Orange County Bar Association Contact: Donna Fouste, Executive Director Orange County Bar Association P.O. B. Box 17777 Irvine, CA 92623-7777 E-mail: FousteD@ocba.net Children’s Chambers Toy Drive Activity Summary: The OCBA Children’s Chambers Toy Drive collected toys, VHS tapes, snacks, VCRs and TVs for the “Children’s Chambers” daycare facilities in Orange County’s Superior Courts. Donations were accepted throughout June 2001 at OCBA Section meetings and at the Association’s two offices. The Children’s Chambers program permits parents (or guardians) to leave young children in a safe and entertaining area during the period when the adult caretaker is conducting business at the court. The Toy Drive provided resources to all three Children’s Chambers facilities at Orange County’s Superior Courthouses. Activity Narrative: In March 2001, the OCBA sought to develop a special new program in the spirit of the Law Day 2001 theme: “Celebrate Your Freedom: Protecting the Best Interests of Our Children.” With the guidance of the Association’ Community Outreach Committee, it was decided that a collection drive should be held to provide needed resources for the Children’s Chambers daycare facilities in Orange County’s Superior Courthouses. Children’s Chambers facilities provide a less intimidating environment for children within the halls of justice. These rooms are for the children of litignts, witnesses and other members of the public who have to be present at the courts. This service, in turn, allows families a great opportunity to focus on the legal matters at hand and helps the court provide services in a more effective, efficient and professional manner. Each year, the Children’s Chambers serve approximately 4000 children and their adult caretakers. Upon our request, the administrators of the Children’s Chambers facilities provided “wish lists” for each of the three facilities. It was clear that the greatest demand was for toys - thus establishing the Bar’s project as a “toy drive." A local recycling company, Integrated Recycling Systems, streamlined the collection process by loaning two large “donations bins” to the effort. The OCBA Children’s Chambers Toy Drive was scheduled to run throughout the month of June 2001, in order to avoid conflicts with the numerous OCBA Law Day events in May. It was first announced to Bar members at the 2001 OCBA Law Day Luncheon, held at the historic original Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana. Members were called upon to make donations of toys and other requested items. The promotion of the drive continued throughout May and June and included the following: a call for donations in the Association’s monthly OC Lawyer Magazine; information posted on the OCBA Web site and on a real bulletin board at the OC Central Justice Center; notices in monthly mailings to the members of the OCBA’s Sections (comprising over 4000 members); fliers distributed at all Bar events, in member mailings and via the Association’s fax-on-demand system. A “wish list” registry, compiled by the Children’s Chambers staff, is available on the OCBA’s Web site and is updated as various items are received. When major items, like TVs, were donated, they would be removed from the list. This project clearly meets two of the Orange County Bar Association’s key missions: “to enhance the system of justice” and “to assist the community served by it.” Moreover, the OCBA hopes this program will be able to provide this and similar assistance to the local courts as needs arise. Clearly, this project has reaffirmed the OCBA’s relationship with the courts and will strengthen the foundations of future cooperation. Sample Programs Home | By Audience | By Location | By Sponsoring Organization