New Riverside vending machines offer help — including goats — for those in need – Press Enterprise

Tony Ramos — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 04:29:07 +0000

Two new vending machines in Riverside let you fill up on happiness without the empty calories.

And if you’re especially generous, a struggling family in a far-off land will get a four-legged chance for a better future.

Instead of sugary sodas or fattening snacks, the Light the World Giving Machines inside the Galleria at Tyler mall allows customers from now until Dec. 31 to help those in need by donating to charities, which will use the money to buy food, clothing, trips to medical appointments and even goats.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place Tuesday, Dec. 2, for the red-colored machines, which are in front of Macy’s between Five Below and Cinnabon. They are part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Light the World initiative.

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Officials celebrate Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, during a ribbon-cutting for two Light the World Giving Machines at the Galleria at Tyler mall in Riverside. The machines let people donate to charities to help those in need. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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The machines resemble the old Redbox DVD rental kiosks. Only instead of movies, white DVD-like boxes labeled “Family Dinner,” “Infant Care Kit,” “Refugee School Kit” or “One Goat” are inside.

Using a credit or debit card, a customer chooses a donation and presses buttons on the machine. The chosen donation falls to the bottom but doesn’t come out.

Mormon and retired Southern California TV news anchor Chuck Henry emceed the ceremony, which featured brief interviews with representatives of the charities that will be helped by the machines.

They included Jean Nowa of Lifting Hands International, a global nonprofit group that helps refugees by providing livestock among other aid. A $150 donation via a giving machine helps Lifting Hands buy a goat for refugees around the world who are fleeing violence and unrest.

Nowa explained how a goat can help refugees. Goats, she said, can be bred and sold, and their milk is a great source of protein.

“When these refugees are totally displaced, they have no economic place to turn to,” Nowa said. “Basically, they are on aid.”

“And so by giving them goats, they are able to start to make something economically of themselves and help their families” and community.

Besides Nowa’s charity, the machines facilitate donations to:

Megan’s Wings, a Southern California-based nonprofit group that offers financial and emotional help to families of children battling cancer.
Path of Life Ministries, which helps the unhoused find shelter and employment and runs a Riverside shelter.
Riverside Meals on Wheels, which serves Riverside, Corona, the Temescal Valley, Norco, Mira Loma, Eastvale and Jurupa Valley
US Vets Inland Empire, which helps veterans avoid homelessness.
The American Red Cross.
Caterina’s Club, of Anaheim, which provides meals to underprivileged children and helps at-risk teens pursue job training and explore careers.

Tuesday’s ribbon cutting also featured remarks from elected leaders, including Inland Empire Assemblymembers Leticia Castillo and Natasha Johnson, Riverside Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson and Riverside City Councilmember Jim Perry.

The machines, Perry said, give charitable groups “an opportunity to succeed and do the important things they do on a daily basis.”

Donations, which are tax deductible, cost as little as $5 and 100% of the proceeds go to the charities. Shower flip-flops for the homeless, pet food, meals for homebound seniors and ID replacements are among the other gifts donors can choose.

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New Riverside vending machines offer help — including goats — for those in need – Press Enterprise