On Saturday, December 11, 2021, RAKA (Random Acts of Kindness Alliance) surprised hundreds with random acts of kindness and recognized Tammy Wilson, Oak Grove Center CEO, for her 30 years of leadership and service to the community’s at-risk and special needs youth. The recognition was a part of RAKA’s 9th Annual Give Back Day, an annual community service project created and led by Shawn Sorensen, winner of Exit Alliance Realty’s national 2021 Humanitarian of the Year Award earlier this year. Each December, RAKA dedicates time and resources to help anyone in need.
This year, RAKA had 150 community volunteers broken up into 12 groups to complete 12 random acts of kindness projects benefiting hundreds of families, animals and nonprofits in the local area. Groups were charged with filling Holiday wish lists for Oak Grove Center low-income families, assembling more than 200 food boxes at Salvation Army, surprising unsuspecting grocery shoppers or restaurant patrons by paying their bills, and serving dog treats and toys at local dog parks. RAKA even stepped in to generously help a domestic violence survivor and single mother of six with emergency bill assistance, gifts, food, home safety fix-ups, and a used car for her 18 year old son to get to work.
RAKA also recognizes nonprofit leaders shedding light on the personal sacrifices they make for the community. Tammy Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of Oak Grove Center was one of four recognized that day. As CEO, Ms. Wilson is responsible for leading Oak Grove’s operations, supervising the management team, and providing leadership to over 345 staff members, as well as the special needs youth targeted by the organization. Additionally, she is responsible for maintaining and ensuring the quality of care related to all Oak Grove Center licenses and accreditations, including Joint Commission (JCAH) and Western Association of Schools (WASC). During her tenure as CEO, Oak Grove Center has expanded from 190 employees to a staff of 375, while securing the requisite funding to grow the organization’s operating budget from $500,000 to over $20 million.
For more information on Oak Grove Center visit www.oakgrovecenter.org. For more information about RAKA, visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Randomactsofkindnessalliance
Oak Grove Center is a nonprofit Residential, Education and Treatment Center (with multiple campuses) for children throughout California with psychological, emotional and behavioral problems and special needs. Oak Grove Center’s mission is to rebuild the lives of at-risk children and their families through educating, healing, restoring relationships, building character and instilling hope.