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A Message from Our Executive Director,
Vickie Kaefer
There is so much to celebrate and share from the past few months at Pathways! This quarter brought many reasons to celebrate, including a grant award from The Rudolph J. and Daphne A. Munzer Foundation, a wonderful Theatre Party, and an incredible matching gift campaign. We continue to be inspired by the kindness and support of the people who make our mission possible.
One of the highlights of the quarter was our annual Theatre Party. We extend our sincere thanks to Angel Connection Nursing Services for serving as this year's event sponsor and helping make the evening such a success. We are also deeply grateful to Bill and Heddy Niemeyer, who generously donated 800 homemade cookies for guests to enjoy during intermission. Their thoughtful contribution added a special touch that was appreciated by everyone in attendance.
We're thrilled to share that we successfully met the Evalyn M. Bauer Foundation's $10,000 matching gift challenge, doubling the impact of every donation received during the campaign. To everyone who contributed, thank you! Your generosity helps provide hope, support, and meaningful services to those who need them most.
You'll also find a special feature recognizing a longtime Pathways supporter whose dedication and generosity have helped shape our organization for decades.
Together, we continue to make a lasting difference in our community, and we are grateful to have you as part of the Pathways family. We have some exciting things on the horizon and look forward to sharing more stories of impact, connection, and community with you in the months ahead.
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From the Desk of our Program Manager + Social Worker, Kaitlin Wood:
This quarter, our Care Navigation Program continued its mission of connecting older adults with meaningful support and companionship. We were excited to host a volunteer training and welcome a wonderful group of dedicated volunteers who are helping make a difference in the lives of older adults throughout our community.
Following the training, we were able to match several volunteers with clients seeking companionship, social connection, and increased engagement. For many older adults, social isolation can have a significant impact on both physical and emotional well-being. In fact, research has found that lacking social connection can be as harmful to health as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.
Through regular visits, phone calls, and meaningful conversations, our volunteers are helping reduce isolation, foster connection, and remind our clients that they are valued members of our community. We are grateful for the compassion and commitment of our volunteers and look forward to creating even more connections in the months ahead. Many thanks to CSULB Nursing Student interns Karlene Caro and Daniel Gandara for their dedication to caring for CNP clients this quarter.
As the school year comes to a close, we reflect on the successes of CHANGES, our school- and community-based grief support program. During the 2025 - 2026 academic year, Pathways delivered grief services and support to 1,047 students. Our Bereavement Team provided 20 school-based, 7-week grief support groups, 33 grief talks and workshops, conducted grief and loss presentations at 2 LBUSD schools, facilitated 3 parent workshops, and consulted with and provided education to 90 school social workers, counselors, teachers, and other school personnel within the school districts of LBUSD, ABCUSD, BUSD, PUSD, NLMUSD, and DUSD.
Expanded reach and program success were made possible through our partnerships with CSULB and CSUDH Master of Social Work programs. We'd like to extend a heartfelt thank you to CSULB interns Jennifer Hunt and Joskua Arizmendi and CSUDH interns Natalie Echeverria and Ericka Williams for their hard work and dedication to providing critical mental wellness and grief support to students and families all year long.
A special thank you to the generous funding support of local foundations including The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, The Rudolph J. and Daphne A Munzer Foundation, and The Freeman E. Fairfield Foundation.
For ways to support our programs, use the link below. Every contribution ensures our clients continue to receive all services at no cost.
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Community Impact
Testimonial from Nursing Student Interns
"Our experience working with Pathways has significantly supported our growth as nursing students by strengthening communication and therapeutic relationship-building skills. We have gained hands-on experience assessing a client's physical, cognitive, and emotional status, especially during transitions such as post-hospitalization. This experience has also improved our ability to provide patient education, assist with care coordination, and adapt interventions based on the clients' changing needs. Additionally, we have learned how to promote independence while ensuring safety and have developed a deeper understanding of holistic, patient-centered care in a community setting. We gained insight into how nurses and social workers collaborate in a variety of settings, like this one, to address both the medical and social needs of clients and ensure more holistic care." - Joanne Bang and Mary Rose Javier
The training and real-world experience our Nursing Student and MSW interns receive during their time with Pathways is invaluable to our organization, to the interns themselves, and to the greater community. Pathways is able to expand its reach to serve significantly more people than we could with staff alone, interns gain valuable experience to best support the vulnerable population they serve, and clients and families receive timely, high-quality care at no cost.
Follow the link below for additional stories of Pathways' impact on our community.
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Heart of Our Mission
It's hard to sum up 36 years of service in just a few sentences, especially when you're talking about someone like Bill Niemeyer. Over the years, Bill has worn countless hats, always stepping up wherever needed and making a lasting difference along the way. As he reflects on his journey with Pathways, we're honored to share the wisdom, gratitude, and purpose he has found through a lifetime of service.
Reflections on 36 years with Pathways by Bill Niemeyer
My life with Pathways began in 1990 with a phone call from Pat Hunter (the Hospice director). At the time I was newly retired, and she asked for my help with computer support. I don’t think that I realized it at the time, but this was an opportunity to be freed from the prison of my own selfish interests.
During the intervening 36 years I have been privileged to devote a dimension of my life to volunteering in the Pathways “vineyard” in various capacities. For me it has been a rewarding experience, volunteering as a kind or “jack of all trades and master of none.” One of the rewards of the Pathways experience was the opportunity to work with Pathways’ staff, volunteers and other inspiring, talented and motivated individuals who were active in the life of the local community and also served as Board members.
During my tenure I’ve had the opportunity to set up an Endowment fund to help stabilize Pathway’s finances. I’ve been the photographer for approximately twenty Pathways golf tournaments, helped with five office moves to new facilities, served as a client volunteer and served as Board Chairperson. I have been called on to perform such disparate duties as install grab bars in a client’s shower and deliver clients to medical appointments,build masonry planters in pathways’ garden and dig a four-foot-deep hole for the transplant of a mature tree.
The details of my experience are not that important, but the question I’d like to address is: What is the takeaway from all these years? What wisdom can I offer based on my time in the Pathways vineyard? At the root of my motivation is the strongly held belief in the value and dignity of each and every human life. The idea that “God doesn’t make junk.” From this conviction flows the recognition that it is a duty and privilege to offer a helping hand to the struggling, the ill and bereaved. When we offer our time and talents to help those in need we enrich our own lives with the wine of Pathways grapes. We reap the psychological and spiritual rewards of less concentration on our own narrow, selfish desires. We open ourselves to the broader, rewarding world of servicing the needs of the entire human family. When we do this, we can step forward in life with the satisfying knowledge that we have done our part to make this world a better place.
Thank you, Bill, for 36 incredible years of serving wherever Pathways needed you. Your kindness, humility, and servant's heart have left an imprint on this organization that simply can't be measured. We are deeply grateful for your friendship, your leadership, and the example you've set for our staff, volunteers, and community. Congratulations on this well-deserved milestone, and thank you for reminding us all of the joy and purpose that come from serving others.
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Save the Date:
August 24, 2026: Annual Golf Tournament at Recreation Park Golf Course 18
We hope to see you there!
| Swing over to our website for additional details on sponsorship opportunities and securing your spot on the course! | |
Past Events
Thank you to our generous donors for supporting Pathways' annual Theatre Party! Your presence made the evening truly special. We are especially grateful to our event sponsor, Angel Connection Nursing Services, for helping make the night possible.
| | | | We've unlocked a $10,000 Matching Gift! | | | | | The Evalyn M. Bauer Foundation | |
Pathways is thrilled to share that we've met our goal of raising $10,000, unlocking the Evalyn M. Bauer Foundation's generous $10,000 matching gift! This extraordinary opportunity means every dollar raised will will be doubled, directly amplifying the impact of our work in the community. Every single gift, whether small or large, helped us reach this goal. Thank you to everyone who showed up and pitched in - we couldn't have done it without YOU!
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