Volunteers Orange County

Sheryl Chariton, a senior at Huntington Beach High School, has worked as a volunteer for four years in antidrug and gang-prevention programs. During that time, she said, she certainly never thought of herself as a local hero. But 18-year-old Chariton is just that, according to the committee that selected her as one of 20 people who will carry the Olympic flame as it passes through Orange County on April 28.

Globs of glue cling to fingers, paprika dust blows about, and a seemingly endless array of colorful flowers waits to be stuck, one by one, onto floats. But that's just part of what attracted dozens of Orange County residents to volunteer their decorating services for tomorrow's 110th Rose Parade. "It's fun," Julie Kohlscheen, 27, of Fullerton yelled from atop a 30-foot high scaffold as she shook yellow flower petals onto the head of a giant caterpillar, one of more than 100 parade entries.

Washing windows. Mowing lawns. Vacuuming carpets. Washing dishes. Trimming trees. For those with limited agility or stamina, these basic chores can seem overwhelming. And it is why they are so grateful when someone pitches in to help. Each month, 30 to 80 student volunteers from Orange County high schools get together to tackle these tasks for senior citizens. They are participants in Project CHERISH (Community Helpers Engaged In Restoring and Improving Seniors' Homes).

Pat McCully's Huntington Beach home has been taken over by her relief efforts to help the poor in the impoverished village of Jinotega in northern Nicaragua. Her life has been taken over too. Barely a week after tropical storm Mitch caused mudslides and flooding in the region earlier this month, McCully's kitchen and living room overflowed with boxes of medicine, bedding and other supplies to be shipped to disaster victims. Donated sleeping bags and tarps spilled onto the front porch.

From her hotel room in Bettendorf, Iowa, not far from the overflowing banks of the Mississippi River, Judy Tuohey was thinking of the man crying in the rain. "He was just standing in the hotel parking lot," Tuohey, 57, a Laguna Hills resident and volunteer with the American Red Cross, said Wednesday. "It was just from frustration. He was a volunteer and he just couldn't do any more."

Youth volunteers across Orange County are finding many ways to give of themselves and to make a difference in their communities. By getting involved, either in individual projects or through membership in school service clubs, high school students are addressing the serious social issues that are impacting neighborhoods: poverty, drugs, homelessness, illiteracy, loneliness, children's needs, care of the elderly and preservation of the environment.

Bill Clausen is a believer in the inherent goodness of the human race. He has proof. "In times of disaster, organizations and people rise up and do some really remarkable things," said Clausen, a 62-year-old Huntington Beach resident and American Red Cross volunteer. "It really restores your faith in people."

The Orange County chapter of the American Red Cross will hold its 1996 Volunteer Recognition Luncheon and Awards Ceremony Sunday at the Hyatt Regency Alicante in Garden Grove. Nine people or groups will be presented with the Golden Circle Award, the chapter's most prestigious honor for volunteer achievements. The chapter has about 3,200 volunteers who provide relief services for disaster victims.

Diane Vandenberg knew the call was coming. Hurricane Fran had pummeled a large swath of the Eastern Seaboard and she is a veteran volunteer for the American Red Cross. By Sunday afternoon, the 60-year-old Anaheim Hills electronics technician was on a plane. "You can't really pay people to do this job, you do it because it makes you feel good to help people in distress," said Vandenberg, while waiting to board a jet at John Wayne Airport for a flight to the disaster area.

What began as a modest plan to fingerprint local schoolchildren has grown in just two years into a far-reaching volunteer program that has won state accolades for its founder, Deborah Klein, a crime prevention specialist for the Orange Police Department. "It was a matter of being in the right--or wrong--place at the right--or wrong--time," Klein said with a laugh.

Unwashed, unwanted, flea-bitten and with bloody paws, Merlin was one day away from death in a dog pound when a pair of collie-lovers rescued him. The dog, a classic sable and white collie, had had a terrible year. His owners had divorced and after being passed from one new owner to another, he wound up roaming the streets of Monmouth, Ore., homeless before being caught. Merlin's luck changed almost overnight.

After a frantic hour of collecting release forms, handing out knives and instructing dozens of volunteers in the art of harvesting celery stalks, Chuck Brain breathed deeply, stepped back and scanned the lush greenery in front of him. "Nothing prettier than a field of celery," said Brain, planting a pair of thick hands on his hips and letting a warm, heartfelt smile spread across his face. "Everyone who comes out here loves it. You just can't help but love it. What could be better than this?"

Antonio "Tony" Rangel and Eleanore Rankin, two community volunteers who have given countless hours to Placentia organizations, have been recognized as Citizens of the Year. Called a "true American" by his peers, Rangel was nominated by American Legion Post No. 277, where he has been a member for 24 years. He has volunteered for his fellow veterans at hospitals and serves on Placentia's Veterans Advisory Committee.

Orange County residents have a reputation for being miserly when asked to write checks for charity, but they seem to respond wholeheartedly when asked to give their time. Volunteerism, experts say, has become downright trendy in Orange County. "Tutoring, mentoring right now is very big," said Mary Perez, an administrator at Westminster's Volunteer Exchange. "I think people are realizing it's OK to use volunteers, to use the unpaid manpower."

While Peace Corps volunteer Trevor Murphy lectured about the laws of supply and demand at an all-girls school in Tanzania, his students' attention often drifted elsewhere. They gazed out their classroom window at Mt. Kilimanjaro, just hiking distance from the school. In a country where girls are expected to become homemakers, scaling Kilimanjaro was as unlikely a dream as any.

The letters come addressed to Santa, Kris Kringle, Mrs. Claus, the Elves. They are written in everything from a 4-year-old's scrawl to computer script. Some are elaborately colored with the writer's vision of Santa's sleigh and reindeer. Others include maps--some global enough for NASA, some with more detail than the Thomas Guide. The letters are written by children and grown-ups who believe--or want to believe--that Santa is real. That people love to write to Santa is no surprise.

Longtime volunteer Milt Jacobson has been honored for his time and effort in helping civic and charitable organizations in the city. Jacobson was named Volunteer of the Year for the area by the California Parks and Recreation Society, which pointed to his contributions to many nonprofit groups in Saddleback Valley.

The Orange County chapter of the American Red Cross has sent 11 volunteers to the East Coast to help victims of Hurricane Fran. The volunteers, who flew to Virginia on Sunday and Monday, are helping with damage assessment, disaster health services, communication, logistics and mobile feeding. "It's a huge effort," spokeswoman Sarah Shogren said. "We certainly can use all the help we can get."

Bill Clausen is a believer in the inherent goodness of the human race. He has proof. "In times of disaster, organizations and people rise up and do some really remarkable things," said Clausen, a 62-year-old Huntington Beach resident and American Red Cross volunteer. "It really restores your faith in people."

The Orange County chapter of the American Red Cross recently honored several volunteers for their service to the disaster-relief organization. Eight volunteers and organizations were given the Golden Circle Award, the Red Cross' most prestigious honor, at the chapter's 1996 recognition luncheon and awards ceremony. The honorees include: Tom Broadston of La Habra, Rick Eidson of Orange, Henry and Edythe Handy of Laguna Beach, C.