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What’s Happening at SOK

Oct 7, 2025 | What's New

WHEN DROPPING THE BALL IS A GOOD THING

Final preparations are underway for the 14th Annual Serving Our Kids Golf Tournament, our biggest fundraising event of the year, on Sunday November 2nd at The Legacy Golf Club Las Vegas. And it’s shaping up to be our best tournament ever.

The response has been incredible and we want to thank all of the generous partners, sponsors, fearless foursomes and dedicated duffers who have already pledged their support, including our three Nicklaus Sponsors, Aristocrat Gaming, Ford Country and Greenberg Traurig. Jack would be proud.

But there’s still an opportunity to participate, even if you don’t register to play or can’t attend the event – our Helicopter Ball Drop Fundraiser.

Feeling lucky? Purchase two golf balls for $50. Want to improve your odds? Purchase five balls for $100. There’s no limit to how many you can purchase from now until 7:00 AM on Sunday November 2nd.

Each ball you buy has a number assigned only to you. Just before the shotgun start, our friends at Sundance Helicopters will drop all of the balls on the 18th green.

  • If one of your balls is first in the hole or closest to the hole, you’ll win $1,000 in cash.
  • Second closest wins a Staycation at the iconic Plaza Hotel and Casino valued at $750. This includes dinner for two at Oscar’s Steakhouse and a Wine Duo.
  • Third closest wins a two-night stay at MGM Grand valued at $500.

Winners will be announced at the tournament luncheon, but you don’t have to be present to win. We’ll contact all winners within five days after the event.

So, get in the game! It’s more exciting than sinking a 40-foot putt for eagle. OK, maybe not. But it is a lot of fun.

Click Here and Buy Your Gold Balls, Today!

NV ENERGY ELECTRIFIES SOK

A few months ago, the NV Energy Foundation awarded SOK a $75,000 grant. The vast majority of these funds were dedicated to purchasing the nutritious, easy-to-eat foods we pack in our weekend meal bags. Needless to say, we were truly grateful.

But the foundation also challenged the NV Energy employee volunteers to break the SOK meal-bagging record. And in two events at two different locations, 220 amazing NV Energy volunteers created more than 15,000 weekend meal bags for 15,000 elementary and middle school kids who leave school on Friday not knowing if they’ll eat again until Monday. A stunning accomplishment.

“75,000 thank yous are simply not enough,” said Laurie Tanakaya, CEO of Serving Our Kids. “So, we’ll add 15,000 more on behalf on the food-insecure children they’ve helped us feed.”

HELMS HELPS DOUBLES DONATIONS!

The Helms Helps Foundation pledged to double all first-time donations (up to $20,000!) we received during September. This challenged us to do more to reach people who might not know about SOK, our mission and how food-insecurity afflicts thousands of kids in their community.

We are thrilled to announce that we met the challenge by raising $20,000 from new SOK donors. So, Helms Helps is matching that with its own $20,000 gift for a grand total of $40,000 in new funds.

A huge thank you to Terry Helms and everyone at Helms Helps Foundation for your incredible generosity.

FOOD DRIVE HIGH FIVES

Mega kudos to everyone who participated in the Bay Law Help Feed Their Dreams Food Drive. Concerned people like you donated more than 6,000 food items that go into our weekend meal bags, including the pillow bag Ramen noodles, fruit strips and squeezable apple sauce kids love.

Once again, SOK Champions Bay Law Injury Attorneys and News 3 Las Vegas did the heavy lifting. News 3 promoted the drive to viewers throughout Southern Nevada and the Bay Law team collected food donations at their offices in Henderson and topped it off by creating 4,000 weekend meal bags.

We also want to give a special shout-out to Don Tortaco Mexican Grill whose team promoted the drive to customers and collected food items at eight of their Las Vegas valley locations. Welcome to the fight against child hunger!

GOETTL GIVES BACK

Goettl might be hard to spell, but it’s easy to love. In September, the well-known air conditioning and plumbing company selected SOK to receive a $1,000 donation through its Kindness In The Air program.

Goettl Las Vegas Fleet Coordinator Dallin Kvist nominated us for the gift. A big thank you to Goettl and Dallin for your kindness and concern for the thousands of food-insecure children in Southern Nevada.

75,000 Reasons to Say, “Thank You”

75,000 Reasons to Say, “Thank You”

Jul 31, 2025 | Community Support

The NV Energy Foundation has just approved a $75,000 grant to SOK! The foundation funds significant programs and initiatives that have a lasting, positive impact in the communities they serve. And we’re thrilled that they consider SOK worthy of their incredible generosity.

The foundation has also issued a record-breaking meal-bagging challenge to the NV Energy employee volunteer team: Create 15,000 SOK weekend meal bags in two, high-energy, fun events. We will use a portion of the grant for a food purchase to keep the baggers busy for as long as it takes to meet the goal.

The events, led by Shannon Gregory, Director of Delivery Operations – South, are scheduled for August 11th and 12th at two NV Energy locations.

All we can say is, rest-up, carb-up and, of course, 75,000 thank-yous to the NV Foundation and everyone brave enough to answer the challenge.

Help Double Their Dreams

Help Double Their Dreams

Jul 23, 2025 | Community Support

Our friends at the Helms Helps Alliance will double all donations to Serving Our Kids during September from first-time donors!

  • If we raise $20,000 in first-time donations during September
  • Helms Helps will double that amount for a total of $40,000

Do you know anyone who wants to help hungry children right here in our community?

If they donate to Serving Our Kids during the month of September, they can double the impact of their donations.

$99 = $198

When you sponsor one food-insecure child for $99 and Helms Helps will double that so two kids get weekend meals bags every weekend for the entire the school year!

$20,000 = $40,000

This can provide more than 14,500 weekend meal bags for food-insecure children in 98 Clark County elementary and middle schools.

Hungry kids dream of food.

The Helms Helps Matching Donation Campaign can double your first-time donation and Help Feed Their Dreams!

 

Volunteer Spotlight:200 Meal Bagging Volunteers

Volunteer Spotlight:
200 Meal Bagging Volunteers

Jul 8, 2025 | Thank You, Volunteer Spotlight

More than 200 regular volunteers are the heart, soul, mind and muscles that bring SOK’s mission to life. They participate five to six times each school year and help with anything from meal bagging and delivering meal bags to schools, to working at SOK events.

Serving Our Kids proudly recognizes two special groups of volunteers – SOK volunteer supervisors and SOK meal bag drivers – who literally keep our operations rolling from our warehouse to the schools we serve.

SOK has 10 Volunteer Supervisors who keep our meal-bagging motor running smoothly and efficiently. They educate new volunteers about SOK’s mission and operations. They make sure our meal-bagging teams are fully fueled with thousands of food items. And they ensure the quality of each weekend meal bag before it leaves our warehouse.

Without our Volunteer Supervisors, we would have to hire paid employees to perform these critical duties. And we simply could not create enough weekend meal bags to help feed more than 4,000 food-insecure kids each week during the school year.

All the work of our volunteer baggers and supervisors would be for naught if we couldn’t deliver our weekend meal bags to the schools and, ultimately, to the students who need them. That takes a team of 30 volunteer delivery drivers.

Our volunteer drivers deliver thousands of weekend meal bags 40 different schools throughout the Las Vegas Valley. Between two and four times a month, they donate their time, their vehicles and the gas to make sure each meal bag reaches its destination on time.

Twice a year, SOK asks our participating schools to give us feedback about our services. More than half of the schools that reply mention how much they appreciate our drivers and their vital role in SOK’s operations. They also mention the close personal relationship between many of our drivers and school administrators. They’re more than drivers. They’re SOK ambassadors.

Thank You Volunteer Drivers!

Andi Ahart, Ann Averett, Reagan Barba, Jen Beckham, Keyon Bell, Glen Bension, Austin Burns, John Burns, Sheila Butler, Lorianne Caracoilo, Lou Cassara, Maggie Cassara, Margaret Chen, Darin Costantine, Greg Davis, Susan Davis, Roger Dilts, Neal Fowler, Leah Gorman, Gregorio Gutierrez, John Heidorn, Jacque Hoatson Powell, Michele Hodges, Joe Huffman, Jackie Hunsaker, Nancy Hunting, Jane Kentz, Ethan Kice, Pam Kowell, Brandon Kuptz, Tim Kuptz, Dawn Langdon, Wes Lau, Kathy Lopez, Christine Lundervold, Shanon Madrigal, Tim McDevitt, Pastor Brian Medley, Melissa Mendez, Michele Mittemiller, Dana Nakamoto, Theo Newson, Joseph Noble, Lonnie Noble, Nancy Poliner, Kim Quinnell, Carl Salas, Fran Sarkett, Trent Thorell, Melody Townsend, Natalie Vaughn, Karen Victor.

Thank You Volunteer Supervisors!

Andi Ahart, Tiffany Blasco, Robin Duccint, Jackie Hunsaker, Pam Kowell *, Tim Kuptz, Karen Polist, Fran Sarkett *, Carolyn Streva, Karen Victor, Bernie Waite. *Volunteer Coordinators

JOIN OUR SUPER SUPERVISORS AND DRIVERS!

Serving Our Kids is actively seeking:

  • Volunteer Team Leader/Supervisor for meal bagging sessions
    • (2 sessions per month)
  • Volunteer Drivers to deliver meal bags to schools
    • (2 deliveries per month, 2 hours each)

Please email your contact information to info@servingourkids.org and we’ll respond within in 48 hours. Thank you!

Partner Profile:Pink Jeep Tours Las Vegas

Partner Profile:
Pink Jeep Tours Las Vegas

Jul 8, 2025 | Partner Profile

For more than 60 years, this recognized leader in off-road adventures has thrilled millions of guests as they explore the natural wonders of Arizona, Nevada, Tennessee and Missouri.

Pink Jeep has served thousands of people in their communities by supporting charities and organizations that make a meaningful impact, especially those focused on the health, education and well-being of children.

We’re proud to include Pink Jeep Tours Las Vegas among the ranks of our generous partners. From fundraising to volunteering, the Pink Jeep team helps Serving Our Kids create weekend meal bags and create a brighter future for food-insecure children in Southern Nevada. They truly believe that real adventure includes giving back and lifting up the communities they call home.

Partner Profile:Ford Country A Driving Force Behind Serving Our Kids

Partner Profile:
Ford Country A Driving Force Behind Serving Our Kids

Jul 8, 2025 | Partner Profile

Ford Country has long been one of our most dedicated community champions. This award-winning, family-owned dealership in Henderson traces its roots back to 1922 when George Gaudin, grandfather of current owner Gary Ackerman, began selling Fords in California.

That legacy lives on in Ford Country’s commitment to serving our customers and our community. We believe in giving back by supporting impactful organizations like Serving Our Kids that provide critical help to those who need it most.

Ford Country’s passion for Serving Our Kids is part of a larger culture of compassion that starts at the top. Owner Gary Ackerman has a long history of championing causes that benefit vulnerable members of our community.

“Gary is the father of a son on the autism spectrum,” shares Julie Cane, Chief Engagement Officer of Gaudin Motor Company, parent company of Ford Country. “After years of navigating challenges to find proper care, he helped launch the Grant a Gift Autism Foundation Ackerman Center in partnership with the UNLV School of Medicine. He’s also a proud supporter of Shine A Light, which helps individuals living in the underground flood channels of Las Vegas.”

Gary’s personal motto, “Do your best and do the right thing,” is one of the core values that continues to shape Ford Country’s company culture. And the belief passed down from George Gaudin, “Serving our clients and our community is more than what we do – it’s who we are,” still rings true throughout the dealership today.

“Our team absolutely loves Serving Our Kids,” Julie says. “After Laurie Tanakaya visited and spoke with us, so many team members signed up to volunteer right then and there. It really inspired a movement across the company.”

Ford Country hosts an annual donation drive for Serving Our Kids, participates in quarterly meal bagging events, and actively supports SOK fundraisers. Team members even bring their children along, fostering a new generation of community-minded volunteers. And yes, even Gary shows up to help.

For many at Ford Country, SOK’s mission is deeply personal.

“A number of our team members experienced food insecurity as children,” Julie explains. “But even if you haven’t lived it, you can imagine the heartbreak of a child going hungry. That’s why we’re all in on Serving Our Kids. Every child deserves to feel full, safe, and supported.”

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