CITY DONATIONS SILLY, SOLEMN IN MOORPARK; LOCALS GIVE MONEY AND MORE.

Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Daily News Staff Writer

Over the years, residents of Moorpark have given a variety of things to their city, gifts that raised a few eyebrows, drew a few tears and more than a few laughs.

From a load of running shorts from a bike shop owner going out of business to dozens of books on tape that a mystery fan wanted to share with fellow seniors, many things have found their way to the city - even the most useful commodity of all, money.

``We do have a community of givers,'' said Shelly Shellabarger, the city's recreation superintendent.

The major beneficiaries of gifts are the Parks and Recreation Department and senior center.

To encourage and solicit donations and streamline the donation process, the city recently finalized new guidelines for donations to parks. It also established a scholarship program to help needy children participate in park events and programs.

Though the City Council had approved similar policies in 1996, they were not implemented at the time. Earlier this year, an ad hoc committee went back to work to update them and the council approved those new guidelines this month.

The guidelines separate the donations into two categories: memorial donations and general donations. General donations are further broken down based on the size of the gift - from $25 up to $1,000 for event sponsorship and scholarships.

The city also has many offers of volunteerism to help conduct events and maintain facilities. Officials said they are looking forward to the time when students from Moorpark High School begin working on their mandatory community service hours for graduation.

``I'm licking my chops at the thought,'' Shellabarger said. ``But we have to have something for them all to do. We have to be organized, and sometimes it's hard to think of things to do when you don't have something on hand.''

Also, showing that they are equal opportunity receivers, the city changed an early regulation that barred gifts from or in memory of outsiders.

``We think that if someone wants to make a donation in honor of his father who passed away but he lived in Alabama, it was only fair,'' Shellabarger said, ``especially in this world, where people are so mobile.''

The memorial donations - the suggested amount is $350 minimum - are normally noted with plaques, and those wanting to plant a tree are encouraged to do so in one of the city's memorial groves at Poindexter and Arroyo Vista community parks.

One example of such a gift is a bench that now sits in Arroyo Vista Park in memory of a Moorpark boy who was killed in a car accident.

While many of the donations the city receives are in the form of money, the city has received a few unusual gifts over the years.

Shellabarger recalls a gift of dozens of running shorts and bicycle parts dropped off at City Hall a few years ago by the owner of a defunct bike shop.

Shellabarger said it took some creative thinking to put them to use. The shorts are pulled out of storage during the summer camp months to be used in the dress-up relay races, but the parks still aren't sure what to do with the bike parts.

Officials at the senior center said they get unusual gifts all the time, but often by design.

Each month, the center puts out the call for ``white elephant'' items to sell at the Simi Valley Swap Meet. Carol Ghens, senior center coordinator, said the center receives old knickknacks and items the owners have no use for.

``We usually don't turn anything down,'' she said. ``Sometimes I look at it and think a lot of it won't sell, but there's always someone who likes whatever it is.

``We always appreciate when someone thinks of us enough to call and ask, to at least give us the opportunity to say yes or no.''

The senior center has been able to establish a books-on-tape section in its library, using a collection of more than 60 Aaudio cassettes given by a center member.

Ghens said the selections have been wildly popular and were quickly checked out as soon as they were available in April.

City officials said many of their events and some of their programs depend largely on the generosity of residents and business owners in the area, who come forward to serve at events and with prizes for city-sponsored contests.

Shellabarger said one of the more creative donations that found its way to the city was a set of ``trick or treat'' facades created by the Moorpark Kiwanis. The wooden mock-ups, a castle and house, are now used to celebrate Mardi Gras, as well as Halloween.

Though the city generally declines donations that require a lot of storage space, Shellabarger said the model houses are worth the space because they are so versatile.