Cielo Vista Charter School Hosts World Food Day Event Collects Thousands of items for Well in the Desert

Cielo Vista Charter School of Palm Springs held a World Food Day Festival to raise funds for classroom supplies and provide needed food for Well in the Desert, a nonprofit that provides local assistance

Open to the public, the event featured games for children, a farmer’s market, a variety of dinner and dessert selections, raffle prizes and fun for the whole family. Sponsors for this year’s event included Dogs on the Run, E. & E. Pel’s Italian Ice, Aspen Mills Bakery, Riley’s Stone Soup Farm, Russom Farm, Bautista Farm, Cove Electric and Cioffi Architect. 

Cielo Vista Charter’s World Food Day Festival was held in support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ World Food Day, which aims to heighten public awareness of the problem of hunger in the world. 

Those attending were asked to bring at least one non-perishable food item for donation. The collection garnered about 2000 items for Well in the Desert.

“This year we broadened our traditional fall festival to increase the awareness of world hunger and the need in our own community,” said Cara Van Dijk, Parent Teacher Group (PTG) President. “Before the event Well in the Desert representatives spoke to each classroom about community service and helping others. This effort, along with our public outreach nearly doubled our attendance this year. We are very happy with the event’s success and thankful to our volunteers and sponsors.”
Well in the Desert provides daily nutritious hot meals, emergency food assistance, weekly supplemental food distribution, and access to community services to those affected by poverty, including the working poor, the homeless, seniors, the handicapped and others in need throughout the west end of the Coachella Valley.

Cielo Vista was founded in 2010 as a charter school, after running as a traditional public school within the Palm Springs Unified School District since 1952. CVC presently serves 800 students from the Palm Springs area in grades K-6. The Cielo Vista community strives to create an environment that enhances the social, emotional, and intellectual growth of its students. A sense of unity between school, family, and community exists to enable students to reach their potential as responsible, informed citizens.

Cielo Vista Charter is led by principal Lynda Lake. CVC’s governing board consists of David L. Baron, James Cioffi, Frank Tinney, William G. Kleindienst, and Mark Anderson.
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