From left to right, Alyse Coppolo (Community Outreach & Marketing Specialist) and Suzanne Rickards (Human Resources Director). Photo was taken at our North Fontana clinic location parking lot.

Cucamonga Valley Medical Group has built a tradition of assisting those in need throughout the Inland Empire during the holiday season – a mission that hasn’t changed despite the challenges presented by a global pandemic.

In fact, the team at CVMG believes it’s even more significant to provide a helping hand to a resilient community that has contended with the impact of COVID-19 over the past nine months.

“The holiday season is different this year because of the coronavirus, and we are adapting while doing our best to keep our community safe and healthy,” said CVMG physician and CEO Rahmi Mowjood. “The spirit of giving lives on during this special time of year.”

The Cucamonga Valley Medical Group will donate goods to local communities served by CVMG’s offices located throughout the Inland Empire. Plans call for CVMG to:

• Donate to the holiday breakfast at George M. Gibson Senior Center in Upland.
• Donate 120 basket items to the City of Rancho Cucamonga.
• Donate to the City of Fontana food drive.

CVMG also will hold a toy donation drive at each of its locations. The toys then will be donated to the 28th annual ABC7 Spark of Love Toy Drive for families in need.

“These are all great causes and we are thankful to play a role in spreading the holiday spirit,” said Mowjood, whose team had helped move a family of three into a home in Fontana last year and in 2018 assisted a family of five in a move from a motel to a condo.

This year, CVMG enabled some families throughout the Inland Empire to have a special Thanksgiving celebration. CVMG donated 200 cans of corn to the City of Fontana and 100 items for 10 Thanksgiving baskets for the City of Rancho Cucamonga. CVMG donated eight large pumpkin pies to the City of Upland senior center Thanksgiving dinner.

A total of 16 families of CVMG patients received Thanksgiving meal baskets to serve 59 people. The meals included corn, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, stuffing mix, gravy, pumpkin roll, roasting trays, a gift card and a letter of thanks to the patients and their families. The baskets were distributed in a drive-thru fashion in the North Fontana office parking lot as a COVID-19 safety precaution.