Happy Hollow Welcomes Nearly 200 Court-Involved Families to Thanksgiving 'Friendsgiving'

Families and advocates connected to the Santa Clara County court system gathered earlier this month at a San Jose park and zoo for a Thanksgiving meal, giving children and parents a day of shared enjoyment before the holiday.

The "Friendsgiving" took place Nov. 15 at Happy Hollow Park & Zoo and brought together participants in the Dependency Wellness Court and the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program. The Happy Hollow Foundation hosted the event through a Healthy Living grant from Kaiser Permanente. The wellness court is a voluntary program that supports people in recovery so they can reconnect with their loved ones, while CASA provides advocates who speak for foster youth in court.

Nearly 200 people attended, twice the turnout of 2024, according to Rhonda Nourse, the foundation's executive director. She said uplifting childhood experiences are critical to recovering from trauma, and that she was humbled as attendees shared what they were thankful for, from clothing and food to sobriety and a roof over their heads.

"These families have a choice between putting food on the table or a day spent at Happy Hollow," Nourse told San José Spotlight. She said the foundation gives children a chance to make memories, access nature and play together at the park and zoo. The foundation also runs free Senior Safari and Title I events aimed at historically underserved communities. More than 50 Title I schools sit within five miles of Happy Hollow, Nourse said, yet most of their students have never visited.

Shadia Amador, a mother of four, said her children rode their first roller coaster. She described the day as an amazing opportunity that would otherwise have been a significant financial burden, and said the photos and memories would last as the children grow older.

Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Erica Yew, who presides over the dependency drug treatment court, said seeing children run free while parents play with them is special. "This is a human story of survival, strength and the love of the community," she said. Yew noted a correlation between childhood trauma and depression, incarceration, mental health issues and addiction, and said courts can intervene to help families heal. She described one mother whose parental rights had been terminated but who, after completing family wellness court, regained her children and later built relationships with relatives who had adopted some of her other kids.

Mentor parents who graduated from the program also attended. Krystal Joye, 43, grew up in foster care and said she struggled with addiction for 35 years. She said the wellness program changed her life, and she is now applying to San Jose City College to study alcohol and drug studies and social work so she can help others.

Melissa Elias, another mentor parent, said five of her children were removed because of her substance abuse and that it took her nine months to get sober. When she delivered her sixth child, she had been sober just two and a half days and expected social services to take the baby. She stayed in the hospital about two weeks with pre-eclampsia and got clean, then entered rehab and said she "fought like hell" to get her children back. Elias said one daughter is now in college, and that she was able to care for her father before he died of cancer. "That's the beauty of recovery," she said. "We learn from it and we become stronger."