Spring into Service: Caring for People, Pets, and the Planet
For EVALCORP’s Spring Service with Purpose event, our team from coast to coast and beyond spent the morning giving back in meaningful ways. Together, we embraced the spirit of service by supporting our neighbors, strengthening local partnerships, and building deeper connections with one another. It was a powerful reminder that when we come together with purpose, even a few hours can make a lasting impact.
West Coast Impact
Soup Kitchen in Orange County, California
In Orange County, our staff came together to support Someone Cares Soup Kitchen’s mission to provide a daily, nutritious meal to those facing food insecurity our community. Someone Cares supports individuals who are unhoused, unemployed, working hard to make ends meet, facing physical and mental health challenges, as well as senior citizens and children.
Our team jumped right into the work, spending the morning in the kitchen preparing colorful fruit salads, cooking hearty soups and potatoes, opening and organizing dozens of canned goods, washing and drying dishes, and even dyeing Easter eggs in preparation for the upcoming holiday.
The team making fruit salad
Reighan cooking soup
Allison and Shayla dying Easter eggs.
Luis and Shayla chopping strawberries
Someone Cares serves fresh, nourishing meals to more than 300 guests each day, seven days a week. Beyond meals, they offer vital services including medical care, job training, housing support, and after-school tutoring. Their work exemplifies the heart of community care, and we are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to support their mission and the people they serve year-round.
Animal Shelter in Irvine, California
Taylor volunteered at her local animal shelter, Irvine Animal Care Center. She spent the morning walking dogs and assisting staff with daily tasks, including washing dishes and cleaning kennels. Taylor also dedicated time to enrichment activities, providing playtime, exercise, and socialization for the dogs. These moments of connection are essential for the animals’ well-being and help prepare them for future adoption into loving homes.
Taylor pictured with Polar (white dog) and Hana (Husky), two of the many animals benefiting from compassionate care.
Community Garden in Los Angeles
Alex and Celina volunteered with one of EVALCORP’s long-time clients and community partners, El Nido Family Centers. Their Community Garden, located at the organization’s Pacoima FamilySource Center, is a vibrant, community-driven space that supports food access, health, and connection, while also serving as a hands-on learning environment for youth and families to explore sustainability, nutrition, and urban agriculture.
Alex and Celina are pictured with El Nido staff.
Alex and Celina spent the morning preparing several garden beds for the upcoming planting season. This included pulling weeds, as well as mixing the old, dry soil with fresh, nutrient-rich soil and compost.
Celina removes weeds from a garden box to prep it for new soil.
Heavy lifting requires teamwork!
Alex turns the new, nutrient-rich soil into the beds.
What stood out most is how the garden connects to El Nido Family Centers’ broader work across Los Angeles County. Founded in 1925, El Nido serves more than 12,000 Angelenos each year through 12+ free, comprehensive, trauma-informed programs. These programs support youth and families at every stage of life, including mental health care, early childhood development, career and life readiness, housing stability and homelessness prevention, and food access. With six sites across LA County, including Pacoima, El Nido meets families where they are and helps put them on a path toward long-term stability and economic mobility.
The community garden is one example of how this work comes to life on the ground. It helps supply fresh produce for El Nido’s culinary programming, supports the El Nido Farmers Market (the first certified farmers market in Pacoima, launched in 2023), and creates opportunities for intergenerational learning and community building. Volunteers play a key role in sustaining the space, from maintaining garden beds to supporting activities that bring neighbors together around shared goals of wellness and sustainability.
East Coast Impact
Community Garden in North Carolina
In North Carolina, Gabby spent the morning supporting one of Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s community gardens by watering plants, pulling weeds, and spreading mulch to help crops thrive. Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s mission is to feed our neighbors, teach self-sufficiency, and grow healthy food through innovative solutions to hunger. The produce grown in these gardens is donated to local food pantries, directly nourishing individuals and families in need. Gabby’s efforts contributed to a larger cycle of care—one that empowers communities through both immediate support and long-term sustainability.
Gabby in the garden
Donating Blood in Buffalo, New York
In Buffalo, NY, Emily donated blood to the American Red Cross at the WNY (Western New York) Chapter.
International Impact
Beach Clean-Up in Dublin, Ireland
In Dublin, Ireland Shannon Mora participated in a beach clean-up at Sandymount Strand. By removing litter and debris from the shoreline, Shannon helped protect marine life, preserve natural habitats, and maintain the beauty of this coastal environment for the community to enjoy. Efforts like these play an important role in safeguarding ecosystems, preventing pollution from entering our oceans, and supporting the health of wildlife that depend on these habitats.
Sandymount Strand looking even more beautiful thanks to Shannon’s litter removal
Across every location, this year’s Spring Service with Purpose event highlighted the incredible impact of community organizations that work tirelessly, day in and day out, to care for people, pets, and the planet. We are inspired by their dedication and honored to contribute, even in small ways, to their ongoing efforts.
At EVALCORP, we believe service is more than a single day. It’s a commitment to showing up for our communities with compassion, purpose, and action. We look forward to continuing this work together and making a difference where it matters most.