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Stories of Community Support More Stories of Community Support Women’s Resource Fair Beautiful Family of Four – Homeless No More Impassioned and empowered through our new relationship with this family, Bread for the Journey of San Diego wanted to help. As we got to know them, we learned just how expensive it can be to be homeless, especially for a family of four. The nights that you pay for temporary lodging are so much more expensive than rent. And when you have to buy every meal, and have no access to a kitchen, there is no way to plan ahead and shop for groceries to save money. Within a few short days, Bread for the Journey of San Diego raised $2,079 as a gift to this family. We had no assumptions about how much this money would or would not help this family, and no assumptions about how they would manage or use the money. We just gave it stating simply that it was a gift in hopes that it would make “today” a little easier. To our great delight they had already been working some of their own resources. They had been talking with an apartment owner who would help them if they could come up with enough money to demonstrate their efforts. The father had been working security and the mother had been interviewing for jobs, and they had been trying to get into a home for a while. The cash that our chapter raised for them, plus what they had already accomplished on their own, enabled this family to move into an apartment that very week. With free furnishings they collected from Craig’s list and other sites, they are settling into home and continuing to flourish. Having a home has made the entire family feel secure and proud again. As for BFJ of San Diego, we are moved to have had an experience that we simply did not expect. We learned a lot through giving to this family. San Diego Indie Music Fest
The San Diego Indie Music Fest, held on March 28, 2009, celebrates the spirit and power of independent music to make a difference in the world. The Festival is the brainchild of Alicia Champion and Danielle Lo Presti. Danielle is a pioneer who works tirelessly to empower artists and enrich the independent music scene. Alicia Champion is a young artist whose independent recording label, Champ Records, has showcased the work of many up and coming independent artists. Together, Danielle's wisdom of experience and Alicia's fiery passion to climb any musical mountain makes them unstoppable. Working side by side throughout Southern California, and playing the stages of festivals, clubs, activist showcases and more, this duo is lighting a fire of awareness and hope throughout the all-too-often embittered music world. Bread for the Journey of San Diego was happy to make a donation of $100 to the festival to support the independent spirit of musicians to speak, sing, and play their truth. Chula Vista Fastpitch Girls Softball League: Jackson and Nicholle Wyatt are teachers at a Catholic girls’ school in San Diego. Both sports enthusiasts, Jackson coaches for the Chula Vista High School Girls Softball Team in his “spare” time. As someone who grew up in Chula Vista, Jackson was aware of untapped potential for sports leagues, particularly for young girls, in the lower income portions of Chula Vista. With that in mind, he and Nicholle identified an abandoned softball field that was owned by a local church, and met with church officials to discuss its reclamation. The church agreed and the Wyatts single-handedly pulled together a board of parents and supporters and have begun to raise funds. They have spent up to $4,000 of their own money to begin to clean up and reclaim the ball field. A $500 grant from the San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey will assist them as they continue toward creating a new girls’ softball league. They have already had 110 young girls come forward to register to play. They are also hoping to secure a grant from the Padres baseball team, which would pay for the remainder of the restoration project. Southern Sudanese Community Center
Located in the heart of City Heights, the Southern Sudanese Community Center of San Diego (SSCCSD) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1995 with the mission to assist all Sudanese refugees in their resettlement through education, social, economic, and cultural support. The refugees are guided towards self-sufficiency and full integration into American society while achieving dignity as new Americans. Aid is also provided to children in Southern Sudan, since many of these African children have lost one or both parents to war and genocide. The SSCCSD provides support for those who have immigrated from war-torn Southern Sudan, with most of its staff members being unpaid volunteers. Bread for the Journey of San Diego met with SSCCSD Executive Director Dep Tuaney, and granted $1,000 toward their general youth programming, which includes tutoring after school. Sherman Heights Community Center The mission of the Sherman Heights Community Center is to offer health prevention, personal development, educational and cultural programs, enabling families and individuals to reach their greatest human potential and participate fully in society. The Center is truly a hub of activity for those who live, work and play within the Sherman Heights community, a low-income area within San Diego. The center offers a wide variety of classes and experiences, including ESL classes, cake decorating, karate and exercise classes. A $1,000 grant from Bread for the Journey of San Diego will go toward expenses for their four-week summer youth program, which will be offered free to all participants. The San Diego Hunger Coalition The San Diego Hunger Coalition is a nonprofit organization committed to eliminating hunger through education, outreach, collaboration, and public policy advocacy. Their activities focus on three main areas: 1) increasing participation in the federal Food Stamp Program; 2) expanding School Meal Programs, including School Breakfast and Summer Lunch service; and 3) working with elected officials and policymakers to effect systemic changes that will alleviate hunger and promote good nutrition. While not a new organization, the Hunger Coalition is going through somewhat of a renaissance. With a capacity-building grant from The California Endowment, they are now able to move into their first office suite in the City Heights area. A $1,000 grant from Bread for the Journey of San Diego will help purchase a laptop, which will be used to regularly screen eligible applicants for food stamps at the newly revitalized City Heights Farmers Market on Saturdays. San Diego Food Not Lawns
San Diego Food Not Lawns is a grassroots group based in San Diego, CA, which focuses on "cultivating an edible future" and working together to offer information, to facilitate communication, and to otherwise act and effect local change regarding a variety of food- and land-related issues. These issues include food security; sustainable agriculture; genetically engineered foods and commercial food production; environmental and social justice; farm worker and border issues; land access; water; reducing our ecological footprint; feeding the hungry; reclaiming space; and certainly, creating local food systems. A $1,000 grant from the San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey will help to support San Diego Food Not Lawns through the Chollas Creek urban farm project. This will specifically be used as a demonstration site in order to grow free plant starts for local schools and gardeners and to help facilitate free gardening classes. A portion of the funds will also help support the San Diego Food Not Lawns annual event, “Eat In, Act Out Week“ in 2008. Dress for Success For thousands of women in San Diego County, the prospects for building confidence and gaining career skills are remote. With low self-esteem, a lack of job skills and minimal professional support, these women and their children are trapped in a cycle of poverty. Dress for Success San Diego (DFSSD) was conceived to help these women break that cycle, by providing multi-level support during their transition from government assistance to economic independence. It all starts with the suits. Each DFSSD client receives a personal consultation at the DFSSD “boutique”. She receives one suit for her job interview and, when she gets the job, up to one week’s worth of professional attire and additional, ongoing support services. DFSSD volunteers gently guide the client through the clothing selection process, and along the way, nurture their self-esteem and educate the client on workplace protocol and expectations. Each client is encouraged to discuss her feelings about the pending interview, her professional presentation, child-care plans, and other issues. This consultation and clothing are the beginnings of DFSSD programs, which are devoted to job retention and career advancement, assuring clients of the needed support throughout their journey. DFSSD also pioneered a professional Mentor Program that matches clients with successful businesswomen for guidance and encouragement. Clients are referred by human-service and job-readiness programs throughout San Diego County, and over 4,000 local women have benefited from DFSSD programs since 1998. Bread for the Journey of San Diego granted $1,000 to San Diego Dress for Success to help support these wonderful programs. Sun and Moon Vision Productions
The mission of Sun and Moon Vision Productions (SMVP) is to support women filmmakers in producing films, documentaries, media art, and events that educate, inspire change, and advance a humanitarian vision. Advocating for the end of human and environmental exploitation through the creation and distribution of women-made media-arts programs and events, they work to educate and provide working opportunities to other media artists — especially women and youth — who typically do not have access to (or are under-represented in the fields of) film and multimedia technologies. SMVP provides full multimedia production services for other businesses, arts and culture programs, and community organizations in and around San Diego. The San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey was proud to give a $1,000 grant to support Sun and Moon Vision Productions. License to Freedom
Many of us take driving (or our ability to learn how to drive) for granted. What if you were a woman from a country where females were not encouraged — even forbidden — to learn to drive? Imagine how it might be if, in addition, you were living with domestic violence and had no way to flee. License to Freedom is a nonprofit community-based organization that promotes nonviolence through Domestic Violence Prevention and Intervention, Driver’s License Education, and Women’s Self-Sufficiency Projects in the San Diego region. They are advocates who believe that every person has a right to live without fear and that abused refugee and immigrant women and children should be able to seek and receive services that are respectful of their language, culture, race, age, sexual orientation, physical ability and religious belief. The community education model used was adapted from “Training for Transformation,” an approach developed by Paulo Freire. All educational sessions are experiential, intensive, and encourage participants to engage in listening, dialogue, action and reflection. Rather than telling participants what to do and how to do it, the women are guided through the process of self-discovery about their needs as they regain their strength and skills, and explore ways to achieve solutions. The guiding principles of License to Freedom are:
A September 2007 grant from the San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey in the amount of $750 will help support the range of services provided by License to Freedom. For more information on this organization that is providing vital and transformative services to our immigrant sisters, please go to www.licensetofreedom.org. Latinos y Latinas en Acción Latinos y Latinas en Acción ( LLEA ) is a successful, vibrant coalition of community residents who are part of the MidCity Community Advocacy Network (Mid-City CAN) in San Diego. Working to promote positive change, the members actively participate in Mid-City’s civic and political processes, and are well respected by the governing bodies at the city, county, state and federal levels. The mission of LLEA is to lead, support and channel the various efforts made by the Latino community to improve the quality of life of its families and to influence the civic and political processes that affect Mid-City. Latinos and Latinas en Acción recruits its members with two goals in mind:
Through a variety of trainings, members acquire the skills needed to advocate for different issues that affect the life of the community. The trainings focus on leadership development, community organizing and advocacy, personal growth, and the impact that racism and oppression have on the daily lives of members. This year, the priority areas for LLEA are: immigrant rights, affordable and healthy housing (Proyecto Casas Des Saludables), and education. In September 2007, the San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey gave a $1,000 grant to the LLEA to provide a full year of childcare services, thus allowing parents to attend the LLEA meetings and events. For more information, go to www.midcitycan.org and click on community involvement. transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project
Catherine (Cat) Corral, who co-founded transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project in 2005, is working as its CEO and Artistic Director. This San Diego-based nonprofit provides professional training in dance, choreography, creative writing and theatre to San Diego youth with the firm belief that the arts can be an effective tool in mobilizing and empowering people to work for social change in their communities. The core values of this young, dynamic organization are inspiring, and include community leadership and service through the arts; performance as a means to mobilize social change; encouragement of culturally and racially diverse youth to work side by side in meaningful ways; and inspiring greater thinking and action about complex social issues. TranscenDANCE is youth-driven in every aspect of its work. Bread for the Journey of San Diego is honored to grant transcenDANCE their request of $1050. The funds will be used toward the cost of purchasing dance shoes and uniforms for the entire company to use during the 2007 performance season. TranscenDANCE has also graciously agreed to perform at Bread for the Journey of San Diego’s fundraising event, to be held in August 2007. Visit http://www.transcendanceyoutharts.org. Casa Cornelia Law Center
Casa Cornelia Law Center is a public interest law firm that provides quality pro bono legal representation to victims of human and civil rights violations. They are dedicated to working with the most vulnerable communities in San Diego — the undocumented immigrant women and children who are victims of domestic violence. Although entitled by law to immigrant visas, these victims are dependent upon their abusers to access the system. Their abusers, however, refuse to help them with the process, often threatening them with deportation and separation from family. They live in the shadows of society, alienated by language, poverty, culture, and fear. Because of their undocumented immigration status, they cannot take advantage of the social and medical services designed for at-risk women and children. Casa Cornelia comes to their aid by providing free legal representation, which empowers them to leave their abusive relationships. They assist them with their visa petitions, which gets them on the road toward economic independence, improved self-esteem, and a new life for themselves and their children. A $500 grant from the San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey will cover the cost of all printing for the Casa Cornelia Domestic Violence program. See www.casacornelia.org. SOFIA - Poverty and Social Justice With the third-largest immigrant population in the U.S., San Diego is a gateway for newcomers from over 50 different countries. Lana Khoury, Esq., and her small staff at SOFIA (Services Offered for Immigration Advocacy) provide services to those needing help in legalizing their residency or immigration status. In addition to naturalization and citizenship applications, the group submits requests for work authorizations, waivers and travel documents. They also help those seeking asylum and temporary protection status, family reunification, and battered spousal immigration support. SOFIA also offers another important service by helping would-be immigrants weed out deceptive offers from organizations who would take advantage of their limited knowledge about our customs and language. Their services are offered on a pro bono basis or sliding scale fee. INS fees (which have recently risen substantially) are paid in full. Last year, SOFIA submitted 2,500 applications, 1,200 of which were successfully completed. Bread for the Journey of San Diego was moved by SOFIA'S dedication and kindness to the immigrant community, and offered a $500 grant to further their efforts. People for Trees Due to San Diego's recent devastating fires, the San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey decided to help People for Trees, a non-profit organization that places trees throughout the community. Their goal is to bring more greenery and beautification to San Diego, as well as to help the environment ecologically. They come out to a home or specific area, assess where the tree should be planted, check the soil, and offer some recommendations as to which trees would be best for that location. It is then up to the receiver to dig the hole, plant the tree and maintain it. Each tree costs People for Trees $70 - $80, and Bread for the Journey of San Diego was happy to offer help in the form of a $500 grant. It Takes a Village Upon reading Wayne Muller's book, How Then Shall We Live?, Katherine Miller became inspired by his story of how weaving looms - when placed in a strategic community setting - could help weave a bond between generations and with the community's cultural past. Katherine had been a weaver who was moving from San Diego to the Virgin Islands, and was looking for a new "home" for her loom. So she called Bread for the Journey of San Diego asking if we could get it to a group who would use and appreciate it. Karen Schneider picked up Katherine's loom and brought it to a friend's garage for safekeeping. Brandy Sacks at BFJ's International Headquarters soon identified Shelly Trippe Harden of Santa Fe, NM, as a possible recipient. Shelly had worked on a weaving project with the women of Las Trampas. They were now setting up a non-profit organization to promote weaving in their community, and said they would love to have the loom! After shopping around, however, Karen discovered that the shipping costs would be more than the San Diego chapter could afford. So she located yet another donor - Fred Bincziewski of Ocean Beach - who offered to pack and ship the loom for free. Finally, Katherine's vision for the loom has come to fruition, now in the loving hands of people who will use and appreciate it. In the process, all of us learned that it really does "take a village…"! Better than Money! Charles and Diane Connoy became acquainted with the San Diego Chapter of Bread for the Journey at a movie-night fundraiser at Karen Schneider's home. Charles contacted us to say that Sony Computer Entertainment, his employer, would happily donate their used computers to organizations we might put them in touch with. Of those we contacted, Shakti Rising acted quickly. (Shakti Rising is an innovative and highly effective alternative recovery program for young women dealing with the effects of addiction and disempowerment.) Charles put Jordyn Stanton of Shakti Rising in contact with Rick Rossiter, head of the IT Support Department at Sony, who was responsible for the distribution. Jordyn writes, "Sony turned out to be a wonderful situation for Shakti Rising. We did receive the four computers that you initially contacted us about. Since then, we have received three more computers with monitors, a scanner and a high power printer. Sony continues to donate to us whenever it is possible for them to do so. These computers have all been used in our offices and our director's home office. They are the fastest machines we have….Thank you so much for giving us this lead. It has been a wonderful blessing to our organization." Canine Companions for Independence In the fall of 2003, the San Diego Chapter of Bread for the Journey donated $500 to Canine Companions for Independence (CCI). CCI is a non-profit organization that breeds, raises and trains dogs until they are ready to be placed with a person who is living with a disability. The Telling of our Stories I will never find myself The memory and the telling of our stories are central to our experience of being human. It is in this telling that we deeply connect to one another. The San Diego chapter of Bread for the Journey gathered with friends and supporters on the evening of the Spring Equinox to celebrate the lives of young women walking a new path of hope - and future possibilities - far different from their troubled pasts. The young women were from Shakti Rising, a dynamic recovery program based on education and empowerment (http://www.shaktirising.org). They shared their life stories and told us of being nurtured to wholeness by the staff of the Shakti Rising program. Our evening together was our Spring FunRaiser. Because of the generosity of everyone who came and the sponsors who provided raffle items, we were able to provide Shakti Rising with a gift of $250.This money would provide one month of private counseling for a young woman in the program. We closed the evening with a Dance for Peace led by Alice King to the music of Pachelbel's Canon, and the naming in alphabetical order of every country in the world. "Walk … you are born to take the path." Shakti Rising
The program includes both live-in and live-out apprenticeship recovery programs, as well as classes in Herbs & Nutrition, Business Skills, Financial Responsibility, Yoga, Lifescripts Teen Theatre, and Creative Personal Growth classes. Bread for the Journey of San Diego felt blessed to be able to offer Shakti Rising a $1000 grant to further its environmental program. The grant will be used to start a community garden (to produce food, for environmental reasons, as well as for its therapeutic value), and for environmental education. For more information, check out their website at http://www.shaktirising.org. School To School Tutors Update Graceful Passages - Care for the Journey Update Sacred Order Sanctuary (SOS)
On a leap of faith, Linda Strom-Medvitz and her husband sold their 18-year-old business, started the Sacred Order Sanctuary (SOS) and purchased 40 acres of land for the purpose of starting a youth camp. Camp Cloud Walk is dedicated to promoting respect for nature and the environment through education, by drawing from the combined wisdom of several native traditions. Nestled on the northern side of El Cajon Mountain overlooking the lush Barona Valley, Camp Cloud Walk provides a unique opportunity for children ages 8 to 16. It provides a retreat where they can connect with nature, explore the secrets of the local countryside, and come to better understand their connection with the earth, their place in the world, and their responsibilities to both. Linda asked for and was granted $700 from Bread for the Journey of San Diego. Of this, $500 is paying for their 501 (c) 3 status, with the remaining $200 paying the rental fee for the Oak Tree Ballroom, where they will be holding a fundraiser on June 8th. Later in June, the camp will host their first group of kids. Check out SOS's website at www.sacredordersanctuary.org Donovan Prison Meditation Project We gave them a grant of $300 to cover their expenses for about one year. They hope to eventually conduct long retreats within the prison walls and build a strong Sangha with a presence in all four sections of the prison; currently they are in only one. On receiving the check, Rick said, "On behalf of Dale Laney, Reverend Kshanti, Sensei Seisen and myself, thank you for honoring these men's practice and their wish to be free from suffering. We send you boundless metta (loving kindness) and the wish that your own practice will grow and develop, moment by moment, day by day." At Bread for the Journey of San Diego, we feel that the calmness and equanimity that can be developed through meditation will benefit not only the practitioners, but the general atmosphere within the prison as well. Project 10 for 10
Project 10 for 10 takes ten at-risk youth who are currently in a juvenile or rehab center and - by matching them with ten dogs and teaching them to train the dogs in basic obedience - provides them with useful skills and a sense of worth and purpose. Patrice Hutchins, the founder of Ispeak Foundation, asked Bread for the Journey of San Diego for a grant to help purchase a transportation vehicle. She also needed funds for their graduation, or "acknowledgment ceremony," which takes place at the end of the program. The graduation dinner honors the teens and their assigned dogs, and each kid receives a "Jacket of Pride" with their name embroidered on it. Bread for the Journey of San Diego gave this project a grant of $1000. Community Garden Projects Isabella Rochon has a dream. Her dream is to see gardens spring up throughout San Diego in ways that will help bridge social, economic, cultural and environmental gaps among various neighborhoods and, in the process, help to build a stronger overall community. This is a seedling project, still in its early stages. Isabella has created flyers, in Spanish, Vietnamese and English, and has contacted San Diego's senators and city council members about finding land for the gardens. Among a small group of volunteers is one person who will teach gardening and composting, as well as another whose expertise is in biodynamic gardening. Among Isabella's intentions is to see at least one garden (in a high-income area) assist another garden (in a less advantaged area) with hands-on support, both physically and financially. Bread for the Journey of San Diego gave Isabella a grant of $1000. We will keep you posted on her progress. School to School Tutors
Bread for the Journey of San Diego gave its first grant to Deborah Finch of the San Diego Association of Black Social Workers. They are a volunteer organization that has been tutoring students at Baker Elementary in Logan Heights, one of the lowest performing schools in San Diego, for four years. It is K-6 with about 600 students, and is Montessori based (though still public). Many of the children are being raised by their grandparents, and many families are undocumented aliens. The Saturday tutoring program takes place 2 or 3 times a month, and 19 to 30 kids show up. They usually only have 3 adult tutors (no more)! They asked for the grant so that they can pay a small stipend to high school students to help tutor the children. There are 3 high schools in the area from which they can recruit. Our second grant went to Michael Stillwater and his project "Care for the Journey," a hospice gifting program. Michael is a talented singer, songwriter, and producer who has created a CD called Graceful Passages, a Companion for Living and Dying. It is a heart-opening journey of soothing music and words of inspiration by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Thich Nhat Hanh, Arun Ghandhi, Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and others. Michael gives the CD away to hospices and hospitals for patients to ease the transition at the end of life. With our $300 grant, Michael can distribute his CD at hospices and hospitals in the San Diego area. For more information and to hear a sample of his CD, please see www.gracefulpassages.com/grace.htm.
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