About Us!
A totally volunteer group, the Association is made up of engineers, farmers, retired and Active Duty military, heavy equipment operators, manufacturers, retired and relaxin' folks, firemen and EMTs, school bus drivers and teachers, nurses, electricians, plumbers, Moms and Dads... just like you!
Lakeside is a small suburb outside of San Diego, CA and we choose to live here because of the wonderful small town with Western ideals environment. We believe in pitching in and helping each other. 50 years ago a group of parents decided that there was no more deserving group who needed that help than the Youth of Lakeside. From that small band of parents, teachers and professionals, the Association grew and evolved, volunteers joined and some left... but today there are many in the group who can say that they have been volunteers for 5, 10, 15, 20 and over 30 years!
What we do... The Association works hard (twice a month Weekend work parties, with mops and brooms, wielding paint brushes, hammers - ouch!, rakes and trimmers) to maintain the Rodeo Grounds as it provides funding that is used in support of the Youth. The Grounds are available for rental 10 months of the year; from the air conditioned main hall equipped with a full kitchen to the professional arena that stands in the glow of a new State-of-the-Art Marquee, with plenty of parking thrown in, the Grounds provide a low cost venue for your events. In April of every year we host our premier fundraiser for Youth, the rip roarin' and incredibly entertaining Lakeside Rodeo!
Where does the money go?... The Association meets the first and third Wednesdays of the month at the Rodeo Grounds main building at 7 PM. In those meetings, students, kids and coaches, teachers, School Administrators, Youth leaders and Youth clubs present their needs, and request funding for those specific projects and needs. An average of $10,000+ every two weeks is donated to fund those requests... the building and grounds are often used by Youth groups at no or nominal charge as well for banquets, testing, programs and community meetings. Uniforms, instruments, books, computers, adaptive aids, playground equipment, gardening projects, funding to a local clinic for needy kids, Playing fields, lights and equipment, funding for arts, dance and swim, ... these are just a few of the requests presented by the Youth and funded in those meetings.
How can I join?... By now you are probably wondering how much it cost to join... nothing. zip. nada. It only requires you showing up on one of those Wednesdays at 7 PM and asking to join in. Then you get to help out when you are available during work parties, events and of course during Rodeo. After a period of time and consistent meeting attendance, you earn the right to Vote!!!! We have to admit, just like any group we have differences of opinions, diversity in attitudes and each of us has different talents... but what we all have in common is the sincere belief that we are working hard for the Youth of Lakeside.
If you would like more information about the Association, just give us a call at 1- 619-561-4331 and leave a message for Curt or Theresa, Association Ambassadors... and we'd love for you to just show up at a meeting.. remember, that's the first and third Wednesday of the month at the main rodeo hall @ 12584 MapleView in Lakeside... Hope to see you soon!
