Eliza Labunog, grade four, runs what we’ll call a “kitten school.” She has developed a “kitten curriculum.” It involves teaching the wee things how to play nicely, eat solid food, use the litterbox and get used to people — and all the weird noises in their world.

The Enders Elementary student has cared for 15 litters of kittens as a pint-sized volunteer for Westminster Adoption Group and Services (W.A.G.S.) over the past several years. And all her graduates have found families.

“The two hardest parts for me are when kittens get sick or pass away, and the second one is saying goodbye when they get adopted,” she said. “But what makes it all worth it is after they’re done being sick they can go back to being regular. And after they get adopted, they’re still in their new forever home.”

Orange County Board of Supervisors Chair Doug Chaffee and Stanton honoree Eliza Labunog (Photo by Logan Ueno)

There is certainly no more adorable honoree among this year’s crop of Kindness Award winners than Labunog. Each year, for the past seven years, Fourth District Orange County Supervisor Doug Chaffee (now board chair) has recognized one person from each city in his district for doing something nice without any expectation of payback. It’s a heartening renewal of faith in humanity.

Labunog was the honoree for Stanton (“Her kindness, creativity, and dedication embody the spirit of volunteerism, proving that even the youngest hearts can make the biggest difference,” her nomination paper said). The other honorees were Angelo Barsotti, Anaheim; Barry Burriesci, Brea; Leslee Milch, Buena Park; Christine Givens, Fullerton; Vanessa Perkins, La Habra; and Carla Hutchinson, Placentia.

Jay Williams, founder and president of OC United, was an Honorary Kindness Award winner as well.

The idea was inspired by former Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait’s kindness initiative — Tait’s at work on a book about same — and Chaffee shares his belief that kindness can transform our communities into more connected and happier places.

The nominations remind us how deeply meaningful small acts can be.

William Kresan of Placentia saw a neighbor struggling to control an excited dog. The neighbor fell hard onto his back. Kresan told his family to call 911 and sprinted to the man, who was unresponsive. Kresan made sure the dog was secured and stayed with his neighbor until paramedics arrived; a post on NextDoor soon said that the neighbor suffered a serious head injury in the fall. “By taking swift, decisive action in a stressful situation, Will very likely saved his neighbor’s life,” his nomination paper said.

Dancers from Savanna High School Macondo Ballet Folklorico at the Kindness Awards ceremony in November, by Orange County Board of Supervisors Chair Doug Chaffee (Photo by Logan Ueno)

There’s also Josephine Huang of Placentia, who takes college-age foreign students under her wing and helps them adjust to the complexities of life in California.

And Gustavo Alvarez of La Habra, who has been a “dedicated and kind-hearted custodian who goes above and beyond to support the La Habra school community.”

And George Vera of Anaheim, who has helped a neighbor recovering from a broken femur for nearly a year — doing everything from taking trash cans to and from the curb, ferrying mail from the community mail box, mowing the lawn, bringing over dinner. “Such kindness is rare these days,” the neighbor, Anne R., said. “I am very lucky, and appreciative of the good neighbor he is.”

Carla Hutchinson (screenshot from video)

Placentia: Carla Hutchinson

“Carla has changed our lives for the better by providing a space for our son who has Down syndrome to participate in something he loves but otherwise would not have access in the community….Dance!” said the nomination paper for Hutchinson.

Carla Hutchinson’s dance students (screenshot from video)

“She started a dance program for individuals with disabilities 12 years ago and for those of us with children or loved ones who know firsthand the struggle of wanting our kids to experience life and community yet not be able to based on their disability – this is HUGE! Our kids need special accommodations that can’t always be met in a typical setting yet the love of music and dance is in their bones. Carla has made it possible for them to have access to the joy of dance just like their neuro-typical peers!”

Hutchinson created  “No Limits Creative Arts” for her special needs son and saw the program grow from a handful of students to more than 100, from one class to more than 20 in five different locations throughout the county.

“There is nothing like watching individuals with disabilities dance in a showcase with a full audience! The joy on their faces is unmatched! Carla navigates all of this while managing her own challenges that come along with having a child of her own with disabilities….She shows up for all of our kids with the biggest smile on her face — ready to serve and love on them!”

She has gotten close to many of the parents — and has gotten support from them as well, Hutchinson said. “I love seeing the kids’ faces, and the joy they get out of it.”

Buena Park: Leslee Milch

Milch taught elementary school kids in the Buena Park School District for decades. Many spoke a language other than English at home.

Leslee Milch (screenshot from video)

“More than 25 years ago, Leslee recognized a simple but powerful truth: her young students didn’t want story time to end just because summer vacation had begun,” her nomination paper said. “Out of pure care and love for her students, Leslee created the ‘Read With Me!’ summer reading program, bringing books and snacks to Bellis Park each week to continue reading to children during the summer months. What started with just a handful of students has grown into a community-wide initiative, drawing up to 100 children each week.”

The program has fostered additional partnerships with the Buena Park Library, Police Department and School District, among others, to support the health and education of children and their families during the summer. In 2019, she was named Buena Park’s Citizen of the Year.

“Leslee’s acts of kindness have not only encouraged literacy but also strengthened the bonds of the community,” the nomination said. “Through the ‘Read With Me!’ program, she has created a space where children feel seen, supported, and excited to learn — even when school is out.”

Teachers give back to the communities they’re in every single day, Milch said, and she feels like they’re all being recognized along with her.

Christine Givens (screenshot from video)

Fullerton: Christine Givens

Givens worked as a nurse at Orange County nursing homes until a car accident changed the course of her life 20 years ago.

“As a result, she lost everything, including her house,” her nomination paper said. She spent a decade in assisted living before moving to Fullerton City Lights — a low-income apartment complex where many residents have a history of homelessness, disability, mental illness and/or substance use issues. She has been helping other residents there ever since, her nomination paper said.

Givens is lead resident volunteer at City Lights and active in her church and community outreach. She’s continued her work even after a lung cancer diagnosis in 2022. She said helping others helps relieve her own pain.

Barry Burriesci (screenshot from video)

Brea: Barry Burriesci

Burriesci, an Air Force veteran, spent many Sunday mornings loading food for delivery to the local food pantry at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation. These days, he cooks and serves dinner at the St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church soup kitchen, while also fundraising and contributing money to help pay for the food. On the third Wednesday of each month, he helps provide 60 to 80 hot meals to needy people in downtown Fullerton, his nomination paper said.

“Barry is a matter of fact, deeply caring person, who finds meaning and purpose in sharing his current good fortune with others after experiencing poverty and hunger during earlier stages of his life….He is committed to offering presence, kindness, dignity and hope to all and inspires others to join him in service.”

Angelo Barsotti (screenshot from video)

Anaheim: Angelo Barsotti

Barsotti has been volunteering with Recovery Road for more than two years, writing grants, helping people fill out legal paperwork, reunite with their children and reach out to those on the streets who need help.

“I’ve made a lot of mistakes, and I want to make the world a little better because of the things I’ve done,” he said. “I owe the world. I owe people.”

Barsotti is about giving back and making sure kindness has the structure it needs to last, his nomination paper said.

Vanessa Perkins (screenshot from video)

La Habra: Vanessa Perkins

Perkins came to La Habra from England with her husband and children in 1982. She has worked as the fundraising and marketing Coordinator for Help for Brain Injured Children, a non-profit dedicated to students with moderate to severe special needs, for the past decade. She founded children’s programs like the “Safety Kids” and “Scottie’s Singers,” and led PTA initiatives, theater fundraisers and community projects. “Vanessa’s enduring kindness and dedication continue to make La Habra a stronger, more connected community for all,” the nomination paper said.

Jay Williams (screenshot from video)

Special honoree: Jay Williams

Williams is the founder and president of OC United, worked as pastor at Community Life in Cypress and Compassion and Justice in Fullerton for 30 years, is chair of the Fullerton Collaborative and a board member for Love Our Cities, helping to spread the city-wide volunteer model nationwide.

This time of year, Charles Dickens reminds us, is “a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.”

These honorees remind us that this spirit can, indeed, carry through the rest of the year.

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