"Michelle is a new hire at Effie's and when she came on board she suggested the restaurant perform a good deed every year," bar manager Victoria Sanchez said. "For this year, she suggested collecting money from customers and donating it to the Valley Medical Center burn unit. We put together a flier and passed it out to customers. Most came forward, some donating hundreds, others twenties and fives."

The four-month effort raised $600 for the pediatric burn unit at Valley Medical Center and was used to purchase toys and DVDs for children in the unit and grocery and phone cards for their parents.

"We have a great customer base," Sanchez said. "Some have been coming to the restaurant for 10 to12 years."

Overton, whose background is in customer service and event planning, has been a long-time supporter of the burn unit.

"I had a boyfriend who was a firefighter, so I became familiar with the work they do," she said. "I have donated money in the past and one year donated my vacation pay to them."

Overton is quick to point out that it was Effie's customers who made the fundraiser a success.

"All I did was put the idea out there and it was everyone else who got excited and ran with it," she said. "I think everyone wants to do something good and have their life be about more than their jobs and making money. But people are so busy it's hard to make the effort to do so. This was easy for them and gave everyone the opportunity to do something and feel good about themselves."

In addition to the cash donations by customers, local businesses pitched in and offered discounts on toys and DVDs.

"Lots of kids stay in the burn unit for three months at a time and they need things they can do inside," Overton said. "The Safeway on Winchester gave us 35 gigantic stuffed animals for $3 each. Big Lots off Campbell Avenue gave us a huge percentage off toys they had in stock and Blockbuster gave us a discount on DVDs."

In addition, a portion of the money was used to purchase clothing and other essentials for children whose homes had been destroyed by fire, and phone and grocery cards were purchased for parents who travel to the hospital from out of the area in order to secure care for their children.

As Jill Sproul, nurse manager of the Valley Medical Burn Unit, said when a child is burned, a parent's life is equally disrupted.

"Oftentimes family members travel from South County, Monterey and Salinas in order to be with their children," Sproul said. "This puts a financial strain on some people who may have very little to begin with. The phone cards help them stay in touch with people back home and the grocery cards help out with necessary food purchases."

Sproul said the staff at the burn unit really appreciated the fundraising efforts and the energy of Effie's staff.

"We've given out some of the stuffed animals and the kids love them," Sproul said. "Their faces just light up when they see them."

Sproul says the burn unit has limited space for storing toys and other donations, but they do have a trust fund that is used to help family members with petty cash-type expenses.

Effie's Restaurant, 331 W. Hacienda Ave., is open Mondays through Thursdays and Sundays from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. For more information call 408.374.3400.