For a team of 40 people from Kaiser Permanente’s Central Valley region, Monday wasn’t a day off but a chance to provide service for the communities in which they serve.
As part of a system-wide effort to provide community service on the day honoring Martin Luther King Jr., several dozen employees and their families showed up Monday morning at Raymus House to provide everything from assistance in sorting and organizing donations to building a pergola and sprucing up the paint.
And the end of the day, said Kaiser Central Valley Physician-In-Chief Sanjay Marwaha, the commitment to the communities that Kaiser serves isn’t exclusive to just healthcare.
“Our mission at Kaiser Permanente is to promote the health for our patient-members in the communities we serve,” said Marwaha after climbing down from a ladder where he was aiding in securing a post for a pergola on the porch outside of the shelter. “This is our 16th annual Day of Service and the second year that we have been here at Raymus House, and this helps contribute to the welfare of the community by helping the most vulnerable among us.
“One of the ways in which you can find joy is by having a purpose in volunteering and making a difference – it might be a small event here locally, but across the entire system we hope that difference becomes significant.”
Raymus House, which is operated by HOPE Ministries, provides emergency shelter to mothers and their young children who find themselves without permanent shelter and aids them in reestablishing their lives and the stability that they seek.
Kaiser’s Central Valley region, which encompasses San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties, serves almost 400,000 patient-members and is part of a wider healthcare system centered primarily in the Western United States and Hawaii.
While crews were busy working in Manteca from 9 a.m. on Monday morning, other crews were working around the system to provide assistance to the communities in which Kaiser operates – including in neighboring Stanislaus County where work was being provided to a homeless outreach organization serving Downtown Modesto.
“Our mission at Kaiser Permanente is to improve the lives of our member-patients in the communities in which we provide service,” said Kaiser Central Valley Communications Manager Jennifer Rosen. “This is about helping people and giving back and being active here and that really build the bonds of community.”
To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.
