March 25, 2004

Mothers and daughters work together to help others
Almaden/Blossom Valley chapter of the National Charity League
honors 12 seniors for six years of dedication

By Justin Petersen
Staff Writer

Several teens were recently rewarded for their positive achievements—practicing philanthropy in action—the past six years. Twelve Almaden/Blossom Valley seniors were honored during the National Charity League Senior Presentation at the Silver Creek Country Club last weekend, acknowledging each young lady's hard work and dedication toward an improved quality of life in the city of San Jose.

According to Michelle Taylor, president of the Almaden/Blossom Valley chapter of the National Charity League, the NCL is an organization of mothers and daughters who join together in local chapters throughout the United States to provide community service to those in need. The NCL's goal is to foster a sense of community responsibility in the daughters as well as to strengthen the mother-daughter relationship.

Saturday's event celebrated the deeds of 12 high school seniors and their mothers, including Chrissy and Cathy Bagan, Janelle and Jody Zetterquist, Lynnea and Kathy Bothwell, Allie and Debbie Wagner, Caroline and Gene Caselli, Lauren and Cheryl Ryan, Ashley and Debbie Diamond, Jenna and Doreen Ramona, Leah and Shirley Fuller, Sabrina and Naoma Mize, Jennifer and Patsy Lindsay, and Jill and Denise Lucas.

The NCL, founded in 1925 by a group of Los Angeles women interested in making a difference, worked silently for more than a decade with the Red Cross, making layettes and assembling and delivering baskets of food to the hungry at holiday times. By 1938, so many of the women, who were then mothers, had brought their daughters along with them, that the new dynamic became recognized. In 1947, these groups united to become the first mother-daughter charity and officially took on the title National Charity League.

This year's Almaden/Blossom Hill honorees served six years, beginning when the daughters were in seventh grade. The group, the oldest of more than 100 Almaden/Blossom Hill mother/daughter members, is responsible for approximately 3,000 hours of community service this year alone. The girls spent time working at the Special Olympics, sharing time with kids at the San Jose Family Shelter, cooking meals for abused mothers and their children, visiting local senior centers, working at the Career Closet [which provides clothing for economically challenged women re-entering the work force], and by helping spread the teachings of the American Cancer Society on to others.

“We are so grateful for the devotion our mothers have shown us.” said Leland High School senior Lynnea Bothwell. “All [of the mothers and daughters] share a special connection. We have matured and learned so much throughout the last six years through helping others.”