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As 2024 comes to a close, we are proud to share our annual highlight video, “Living by Our Motto: Service to Self, Service to Community, Service to Environment." This video showcases the work of our corpsmembers, who embody these values in everything they do. This year, our corpsmembers accomplished some incredible milestones: 776 corpsmembers transformed their lives through opportunity and growth 226,247 hours of service dedicated to our community and environment 1 90 high school graduates achieved a brighter future through hard work and determination 3,410 certifications earned , paving the way for long-term success 2,169 tons of waste diverted from landfills, protecting our planet 34 parks maintained , ensuring green spaces thrive As you reflect on your own year, we invite you to join us in supporting corpsmembers on their journey. Your generosity fuels these life-changing efforts and empowers young adults to create transformational change for our community and our planet. Thank you for being part of our journey! Donate Today - sjcccs.org/donate

Belen Reyes will be recognized by The Corps Network , the National Association of Service and Conservation Corps, as a 2025 Corpsmember of the Year. The Corps Network presents the Corpsmember of the Year Award on an annual basis to young adults chosen from among the more than 22,000 individuals who serve in member organizations of the Corps network every year. Awardees are young people who, through their term of service, have demonstrated personal growth, outstanding leadership skills, and a sincere commitment to helping their community. Belen will be honored at the Corps Network's 40th anniversary annual national conference in Arlington, VA, from March 11th - 13th, 2025. Please read the inspirational story Belen wrote as she reflects on her life experiences and growth over the past two years. Updated 12/18/24 ___ Belen's Journey: Corpsmember, Student, and Former Resident Photos of my families home and vehicles after the fire "I became homeless in 2022 after a fire destroyed my home." Before joining the Corps, I had faced many struggles and setbacks. I dropped out of continuation school during the COVID-19 pandemic and was juggling various odd jobs to make ends meet. I became homeless in 2022 after a fire destroyed my home, leaving me without any possessions. I moved into a family shelter with limited housing options but quickly realized I needed to find a path toward stable, independent living. At the shelter run by LifeMoves, they offered me temporary support and encouraged me to pursue my diploma and find work. Inside my tiny home, on-campus housing. When I heard about the San Jose Conservation Corps + Charter School, I knew it was the opportunity I had been searching for. It was a place where I could work, earn my diploma, and even afford living on campus. The Corps opened doors to stable work, community, and education, all the things I hadn’t thought possible together. At the time, I was able to work at the Corps' emergency shelters, which allowed me to support people at LifeMoves shelters, where I had once sought help. This sense of purpose made me feel like I was giving back to those who supported me. It was also my first chance to consider a full-time career, which made me even more determined to succeed and continue setting an example in my family as a first-generation graduate and aspiring college student. "My journey has given me the knowledge that I can help others find purpose." My experience at the San Jose Conservation Corps has been a transformational journey. I came to understand the importance of community and environmental stewardship, seeing how my efforts could contribute to something greater than myself. This journey has given me confidence, resilience, and the knowledge that I can help others navigate their own challenges and find purpose. Through my advocacy work, I learned the power of sharing my story and encouraging others to do the same. I now help uplift and motivate other young people facing adversity, showing them that they, too, have the potential to shape their future. As a youth leader, I’ve spoken at events, organized rallies like Youth Hope Month, and participated in discussions around systemic issues affecting foster youth and others in similar situations. "This experience was healing because it allowed me to be the responder I once needed." Reviewing incident reports with Lily and Mario at the Command Center in Guam. When I went to Guam on the AmeriCorps Disaster Response deployment to assist after Typhoon Mawar, I realized the importance of applying my skills to help those in need. Being bilingual and having learned valuable clerical skills, I found myself able to support others. This experience was healing because it allowed me to be the responder I once needed. Hauling storm debris from a survivor's home in Guam. The Corps taught me independence, financial responsibility, and the ability to establish stability. Living on campus allowed me to save up enough money, and I could move out and rent a room on my own. For the first time in my life, I have now lived in one place for over two years, gaining a sense of security that had been missing. Walking the stage at the San Jose Conservation Corps + Charter School 2024 graduation. After graduating from the San Jose Conservation Corps high school program in 2024, I was promoted to a level two Corpsmember. I took on an administrative assistant role to learn about the metrics and operations of nonprofit work, especially around zero-waste initiatives. I am deeply committed to caring for our planet and am dedicated to mitigating the effects of climate change in my work. As a former resident at the Corps, I was able to help consult on my experience living on campus in tiny homes. While my living experience was positive, I’ve had the chance to help redesign tiny home models for future corpsmember residents to improve their quality of life. "I work to create spaces for young adults to share their stories and shed light on issues in our community." Presenting at the CALCC Corpsmember Conference about the importance of corpsmember housing. Outside of my corpsmember role, I am a member of the Youth Liberation Movement, in which we liberate young people from generational cycles of trauma and oppression by advocating for youth. I work to create spaces for young adults to share their stories and shed light on housing, education, and employment issues in our community. In YLM we do this through hosting youth led community centered design sessions, youth participatory action research and by sitting on boards and collaborating. Currently, I am a co-chair with the Kids in Common Social Emotional Wellness workgroup for basic needs. I also supported the youth housing coalition design days, where we brought together over twenty young adults from across the county to have deep conversations about problems and solutions in the housing system. I also collaborated with other youth organizations to develop productions promoting youth pursuing green jobs in high schools across the county. "I plan to become the first in my family to graduate from college" I received AmeriCorps education awards, which I plan to use to assist with tuition costs as I enroll at San Jose State University in Spring 2025. I’ll be applying this support toward furthering my education and becoming the first in my family to graduate from college. In the short term, I want to continue working in a service-oriented role, particularly with foster youth, youth with learning disabilities, and emergency response initiatives. Long term, I aspire to pursue a career in the medical field to help others, especially children, as I want to make a lasting impact on young lives. Beyond career goals, I hope to continue advocating for youth affected by homelessness, food insecurity, generational trauma, and systemic oppression. Written by Belen Reyes Updated 11/4/24 ___ Published 12/12/23 Belen's Journey: Corpsmember, Student, and Former Resident In 2022, Belen was staying at a shelter and exploring options for going back to school. A case manager introduced her to the Corps, and she was surprised to learn that she could "receive help [with housing] while going to school and working part-time." Belen created a schedule that worked for her- three days a week in our workforce development program and two days at school to focus on her education. Hear her full story below! Living in the tiny home gave her a safe and stable place and allowed her to save up to find independent housing. Belen's journey continued as she moved into an apartment independently and is part of the graduating class of 2024. "I'm grateful that I've been able to take advantage of these opportunities and resources. The Corps has helped me grow as a person. My journey as a corpsmember has been extremely valuable to me." Full video: https://youtu.be/YkOkyMvJQYo

Corpsmember Cindy shared her experience at SJCC+CS in the Zero Waste department, from residential E-waste pickups and forklift training to working in the call center. Discover what a typical day in the call center looks like and how our Zero Waste team spreads the word about the best ways to dispose of your waste to protect the environment. Thanks to the hard work of corpsmembers like Cindy, we can bring our local communities another step closer to zero waste by creating sustainable solutions. Watch below to hear Cindy's Corps Story!

Don’t know what to do with your stuff? Having trouble decluttering your home? Not sure how to reduce waste? RecycleStuff.org is here to help. Recyclestuff.org is a database managed by the Zero Waste Silicon Valley call center at San Jose Conservation Corps + Charter School in collaboration with the Counties of Santa Clara and San Mateo. This program allows Zero Waste corpsmembers to guide Santa Clara and San Mateo County residents on their journeys to sustainability. In addition, RecycleStuff.org allows anyone in these two counties to search almost 300 materials and over 1000 companies to find safe and convenient options that minimize waste to landfills. Corpsmembers at SJCC+CS are committed to helping you find options to repair, rehome, recycle, and safely dispose of anything from everyday items to hazardous waste. They provide up-to-date information on recycling locations, services, and special events such as household hazardous waste drop-offs, electronics collection, and more. Anyone unsure what they are looking for can give the local sustainability specialists at SJCC+CS a call to find the smartest solution. Hear from corpsmember Cindy about the relaunch of RecycleStuff.org and learn how you can easily get help reusing or recycling hard-to-recycle items. Join SJCC+CS in building a greener future. Reduce waste in your home and your community.

In 2020, the CZU Lightning Complex Fire severely damaged the trails within Big Basin State Park, California’s oldest State Park. Over 97% of the park burned, destroying infrastructure, historic old-growth trees, and trails. Since then, State Parks, the California Conservation Corps, and other organizations have undertaken fuel reduction and trail reconstruction efforts to restore the park to pre-fire conditions. From June 2024 to November 2024, our crews have been working with State Parks trail staff for ten back-to-back spikes. These were eight-day trips where 12 corpsmembers and two supervisors would camp out in the park and work on the historic trails within Big Basin. Corpsmembers began to help the park recover from a local disaster. Check out the video below, showcasing all their hard work! Corpsmembers cleared out hazardous trees, brush, wood debris, and cut down overgrown vegetation that had appeared in the years since. They also built bridges to further enhance the trails. The work accomplished has made the trails more resilient to future wildfires. The clearing and re-establishment of drainages and footbridges will be helpful in opening these trails to the public, allowing local community members and visiting individuals to see how the California landscape can recover from wildfires. Corpsmembers gained hands-on experience in building burn piles, stashing, and scattering materials, as well as constructing steps, rock retaining walls, and assembling footbridges damaged by the 2020 fire. For many, this was their first experience with trail reconstruction and maintenance, and several demonstrated a solid understanding of the hard work. They worked on more than 19,000 linear feet of trail, cleared over 7 acres of land, and removed around 123 large hazard trees, along with countless smaller shrubs and vegetation. They also constructed multiple structures, including turnpikes, steps, and 85 cubic feet of retaining walls made from repurposed materials, wood, and logs. The following trails were worked on to reopen: Sunset Connector, Hihn Hammond Connector Trail, Skyline to the Sea, and Bloom Creek Trail. The following trails were worked on for maintenance and cleaning up: Creeping Forest, Meteor Trail, Skyline to the Sea, Creeping Forest Trail, Dool Trail, Meteor Trail