Assistance League of Amador Valley is more than 30 years old and one of 95 chapters of the National Assistance League, which has roots dating back to the mid-1890s. The local nonprofit is a volunteer-based organization with 100 members who work to serve children, teens, and seniors in the cities of Dublin, Pleasanton, and Livermore. Through Operation School Bell-Clothing the Children, for example, the Assistance League has provided clothing to more than 500 children in need each year as well as over 1200 books. Over the course of the program, which takes place each autumn, Assistance League has donated new clothing valued at more than $1 million.

The region benefits from many programs operated by the Assistance League. The group’s Food for Families program purchases groceries twice a week, helping more than 4,000 low-income Tri-Valley residents each month in partnership with the Tri-Valley Haven Food Pantry. Through the Screening Eyes Early project, trained members work with local Tri-Valley preschools to test children for vision problems, including a type of poor vision called amblyopia or lazy eye. If there seems to be a problem with a child’s vision, parents are notified and the child is referred to an eye doctor for further testing. The chapter screens approximately 500 children a year. Assistance League’s Supporting Our Seniors effort offers a range of aid to seniors who are in need, homebound, or low-income. That includes an Adopt-a-Senior program during the holidays, a luncheon for seniors, members visiting senior care facilities to engage residents in enrichment activities, and making blankets for seniors to keep. The chapter also supplies and manages the magazine program at local senior centers such as the Pleasanton Senior Center Magazine Library Program.

Members are especially proud of its Scholarship Program. It was established four years ago, with a donation in memory of a former Assistance League member. In 2026, a total of six scholarships will be given to graduating high school seniors and Las Positas College students from Dublin, Livermore, or Pleasanton. Recipients of an Assistance League of Amador Valley Scholarship will receive $5,000 to use at an accredited four-year college or university. Recipients of a Tri-Valley Community Scholarship will be given $2,000 for entering an accredited community college or certified vocational or trade school. Recipients of the Las Positas College Transfer Scholarship will be awarded $5,000 for continuing studies at a four-year college or university. Financial needs, community service, and any applicable work hours are among the factors considered by the Assistance League in choosing scholarship recipients. The scholarship application deadline is March 16, 2026.

Community support makes it possible for Assistance League members to help children, teens, and seniors through the nonprofit’s many programs. The members who volunteer are hugely important. So are the individuals and organizations that donate to the nonprofit, as well as the many attendees to the group’s fundraisers. The annual crabfeed, for example, is being held on February 21, 2026 and often sells out.

Another event, the first Authors’ Luncheon fundraiser, was a huge success in 2024. The second one will be held on April 11, 2026 at the Garré Vineyard, Restaurant, and Event Center in Livermore. The Bay Area’s award-winning actor, comedian, author, playwright, television, and radio talk show host Brian Copeland will moderate a panel discussion of several authors, including Cara Black. Black is lauded for the Aimée Leduc Parisian mystery series. The Authors’ Luncheon also features a gourmet sandwich and salad buffet, book sales, signings, and raffle prizes.

“Our mission is making lives better for families, children, and seniors,” notes Carol Baiocchi, Vice President of Resource Development for the Assistance League. “We help each other. The beauty of what we do is that the community within our organization reaches out to the community outside of our organization. And that's what makes it so special.”

For more information about Assistance League of Amador Valley, please visit www.assistanceleague.org/amador-valley.

For more information about Assistance League scholarships, please visit www.assistanceleague.org/amador-valley/philanthropic-programs/scholarship.

For more information about the upcoming Authors’ Luncheon fundraiser, please visit www.assistanceleague.org/amador-valley/events/authors-luncheon-fundraiser.