proceeds from the store benefit the Assistance League of Downey and their numerous philanthropic projects. Among their programs is Operation School Bell, which provides new clothing to school children, and HOME (Housing of Medical Emergencies), a 10-unit apartment complex that serves relatives of patients at Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center.

So stop by sometime, and see for yourself.

Thrift

I've walked by the Second Tyme Around thrift shop in downtown Downey many times, mostly at night. (Click here to see previous shots of the store window displays.) So in all these years, I've never been inside, until last weekend.

The thrift shop is one of many philanthropic programs that is run by the Assistance League of Downey. This isn't where you would go to shop for used clothing, but pretty much everything else is here. It was fun to browse.

Soul Consoling Tower

Before I head back home, one last post from Manzanar. Here is an excerpt from one of the displays:
"Manzanar changed substantially between the day it opened in March 1942 and the day it closed in November 1945. Internees transformed the landscape with ponds and gardens. Families welcomed babies and mourned deaths. Schools educated students, internal security helped prevent crime, and the fire department extinguished fires. In its first anniversary issue, the Manzanar Free Press published an anonymous poem about the complexity of life at Manzanar:
    "Out of smiles and curses, of tears and cries, forlorn;
    Mixed with broken laughter, forced because they must...
    Out on the desert's bosom—a new town is born."

The film and the displays at the visitor center show this new town. There are old photos showing how the internees created beauty out of nothing. There were gardens everywhere, both for food and for beauty. (The internees grew much of their own food.) But almost nothing of the original buildings and gardens is left—the only thing still standing (that is, not reconstructed) is the cemetery.

Also from the displays:
"The Japanese Kanji characters read 'Soul Consoling Tower.' Master stonemason Ryozo Kado, a Catholic, and Buddhist minister Shinjo Nagatomi designed this iconic monument as a permanent tribute to Manzanar's dead. Kado built the obelisk with the assistance of Block 9 residents and a young Buddhists' group, funded by 15-cent donations from each family in camp."

There are only six graves left in the cemetery, because most families of the deceased, after they got resettled, came back and moved the remains of their loved ones for reburial elsewhere.

Taste of Downey 2013

Tonight was the annual celebration of the restaurants of Downey called "Taste of Downey." We have written about previous years (2012, 2011, and 2010).

Tonight I concentrated on the Soroptimist International of Downey booth to learn more about this service group. According to their pamphlet, the "Soroptimists help women and children, and help to make the community a better place to live." They do this by giving scholarships, supporting organizations that support female college athletes, and providing assistance to women improving their lives by going back to school for their business degree. You can visit their website here or contact Beth Crawford at 562-756-0632.

The Soroptimists' booth served different beers and ales for a donation that they will use in serving others.

I found a group of women enjoying a night out doing their part to support the Soroptimists.

Help support others

The Assistance League's Second Tyme Around Shop on Downey Avenue is open year round and is there to assist you in helping others. By purchasing second-hand merchandise you help them in helping the less fortunate in our community. This month you can also support breast cancer research by buying something pink. Try it. See their website here.



At the same time, you can take a stroll up Downey Avenue in the evening lights.

PS Downey Avenue picture donated by my wife, Bonnie.