Around Danville: Youth homes volunteer teaches jewelry-making - East Bay Times
After 31 years as a Learning Disability Specialist (LDS) at the Contra Costa Community College, Peggy Fleming retired in 2010. While working, she was very involved with the welfare and education of the children within the foster care system. She is also an active member of the Youth Homes Auxiliary.
Youth Homes Auxiliary currently supports four youth homes in our county: two in Concord — Pryor and Andersen House; one in Lafayette — Cherry Lane; and one in Pleasant Hill — East Bay Shelter. Pryor and East Bay Shelter are short-term facilities (one to six months stay) where they assist, assess and stabilize the clients. All homes are staffed by a residential supervisor, clinical supervisor, residential behavioral specialist and 24/7 residential counselors. It is heartwarming to read of all the services Youth Homes provide for its clients. They also provide all facets of training to clients before they reach age 18 to prepare them to become self-sufficient in society.
Fleming and husband Keith have lived in Danville for 34 years. After teaching life skills and arts and crafts most of her life, Fleming decided to start a summer jewelry-making workshop for some of the older post-foster care clients at the youth homes. It was a big hit! Not only did the clients enjoy the class, they were making beautiful jewelry. So in 2014, Fleming decided to sell the clients’ jewelry and gave the proceeds back to them. In the meantime, Fleming has been making jewelry to fund a grant program she started. She has raised over $61,000 in the last three years, of which half went towards scholarships. Two recent awards ($6,000 each) were given to a client who was working toward a Nursing Master at UCSF, and the other went to a client working on a double major — criminology and sociology. Both clients’ parents were drug addicts. Fleming is also a member of the Alamo Women’s Club and has been allowed to sell her jewelry there periodically. She is hoping to find more venues to sell her jewelry.
Fleming is grateful for donations of jewelry for resale or for raw materials to make jewelry. Her friend, Jane Viotor, of Rossmoor, holds an annual six-week “Fling Your Bling” jewelry drive via Rossmoor’s newsletter. The last drive netted three full shopping bags of jewelry. Fleming is also grateful for the free appraisal services of Darren (Dinh) Jewelers. She values his expertise and trusts his advice. Darren also sells the gold scraps for Fleming and gives her the proceeds, a service he has volunteered to her for years. He has been a free appraiser for the Thrift Station as well. Darren Jewelers has been a family business in Danville since 1999. Darren came to America in 1984 from Vietnam, met wife Sabrina in San Diego and in 1986 moved with her to Danville. They have four children: James, Ella, Ethan and Daniel.
As if this jewelry business is not enough charity work for Fleming, she started a charity knitting group six years ago called “The Karing Knitters” (visit KaringKnitters.blogspot.com for details). Last year, the group made more than 2,000 baby hats for Kaiser hospitals in Walnut Creek, San Leandro and Antioch. They also provided chemo hats for adult patients. Last Christmas, they knitted 100 scarves and hats for St. Anthony’s in San Francisco and 50 for Ruby’s Place, a women’s shelter in Hayward.
The Youth Homes Auxiliary Thrift Shop, run fully by volunteers, is at 15 Vivian Drive, Unit C in Pleasant Hill; its hours are 1 to 4 p.m. Monday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and its phone number is 925-798-5561. Contact Peggy Fleming at kepefleming@sbcglobal.net to donate jewelry or join the Youth Homes Auxiliary. They welcome your support, donations and new members.
