Oak Park teen gives CDs to kids

FOR THE CHILDREN—Dani Gold, left, presents a few of the donated videos she has collected to Carrie Hughes of Casa Pacifica, which is a children’s crisis care and mental health facility in Camarillo. Gold has gathered over 300 CDs and videos to be distributed to needy children in the area. If you think the only things today’s teens care about are talking on the telephone or discussing the newest fashions, then meet Danielle Gold, a 13-yearold eighth grader at Medea Creek Middle School.

Gold, an Oak Park resident and member of Temple Adat Elohim in Thousand Oaks, devotes much of her free time collecting videos, CDs and cassettes for deserving and needy children.

Her charitable work has resulted in the donation of over 300 CDs and videos to Casa Pacifica children’s shelter, the Conejo Valley Women’s Resource Center, Villa Esperanza charity for disabled children, Pause4Kids organization to benefit autistic children, the Junior Blind of America and Childrens Hospital in Los Angeles.

Ventura County Supervisor Linda Parks will recognize Gold for her charitable work at Oak Park’s Municipal Advisory Council meeting in October.

Gold began collecting donations as part of her Mitzvah Project, a required charity activity for teens at Temple Adat Elohim preparing for their Bat or Bar Mitzvah.

In the Jewish faith, a Bat or Bar Mitzvah is a special ceremony which marks a youth’s rite of passage into adulthood and religious maturity. Typically, 13-year-old boys take part in Bar Mitzvahs and girls participate in Bat Mitzvahs.

Gold had her Bat Mitzvah on Sat., Sept. 10.

“The idea of this project is we are really co-creators with God of this world, and our job is to help make this world a better place,” Rabbi Ted Riter said.

“We need to make (this world) better than how we found, and that’s exactly what Dani did. She came up with a creative idea and a way of supporting those kids in a difficult time in their lives.”

Riter said many of the temple’s teens continue their charity projects long after their Mitzvah ceremony.

Gold said she sent out nearly 200 letters to neighbors and friends throughout Oak Park asking for CDs and videos. She spent the next month-and-a-half collecting the donated items, which she still continues to send to numerous charities.

“The dining room table and the garage were stacked up with videos and CDs,” Gold said. “It felt really good because I was helping not only people by giving the videos, but also the environment.”

The busy teen also recently volunteered with her 17-yearold sister, Samantha, at the Cardiac Kids Have HEART Foundation carnival in September.

Gold, who lives in Oak Park with her sister and her parents, Rob and Ava, is still taking donations.

Anyone interested in sending CDs or videos should e-mail Gold at recycle4kids@aol.com or call (818) 706-0788.