Soup Kitchen

COSTA MESA — A local soup kitchen needs your help for Thanksgiving. The Someone Cares Soup Kitchen is short on turkeys and other food for homeless people on the holiday and needs donations, said Shannon Santos, the kitchen's executive director. The soup kitchen, which has been operating for more than 20 years, feeds more than 300 people every day, year-round. Donations can be dropped off at 720 W. 19th St., Costa Mesa. —Mona Shadia

Looking to cut down on homeless services in Costa Mesa, Mayor Eric Bever asked the city CEO to investigate some of the city's most prominent charities. Bever singled out Share Our Selves and Someone Cares Soup Kitchen , two nonprofits that give food and medical care to the poor and homeless. Costa Mesa's homeless population has been a stubborn issue for city officials. Residents consistently complain that individuals overtake public facilities like Lions Park and the Costa Mesa Donald Dungan Library.

Costa Mesa Mayor Eric Bever this week clarified earlier comments he made suggesting that two of the Westside's nonprofits close because they attract homeless people. Bever said during Tuesday's council meeting that he only directed city CEO Tom Hatch to investigate, not try to shutter, the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen and Share Our Selves (SOS) for possibly violating municipal ordinances. "That means he goes through a process of steps as outlined by our nuisance-business ordinance," Bever said.

COSTA MESA - Red, yellow and orange bell peppers were being chopped alongside iceberg lettuce. Juicy red strawberries were sliced, dainty mushrooms cut up. A stew of elk and lamb meat bubbled inside industrial-sized metal pots while steam rushed from others. Corona del Mar High School sophomore AJ Fischer, 15, worked in the middle of the active kitchen, mixing the ingredients for meatballs made from elk, venison and antelope as volunteers and kitchen staff prepared to feed hundreds.

Andrew Glazer COSTA MESA -- A local soup kitchen honored its volunteers and donors Wednesday night, and some volunteers threw the honor right back. "The food is always delicious here," said Dore Wilson, who ate prime rib, mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables. "It's not like they say 'this is for the homeless, it doesn't matter if it tastes good.' " Wilson is someone who would know. She and her husband, Kurt -- along with their children Kory, 18; Kody, 13; and Karrin, 9 -- are all homeless.

About 200 volunteers gathered at a Costa Mesa car dealership on Saturday to wrap Christmas presents for needy children and stuff backpacks full of goodies like magnifying glasses and pill boxes for senior citizens. “It feels good to help people who aren’t as fortunate as the rest of Orange County this Christmas and let them know that they aren’t forgotten,” said Costa Mesa Resident Gena Van Horne, who volunteered her time on Saturday to wrap toy cars and Barbie dolls for local children.

Danette Goulet COSTA MESA - By this time last year, the office at the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen was piled high with holiday gifts for needy children. But this year, there is plenty of room in the office. Just three boxes sit in one small stack. "I'm pushing the [panic] button here. We have no toys," said Merle Hatleberg, the soup kitchen's founder and director. "This time last year the place was filled." Hatleberg is sending out a distress call to the community, asking for donations of unwrapped toys so a 14-year tradition may continue.

Isabelle von Boch, an eighth-generation family member of Villeroy & Boch, an internationally known dinnerware line, will be at South Coast Plaza today from noon until 4 p.m. Von Boch’s appearance will benefit the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen, a charity in Costa Mesa. You can trade your old dinnerware and accessories for better ones at the Villeroy & Boch store and have von Boch help you select your new ones. The dinnerware you bring in for exchange will be donated to the soup kitchen and $3 will be taken off every new piece you buy. For more information, call the Villeroy & Boch store at (714)

Jennifer Kho COSTA MESA -- An unexpected donation of hundreds of books arrived at Shalimar Learning Center last week as its board of directors decided to add a satellite facility at Someone Cares Soup Kitchen. If the plan is approved by the soup kitchen and the board of Think Together, which oversees Shalimar and five other learning centers, the new facility could open in January, said Jewel Loff, Think Together's director of development. Shalimar provides tutoring and academic help for Westside students in first through 12th grades.

The insightful letter by Tom Peterson in today's Daily Pilot ( "Mailbag: Costa Mesa homeless deserve dignity," Jan. 23) pricked my conscience and reminded me I should comment also. In my more than 23 years of association with homeless people in my work at Share Our Selves (SOS), I found our city often had trouble identifying them as fellow human beings deserving of our attention. In 1993, SOS was evicted from its location at Rea Center by the City Council, which felt SOS was a magnet drawing many undesirables, i.e. homeless, into our city.

Someone Cares Soup Kitchen in Costa Mesa is looking for new toys to give to local children. The organization expects to give the toys to nearly 1,000 children Friday at the Neighborhood Community Center. The unwrapped toys, as well as gift cards, for all ages must be dropped off at the soup kitchen, 720 W. 19th St., by 5 p.m. Thursday. For more information, call the soup kitchen at (949) 548-8861. — Bradley Zint Twitter: @bradleyzint

A week-and-a-half ago, Someone Cares Soup Kitchen wasn't quite sure where it would get the money for its 26th annual Thanksgiving Day meal. Shannon Santos, the Costa Mesa soup kitchen's executive director, got her answer when the founder of Premiere Health Services, Susan Scott, called. "She said she wanted to cover the cost, and I shrieked," Santos said. "When Susan called it was just a godsend. For that to happen, it's part of the magic that goes on here. We have a saying, 'We're going to put it out there in the universe,' and the universe always gives back twice-full.

Costa Mesa Mayor Eric Bever this week clarified earlier comments he made suggesting that two of the Westside's nonprofits close because they attract homeless people. Bever said during Tuesday's council meeting that he only directed city CEO Tom Hatch to investigate, not try to shutter, the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen and Share Our Selves (SOS) for possibly violating municipal ordinances. "That means he goes through a process of steps as outlined by our nuisance-business ordinance," Bever said.

I am writing to express my concern about your article, "State data: API scores jump 11 points," published in the Daily Pilot on Oct. 12. The students, staff and families of Adams Elementary School are celebrating the tremendous progress our school demonstrated last year in both English language arts and mathematics. In fact, the test scores for Adams during the 2011-12 school year were the highest on record for the school, thanks to the tireless efforts of our dedicated teachers, supportive families and the enthusiastic students.

In your recent article " An election unlike any other," (Oct. 7), you are correct that "Jim Righeimer shook up city politics when he took office two years ago. " He has pushed through the idea to privatize our city in a manner that has made our city ground zero for a war. This pits our citizens against each other by creating a mean-spirited atmosphere in City Hall. In the past, City Council members tried to work together. Our family has been a part of this community since moving here in 1962 and has seen Costa Mesa mature into a place that fosters new ideas and constructive discourse.

Re. "Apodaca: Public education hangs in the balance Nov. 6," (Column, Oct. 7): Patrice Apodaca pleads with the readers to get behind passing Proposition 30 to fund public education in California. On the surface, it sounds reasonable, but she also makes the point on why we should vote no. It is delusional to think we should send more money to the Democrats in Sacramento and trust them do the right thing. They are in the tank with the teachers unions and have no restraint in reducing spending.

Looking to cut down on homeless services in Costa Mesa, Mayor Eric Bever asked the city CEO to investigate some of the city's most prominent charities. Bever singled out Share Our Selves and Someone Cares Soup Kitchen , two nonprofits that give food and medical care to the poor and homeless. Costa Mesa's homeless population has been a stubborn issue for city officials. Residents consistently complain that individuals overtake public facilities like Lions Park and the Costa Mesa Donald Dungan Library.

About 900 employees with Pacific Investment Management Co., or PIMCO, are spending this week reading to children, restoring the Back Bay and serving meals at a soup kitchen as a part of the Newport Beach-based company's fourth annual Global Week of Volunteering. The volunteers are also filling backpacks for children living in Orange County motels, teaching résumé writing and interviewing skills to U.S. veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and reorganizing garages at a battered women's housing program, according to an announcement from the company.

Question: First, I'd like to tell you how much I love your column. I look forward to it every week. I can hardly wait until lunch to read it. I love your open-mindedness and appreciate your humor. Now, for the topic at hand: In 2007, I was at church during Divine Mercy Sunday and preparing for my confession. I was sitting by myself in the chapel, but there were several other people around talking quietly or meditating. All of a sudden, this "feeling" came over me. It was so incredible I had a hard time understanding what was happening.