Doing Good in the LBC is an occasional newsletter where we’ll share the latest goings-on of nonprofit organizations in Long Beach. Sign up for it at lbpost.com/newsletters.

$1M raised for Ronald McDonald House

One of the city’s largest fundraising galas, “A Few Good Men,” honored a few good women for the first time in its 10 years. 

The fundraiser benefitting the Ronald McDonald House includes a lineup of honorees who participate in a number of events and raise funds leading up to the gala, held this year on Oct. 16.

The 2024 event was rebranded as a “Few Good Men and Women,” with six ladies who strutted the catwalk during Wednesday’s big finale. 

This year’s men included Ryan Autrey, Anthony Gagliardi, David Keller, Braden Phillips, Kevin Tibar, along with:

  • Sharifa Batts, head of environment and sustainability at Ports Amercia and founder and CEO of Distinguished Group Enterprises. 
  • Michele Dobson, an attorney and the immediate past president of the Rotary Club of Long Beach. 
  • Dr. Bryna Kane, senior founding partner at Laser Skin Care Center and faculty member at UCLA and UC Irvine. 
  • Katherine Keesal, a longtime member of the Memorial Medical Center Foundation and chair of this year’s gala. 
  • Lynne Pillsbury, former president of the Long Beach Cancer League. 
  • Arline Walter, the retired vice president of management and information systems at Union Bank of California. 

The event draws nearly 1,000 attendees, and this year raised nearly $1 million to support the Ronald McDonald House, which provides housing and food for families of loved ones who are receiving medical care. 

Digital skills for seniors 

Heart of Ida, which provides companionship to older adults, was among just 50 nonprofits across the country selected to participate in an effort to improve digital literacy among older adults. 

This initiative, led by the National Council on Aging, seeks to empower older adults with the essential skills needed to navigate today’s increasingly digital world.

Heart of Ida offers drop-in office hours at the Long Beach Senior Center, where seniors can receive one-on-one assistance with their technology questions.

Thanks to the new program, the organization will also provide in-person workshops through March 2025 that offer in person training online safety, communication tools, and accessing essential services online.

Learn more here.

Big money

The Long Beach Symphony announced it was among 35 LA-area organizations to receive a multiyear general operating support grant from the Perenchio Foundation. 

The $1.8 million in funding is the largest gift the symphony has ever received in its 90-year history. 

The funding “comes at a critical time to ensure our long-term sustainability as arts organizations are still struggling to rebuild in a post-pandemic world,” Cindy Costello, chairman of the Symphony’s Board of Directors, said in a statement. 

Caring for college students

Rotarians gathered Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, at the Petroleum Club in Long Beach to assemble care packages for students in need.

The number of students in need of food assistance at Long Beach City college has doubled recently as housing tuition and costs rise, an official with the LBCC food pantry told a gathering of Rotarians this week. 

I joined dozens of volunteers with the Long Beach Rotary Club on Wednesday to assemble care packages, including hygiene kits, coupons and food supplies to donate to students at Long Beach City College and Cal State Long Beach. 

In a sad testament to the state of affairs for students — a recent report found two of three students struggle to meet basic needs, and nearly three of five struggle with housing insecurity — LBCC has piloted a program that allows students to safely sleep in their cars in campus parking garages. 

Find out more about the LBCC Basic Needs program here.

Election is coming up

The nonprofit Long Beach Post is working hard to provide all the information you need to make informed decisions on Nov. 5. We have four interns this fall working to provide audio, text and video content to explain several of the measures before voters, including a tax on power plants, a new countywide sales tax measure to benefit homeless services and a bond measure at LBCC.

This year’s interns are journalism majors at CSULB, and we hope to expand the program in coming years.

Read our coverage of the election here.

Help us sustain this internship program! Make a tax deductible donation here.

Melissa Evans is the Chief Executive Officer of the Long Beach Post and Long Beach Business Journal. Reach her at [email protected], @melissaevansLBP or 562-512-6354.