By:
Brianna Botine, Director of Membership & Lodging
Cordillera Cares continues to gain traction, supporting four local organizations in the past two months.
Keeping it in the Family
When Maureen and Joe Cheben took over the duties of coordinating the Families of Cordillera Ranch Adopt-a-Highway Program in March of 2016, they inherited a 12-year legacy of hardworking volunteers who were even recognized by the Texas Department of Transportation Adopt-a-Highway Litter Prevention Program. Cordillera Ranch residents continue to ban together to clean up trash along two miles of Highway 46. On Saturday, September 17, Cordillera Cares partnered with the group and with a team of 11 volunteers were able to pick up 21 bags of trash and a lot of loose construction material.
Service for Service
On Monday, August 29, Cordillera Cares through The Clubs at Cordillera Ranch hosted the Boerne Blaze Special Olympians’ end-of-season swim meet and pool party. Boerne Blaze Special Olympics falls under Special Olympics Texas – San Antonio Area 20 and for more than 15 years has provided special athletes a safe and supportive outlet to participate is sports and engage in social camaraderie. 14 employee volunteers hosted 75 people at the Cordillera Ranch pool and the Blaze families were blown away by the kindness. Both organizations look forward to partnering on many more events!
Out Drive Hunger
The Clubs of Cordillera Ranch hosted Hill Country Family Services (HCFS) for their 7th Annual Out Drive Hunger Golf Tournament on Monday, September 26. HCFS is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving Kendall County residents in crisis. The Clubs of Cordillera Ranch were the Golf Course Sponsor for the event and eight volunteers from Cordillera Cares worked throughout the course.
A Blue Christmas
Cordillera Cares is excited to announce their partnership with the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) Blue Santa Program. For more than 25 years, this branch of the Blue Santa program has provided Christmas presents to about 400 disadvantaged Kendall County children annually. Last year 145 families benefited from the assistance of the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office, many local businesses and individuals.
The KCSO Blue Santa Program was originally called the Brown Santa Program but the name changed when the Sheriff’s Office, Boerne Police Association and the Fair Oaks Police Department joined forces in 2004. The program now consists of the Sheriff’s Office, Hill Country Family Services, Boerne Community Coalition, Boerne I.S.D. and the American Legion. The program continues to grow every year and Cordillera Cares is proud to be a new partner. (www.kendallcountysheriff.com/blue-santa)
Stockings!
This year Cordillera Cares’ mission is to donate 400 age and gender-appropriate stockings for these kids. This is Cordillera Cares’ biggest and most significant philanthropic effort of the year and is requesting help from community families. There will be five opportunities for the Cordillera Cares team to volunteer and get involved: Shopping, Sponsoring a Stocking, Helping at Blue Santa Gold Rush, Stuffing Stockings and Blue Santa Distribution.
On Wednesday, November 30, Cordillera Cares will be taking donations for stocking sponsorships at the Club’s annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Gold Rush. Each stocking will be valued at $25 and broken down by age group and gender. Stockings will include toys, games, stocking hat and mittens and other goodies based on age groups. Volunteers can look forward to community fellowship through shopping, stuffing, sponsoring and supporting these Kendall County kids and the Sheriff’s Office. Please reach out to Vicki Hansen at vhansen@cordilleraranch.com to volunteer and donate.
Brianna Botine is the Director of Membership & Lodging at The Clubs of Cordillera Ranch. She can be reached at bbotine@cordilleraranch.com and 830.336.9177.
