As an Admissions Advisor for American Career College’s Orange County campus, Melissa Guerrero has gained a deep appreciation of the personal qualities and integrity of the college’s students and her colleagues.  This past holiday season, her admiration grew even stronger: When Melissa spread the word about a coat-donation drive she and her family conduct each year for the Los Angeles Mission, students and faculty alike showered her with more than 150 coats — in a single week.

“I’m blessed to be working with so many wonderful people who care so much about others,” says Melissa.  In addition to the coat donations, Melissa and her family each year sponsor a family through their church in La Puente, providing decorations, a Christmas tree, gifts for all family members, and bags of groceries.  Melissa grew up in a poor family, but one she says was “rich with love. My parents raised us to give and share, and my mother reminds us every day of our blessings.”

Indeed, as Melissa gathered the coats to deliver them to the Mission, she caught her mother quietly slipping dollar bills into the coat pockets.  Her mother’s gentle explanation: “Melissa, don’t you love when you find money in your pocket? I know they will, too.”