San Diego County Bar Association

Volunteer Opportunities

Volunteer as a Judge for High School Career Presentations!

SDCBA’s Children at Risk Committee, Law Academy Programs

WHAT: Great opportunity to support San Diego’s youth as they enter the workforce or begin post-secondary education!

Members of the legal community, including attorneys, paralegals, and law students, are needed to evaluate high school students’ career presentations at Madison High School.

Volunteers sit on panels that judge 25-minute oral presentations made by seniors. Judges will also review and critique students’ portfolios using forms that identify criteria. Every year, new and exciting ideas are brought up by the students.

WHEN:      Friday, May 16, 2008
                  12:15 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

WHERE:     Madison High School
                  4833 Doliva Drive
                  San Diego, CA 92117 (Clairemont area)

RSVP: If you’re interested in serving as a judge, please RSVP to Janet Grant at jgrant@sdcba.org.

Community Service Committee 2008 Facelift Project

The San Diego County Bar Association’s Community Service Committee is looking for volunteers to participate in a Community Housing Works “Facelift” of physically distressed homes in City Heights on June 7. Community Housing Works is a San Diego non-profit that helps people and neighborhoods move up in the world by providing a full range of housing options combined with training and support.

The Facelift project is a spruce-up-a-block-in-a-day event that is accomplished through the help of community volunteers, neighborhood associations and local business leaders acting as a catalyst to build pride and equality in neighborhoods. Facelift gives priority to senior citizens, disabled persons and low-income families that need assistance to paint the exterior of their homes, provide minor landscaping, and remove trash and debris from the entire area. During the June 7 event, 10 to 12 homes in a one-block area of City Heights will receive a makeover.

If you are interested in participating in the Community Housing Works Facelift project or in any way working with the Community Service Committee, please contact Community Service Chair Gary Laturno at 619-741-9652 or garylaturno@cox.net.

San Diego Attorneys Needed To Counsel Home Owners in Distress

In the months ahead, San Diego attorneys are needed to counsel homeowners at Home Clinics throughout San Diego county. The next Home Clinic is scheduled for Saturday, May 10 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Joslyn Senior Center located at 210 Park Avenue, Escondido CA 92025.

The Home Clinic gives distressed homeowners access to existing resources and services pertinent to their difficulties in making monthly mortgage payments. The Clinic pools attorneys, real estate and mortgage industry professionals, housing counseling agencies, fair housing agencies, and other public agencies into one location to give homeowners a one-stop shop of counseling resources. It will connect homeowners to legal assistance, consumer protection assistance, credit counseling, fair housing counseling, and other agencies that offer relative assistance. Local attorneys who have real estate, lending and mortgage industry experience, as well as bankruptcy, landlord/tenant and family law attorneys are needed to provide their services.

Anyone interested in participating in the May 10, Home Clinic or any future Home Clinic should contact Gary Laturno, Public Service Chair, Real Property Law Section at garylaturno@cox.net.

Training to serve as a counselor will take place on Wednesday, May 7th at 5:00 p.m.at the SDCBA Bar Center. To register for training contact Gary Laturno at garylaturno@cox.net.

Volunteers Needed To Assist With Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon

The San Diego County Bar Association is seeking volunteers to work at its water station at this year’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. The race will take place on Sunday, June 1, and will serve as a fundraiser for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

40 - 50 volunteers are needed to staff the block-long water station. Attorneys, court employees, legal staff, friends and family are welcome to participate. Bar membership is not necessary to volunteer. Volunteers will get a chance to be part of the early-morning action, as setup for the race begins at 4:30 a.m. As in past years, the SDCBA’s water station will be in front of the Hall of Justice on Broadway between Union and Front streets. The location is the fourth of 19 water stations on the 26.5-mile course, and is located at around mile 7.

Once the race is under way, volunteers will hand out cups or water until about 9 a.m., then break down the station after over 20,000 runners have passed through.

Volunteers are rewarded with a free race crew T-shirt, tickets to the post-race concert featuring Pat Benetar and Neil Giraldo, and a goodie bag. Volunteers must be at least 14 years old by May 30, 2008.

To sign up to volunteer visit http://www.rnrmarathon.com/volunteer.html#volonline and fill out the volunteer registration form as soon as possible. Be sure to list the San Diego County Bar Association under the “Group” listing. Sign up sheets will also be available at the Bar Center.