Jan 3, 2025 | Partner Profile
There are more than 113,000 children in Clark County who don’t know when their next meal will be. Imagine what other basic needs they may lack. Serenity Bailey doesn’t have to. Every school day, she helps meet a broad range of life challenges facing more than 700 students at Walter Long Elementary in Las Vegas.
Serenity is a Site Coordinator for Communities In Schools of Nevada (CIS), a non-profit organization dedicated to doing whatever it takes to help students stay in school and succeed in school. CIS believes education can free children from poverty and empower them to reach their full potential.
“I’m a full-time problem solver,” Serenity said. “I’m the point person at Long who provides just about anything students may need. Even if they just need someone to talk to, I’m here for them.
“Many of the kids we help live below the poverty line in small, very expensive extended-stay hotel rooms,” she continued. “Many have large families. Some live with more than one family. And if the rent isn’t paid, they get kicked out.”
Serenity coordinates the delivery of food, clothing and hygiene items, as well as academic, economic and emotional support services – all provided through CIS. She also distributes Serving Our Kids (SOK) weekend meal bags.
“When adults don’t get enough to eat, we get ‘hangry,’” Serenity explained. “We can’t function well until we get a food fix. Imagine how kids feel, being that hungry, but not being able to do anything about it.
“When kids don’t get enough to eat, they start missing school,” she continued. “They won’t pay attention and focus on academics. They have behavior problems.
“If all of that gets better because they’re getting a weekend meal bag, that’s a good thing,” Serenity said. “The students look forward to it. All of them come to school on Friday when the bags arrive. It’s a big motivator.”
Last year, Long Elementary received 35 SOK weekend meal bags each week. This year it’s 80. And Serenity believes the need is even greater.
“I know more than 80 kids need weekend meal bags,” she continued. “But some parents won’t accept them because they don’t want people to know they need assistance. And the kids don’t want their classmates to know.
“But the meal bags are extremely important because that may be the only food those kids get on weekends,” she added. “Some kids don’t wait for the weekend. They start eating before they leave school.”
Serenity believes the Serving Our Kids weekend meal bags enhance many of the nutritional, educational and emotional support services CIS delivers to Long Elementary and elsewhere in Las Vegas valley. And CIS has become an important ally in SOK’s crusade against child hunger.
“I have a great relationship with Serving Our Kids,” she said. “Their volunteer delivery drivers are amazing. We have great conversations. They bring their pets and kids along. There’s a real bond between us because we’re all doing something to help the kids.”
Serenity admits her job can be tough but rewarding.
“I have three kids and three nieces and nephews, and I know they’ll get enough to eat,” she said. “But there are so many students here with so many needs and I wish I just could fix it all.
“But I love what I do,” Serenity said. “I work with a great team and we’re all doing whatever we can to help. And every time I see a kid smile, it’s worth it. It means a lot to them to know somebody cares.”
Sep 22, 2024 | Blog
Our amazing volunteer team is a finalist for the Stars of Nevada Governor’s Point of Light Awards in the Non-Profit and Community Organization Volunteer Program category. The winner will be announced on October 24th.
The Stars of Nevada celebrates extraordinary individuals, non-profit organizations and businesses that generously donate their time, talents and resources to help create a vibrant future for all Nevadans, especially our youth, seniors and military families.
More than 200 regular SOK volunteers create and deliver weekend meal bags to 4,000 food-insecure kids in 97 elementary and middle schools across the Las Vegas valley every week. Many volunteers also assist with our fundraising events.
Volunteer Coordinator Fran Sarkett captains our volunteer team. After her retirement, Fran started helping in the SOK warehouse and delivering meal bags to schools. She now coordinates all volunteer activities, helps at events and a member of the Serving Our Kids Advisory Board.
“We are extremely fortunate to have this wonderful group of loyal volunteers,” said SOK CEO Laurie Tanakaya. “We could not serve thousands of hungry kids every week without their generosity and hard work. They are definitely Stars of Nevada, and they deserve to win this award.”
Sep 7, 2024 | Blog
That’s the forecast for our 13th Annual Golf Tournament on November 3rd at Legacy Golf Club Las Vegas. It’s one of our biggest fundraisers of the year.
“We are very excited about this year’s event,” said Greg Hogan, Vice Chairman of SOK’s Board of Directors. “Once again, Diazo is our presenting sponsor and more than 25 other organizations and companies are stepping up to help raise money for Serving Our Kids. We are so grateful for their support.”
Even if you’re not a golfer or you can’t attend, you can still join the fun and support SOK by entering our Helicopter Golf Ball Drop contest.
Buy a golf ball for $50. Buy one ball or a hundred balls. There’s no limit. Each ball you buy has a number assigned to your name.
At the tournament, a Sundance helicopter will drop all balls on a green. If your ball is first in the hole or closet to the hole, you win $2,000 in cash! Second closest wins $1,000! Third closest wins $500!
Buy your golf balls, today! And help us feed the dreams of hungry kids across the Las Vegas valley.
Aug 22, 2024 | Blog
Serving Our Kids is proud to partner with NV Energy Foundation for a marathon
meal-bagging event to kick-off the 2024/2025 school year.
“This event will provide 10,000 meal bags for food-insecure children throughout Southern Nevada,” said Laurie Tanakaya, CEO of Serving Our Kids. “We are so grateful for this amazing opportunity to partner with NV Energy Foundation to serve and support our community.”
The NV Energy Foundation is committed to connecting with the community through civic leadership, financial contributions and volunteerism. Its mission is to make every community a better place to live, work and do business.
“Volunteerism is at the heart of what we do,” said Angel Williams, Director of Community Relations at NV Energy. “This year, we set a goal to engage more of our employees and business units in team building volunteer projects.
“When we engage in team building volunteerism, we deepen our community connection and strengthen the sense of community within our team.” Angel added. “It’s a key part of our culture of continuous improvement.”
“Serving Our Kids helps ensure that kids throughout Southern Nevada have access to free and healthy food,” said Shannon Gregory, NV Energy’s Director of Electric Delivery in Southern Nevada. “The NV Energy Foundation has supported their program with a $50,000 donation.
“We worked hard to make sure as many of our field employees, who normally don’t have the opportunity to volunteer during the work day, could participate in this important event without affecting service to our customers.”
Aug 7, 2024 | Blog
Giving Tuesday is a worldwide event that encourages people to give back to their communities through charitable donations, volunteering and acts of kindness. It inspires millions of individuals, organizations and businesses to donate their time and resources to worthy causes they care about.
After the seasonal shopping frenzy of Green Wednesday, Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday is the perfect day to take a breath and reflect on those who need our help.
Please encourage your family, friends and co-workers to put Serving Our Kids on their gift-giving list. And help feed dreams of thousands of hungry kids this holiday season.
