Though it operated every Sunday since it was founded in 1997, the program now takes place only on the second Sunday of each month.

Los Gatos resident Janis Baron started Sunday Friends as a way for her and her children, who were in high school at the time, to give back to a part of the community they don't see often.

"I wanted to get them involved in community service--something that was personal and meaningful, yet still safe and wholesome," Baron said. "I couldn't find good opportunities. So I took them, along with some of their friends and their friends' parents, to a homeless shelter to volunteer."

She found that her children responded very positively to working with the families that came to the homeless shelter, and she formulated the Sunday Friends program based on what she had seen.

The goal was to help families that were homeless or had very low incomes to break out of poverty by learning that hard work is rewarded.

For several hours, children, parents and volunteers work together. They create craft projects, write thank-you letters to program donors, play educational games and prepare healthy snacks. Since many of the families that attend are primarily Spanish speakers, they also participate in basic English instruction.

While they work, volunteers reward participants with tickets bearing point values. Those tickets can be used at the end of the day to purchase clothing, books, games and a variety of other items at the "Treasure Chest." Or the tickets can be saved in the program's ticket bank to be spent another day.

Recently, though, Baron and the other few staff members who run Sunday Friends realized that they needed to do something to reduce costs or the program would not be able to continue. They made the decision to cut the program back to once a month.

"I'm disappointed," Bertha Vargas said through a translator. She has been coming to Sunday Friends regularly with her three children for about a year and three months and called the program "beautiful and fun" for her children.

"They learn how to be more creative and artistic," Vargas said. "They used to think you had to go out and spend money to have fun. Now, my daughters will get out art supplies at home and start working on projects."

Her son's school performance had improved since they started attending Sunday Friends, too. She said on April 10--the first Sunday Friends session since March 20--that she noticed a decline even after not attending the program for a few weeks.

"It was a painful decision, but probably not difficult because we didn't have a choice," Baron said about deciding to cut the schedule. "We crunched the numbers every way we possibly could, and we came to the conclusion that it was so important for the program to continue that we needed to reduce the frequency."

Michael Hobson, the program's associate director, said it is especially sad because he has seen definite improvement in many of the children's social skills and attitudes.

"There's a little boy who didn't speak to me six months ago," Hobson said. "Six months ago, he started saying hello when I said hello to him. Now, he walks up to me and shakes my hand. That, I think, carries over Monday through Saturday, even though I only see it on Sunday."

Those involved with Sunday Friends say it seems to do more positive things in the lives of participants than other programs that simply provide charity services. Volunteer and board member Barbara Sanders said Sunday Friends' goal is to help families empower themselves because they so often have to "work the system" to get help from other organizations or agencies.

"It's their program," she said. "They take a real sense of ownership."

"There's very little distinction between a family member and a volunteer," Hobson said. "There's no sense that we're serving them."

Indeed, children walk around offering snacks to volunteers and vice versa. Everyone wears a nametag bearing only their name. Personal responsibility is expected of anyone participating in any capacity.

Baron and Hobson said they have tried to keep the program as viable for volunteers as it is for families that attend. They said they want everyone to come away from the program feeling that it was worthwhile.

"The students who have a better experience are the ones who are willing to get more involved with the kids," said Los Gatos High School teacher Tonya McQuade.

McQuade has referred students and Rotary Interact club members to volunteer with the program almost since its inception.

"The thing that was good to see was how eager the kids were to have the high school students working with them," she said. "They have little kids walking around with them all day, holding onto their hands."

Baron said the organization still needs funding help (they have a long list of volunteers and plenty of donated goods) to defray the cost of operating even just monthly. If enough support is received, she said the directors would consider going back to a weekly schedule. For now, though, they plan to simply provide the best service they can once a month.

It's a service the families appreciate.

"My kids really enjoy the program," Carmen Garcia said through a translator. "They keep learning how to do more things through the activities.

For more information about Sunday Friends, visit www.sundayfriends.org or call 408.793.0441.