Tori Johnson is a family woman. Her days, nights, vacations, weekends, spare moments are spent working with her family. And her family is a large one. Johnson has a husband, Jeff, two young boys, Noah and Jacob, and a community full of brothers and sisters throughout the City of Woodlake.

The Woodlake Kiwanians named Johnson Woman of the Year on Saturday, Feb. 23 at the City's annual awards banquet. The Kiwanis Club honored Johnson not only for her past year of volunteerism and dedication to the community but also for shaping and impacting several organizations and individuals in Woodlake over much of the past decade.

Johnson is a busy woman who spends much of every day taking care of her “family.”

She works beyond her call of duty at Castle Rock Elementary School where she heads the Woodlake Chapter of the Friday Night Live program. The program is present at both Castle Rock and Woodlake Union High School. Johnson enjoys that Friday Night Live teaches her students that their voice can always be heard, even at a young age. The group promotes seatbelt safety and bicycle safety along with other important information for its peers throughout the year. Those involved meet regularly and check in with Johnson to find out about the club's next project. Johnson teaches these young children responsibility and pride - cornerstones for a strong family.

At Castle Rock, she also coordinates and facilitates “Parenting Partners,” an organization that brings parents together to work through and discuss tough parenting issues and strategies for raising school-aged children.

Through the six-week course, Johnson encourages parents to share what works for them and to ask for help with strategies that aren't working for their children.

Johnson helps participants to trust and learn from those close to them - traits of a healthy and growing family.

Johnson also volunteers once a year as the site coordinator for Castle Rock in the annual “Toys for Joy” Christmas drive. She is a designated shopper and organizer. Johnson encourages generosity in her students - a healthy quality to pass through generations of any family.

It seems each year, Johnson finds a new activity or project to jump into. Last year, Woodlake School District's nurse Ginger Curtis, approached Johnson about organizing “Kids Day Newspaper.”

The project is a newspaper selling drive that raises funds for the Valley Children's Hospital in north Fresno. Curtis, a friend of Johnson, is personally attached to the project. She lost a daughter to Leukemia several years ago; and when Johnson saw Curtis' passion for the project, she threw herself in full force. Organizing students and every resource she could get her hands on, Johnson led the group of volunteers to raise $2,000 for the hospital. After a successful first year, the project will return to the city and Woodlake residents will have the chance to buy a Kids Day Newspaper again on March 11. Johnson and Curtis partnered to show their Woodlake community how good it feels to give.

Closest to Johnson's heart is the ongoing assistance she offers through her church to a special group of Woodlake residents. Families at the Woodlake Trailer Park near the airport benefit throughout the year from the generosity of the parishioners at New Hope Christian Church in Visalia. Members of the church collaborate to provide a memorable Christmas for deserving families at the park who experience financial hardships.

The program, called Woodlake Blessings, provides a complete dinner, Christmas tree, decorations, presents and a personal appearance by Santa.

Recently, an anonymous donation allowed Johnson to take nine children of those families to Disneyland for two days, all expenses paid.

“It does make a difference,” Johnson said. “It gives them opportunities they wouldn't have.”

Johnson used the trip as a reward for those children who showed academic improvement and success.

“The looks on the kids faces when they entered Disneyland was something I'll never forget,” Johnson said.

Through Woodlake Blessings and the ongoing assistance provided, Johnson and the volunteers at New Hope show the residents at the trailer park that they can always count on “family” to pick them up when they are down - a trust that should be shared in every family.

Johnson's most recognizable and spotlighted volunteer work comes through her coaching experiences in the Woodlake School District. She is the head coach of the Woodlake Union High School varsity volleyball team and she has single handedly put the Tigers on the map. In 2007, Johnson was named coach of the year for the East Sequoia League. Her teams continually improve their records and Johnson works to instill pride and discipline in the hundreds of young women that have passed through her rosters.

Her main goal each year is to teach the concept of a team, not individuals. She has been able to teach this concept at an earlier and earlier age by initiating a Woodlake Club Volleyball program. In three years, the program has grown from one, 12-player team to four teams with more than 42 participants. Establishing the program has strengthened the high school team by offering a no-cost feeder system. As a self-sufficient program, the club raises an average of $400 athlete through local tournaments and other fund-raising efforts.

Johnson's high school team also encourages very young girls in Woodlake to join athletics by hosting a Volleyball clinic through the YMCA.

Johnson's strategy of treating her community like a family has benefited the entire City of Woodlake, and with every person who passes through one of the programs she's involved in, the strategy is spread through a new member of the “family.”

“There is a sense of community here. I'm proud to say I'm from this town,” Johnson said.

“I think the biggest thing is that I'm thankful that God put me to work in the school district. I'm able to reach so many kids. God's given me many opportunities.”

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