Disneyland Employees Donate $30,000 to Newport Beach Charity

Disneyland employees are donating $820,000 to 114 Southern California nonprofits, including $30,000 to Beckstrand Cancer Association in Newport Beach, it was announced Wednesday.

The employees give the money through one-time gifts and regular payroll deductions. Donors to the VoluntEARS Community Fund may nominate a recipient for a grant of up to $5,000.

To honor the 30th anniversary of Disney VoluntEARS, 10 of the organizations receiving donations got an additional $25,000 for a total of $30,000.

Beckstrand Cancer Association helps provide financial assistance for cancer patients to lighten their load and reduce stress.

The other nine organizations awarded the extra $25,000 grants were:

-- The Esperanza Entertainment Unit at Esperanza High School in Anaheim:

-- The Boys and Girls Club of Tustin;

-- California Women's Recovery-The Lynn House in Costa Mesa;

-- The Children's Bureau of Southern California in Huntington Beach;

-- The Ontario USO;

 -- Orange County Educational Arts Academy in Santa Ana;

-- Orange County High School of the Arts in Santa Ana;

-- Rancho Los Amigos Foundation in Downey and;

-- The San Dimas Mountain Rescue Team.

Since the founding of VoluntEARS in 1997, the foundation has raised about $5.1 million for hundreds of organizations.

City News Service contributed to this report.