Operation Christmas Cheer: From being hopeless, to giving hope

SEASIDE >> Years ago, J Koebel was a performer in New York working in comedy when he “got kind of swallowed up in the drugs and alcohol.

“I was an everything addict. It started with coke and heroin, and then it just went bonkers after that,” he said.

After a hard struggle with addiction, he met someone who had connections with the Salvation Army and referred him to the organization’s rehabilitation program in Southern California. He flew across the country intending to only complete six months of the program before returning to New York. “God had something else in mind,” he said.

About 20 years later, J is still in California, involved with the organization and has dedicated his life to helping people in situations similar to what he was in. He is now a Salvation Army officer and administrator along with his wife Ashley Koebel. The pair help run the Seaside Salvation Army Operations.

J Koebel’s story is similar to that of the hundreds of people the Salvation Army has helped locally with money raised by Operation Christmas Cheer, a fundraising project sponsored by 1st Capital Bank, The Herald and the Salvation Army. Since 1985, it has raised more than $2.6 million, which has been distributed to needy Monterey County families and individuals during the holidays.

The Herald’s role is to tell the stories of some of the folks the money raised has helped and some of the frontline workers, like Ashley Koebel, who have aided the cause.

Ashley Koebel grew up watching her parents do the same work she’s doing now. She originally went to college and studied to be a business lawyer, but soon realized she “wanted to change the world.”

Through working with the Salvation Army herself as a young adult, she saw “there’s tremendous opportunity for good … people trust us because we’ve been doing this for a long time and doing it faithfully for a long time,” she said. “I enjoy doing this work. This is where I feel like I should be in life.”

While he was in the rehabilitation program, J Koebel was required to journal every day. He still has his journal and describes himself during the first 90 days as a “wreck.” On the 90th day, “I literally (write), ‘I’m starting to see a little glimmer of hope.’”

This hope is what the Koebel’s think is one the nonprofit’s greatest strengths. “That is where the faith-based part comes in and can speak to people,” said Ashley Koebel. “It can provide hope for people when maybe the outside situation won’t change so quickly, but to have the mindset of knowing, ‘all right, there is hope for me. I’m a valued human being who is important on this planet.’”

Since making the move to the Peninsula from Los Angeles this past summer, the main thing the couple have noticed about the area is the community’s willingness to give.

“It’s pretty amazing that with all the nonprofits on the Peninsula, that people support so many of them,” said J Koebel. “We’re excited to help give the Peninsula maybe even a bigger and broader understanding of what the Salvation Army does, because I think it surprises people.”

The Salvation Army is widely-known for its Red Kettles and Angel Trees programs, which help support families with food, shelter and utilities, as well as provide Christmas presents for children, but the organization has year-round support for families and individuals.

People in need look to the Salvation Army for transitional housing, food pantries, rehabilitation programs, disaster relief, veteran services, job training as well as spiritual services.

Since the Monterey Peninsula Corps chapter of the Salvation Army opened in 1895, “someone has shown up to work, tried to help people who are in need and that has just gone on for so many years,” said Ashley Koebel.

“Now, because of each person who had an opportunity to be here doing their best, we have a lot of really cool programs that can help a lot of people,” she said.

The Koebels believe everyone who encounters the Salvation Army, whether that be volunteers or clients, get something special out of the experience.

“Of course, it’s a safety net for the people who are in need. But I think there’s also something sort of given to the people who are giving, where you can feel really good that you’re making an impact on someone’s life, even through the little choices you make,” said Ashley Koebel.

“Being that hope, is where I just come back to,” said J Koebel. “I think if people take a moment to give, whether it be time or something physical like gifts, it does something for you. You feel like you’re part of something bigger.”