Office: 760-843-0701
24/7 Hotline: 760-949-4357
The holiday season has begun, and we have much to be grateful for. Major thanks to the sponsors for our gala. At the end of this newsletter, we have all of their logos. Our speaker for our gala was Sara Kruzan. I highly recommend you pick up her book. It is an inspirational story about dreaming for freedom.
We participated in 6 Trunk or Treats and are now planning for multiple Thanksgiving events. We will be handing our Christmas presents and joining Santa’s Sleigh with the Don Ferrarese Foundation. Holidays are tough for people struggling with housing and poverty, but it is also a time when we see how compassionate and giving our community is.
I will always remember the year when a flood came through Apple Valley on December 23. We helped families get into hotels and out of the emergency shelter. They were grateful to be alive but saddened that the flood took away their Christmas trees and presents. Dan Tate showed up on Christmas Eve at 6pm with a truck load of presents for the kids living in the motel. Between him and his friends, every one of those children had an extra special Christmas.
I am most grateful for experiences like this. We can be proud of the community we have built. The media and political parties may tell us to hate our neighbors, but most people care about their neighbors. Most of us want to come together and create a better world for our children. My wish for this holiday season is that we all spend a little more time focusing on the good in the world.
This month we celebrate Veterans Day and want to thank our Veterans here at Family Assistance Program.
Darryl Evey – Marines
Gary Martin – Army
Erick Barker – Navy
Thank you so much for your service!
Veterans Day is a federal holiday recognized annually on November 11 in the United States to commemorate all military veterans. The Family Assistance Program offices will be closed on Friday, November 11th. As always, our 24/7 hotlines are still available for any emergency situations:
Domestic Violence 760-949-4357 Anti-Human Trafficking 909-333-7476 Youth Homelessness/Runaway 909-335-2676
This Veterans Day and every day we appreciate the selfless service of all of our armed forces for protecting America’s freedom. Take the time to thank a Veteran today. Happy Veterans Day 2022!
Join us on Giving Tuesday for our Taco Tuesday fundraiser! Come have tacos, buy raffle tickets, and support Family Assistance Program and one of our partner Santa’s Sleigh Toy Drive by Don Ferrarese Charitable Foundation. “Fulfilling the wish lists of hundreds of local children.”
Tuesday, November 29th
5pm – 8pm
@ Courtyard By Marriott
9619 Mariposa Rd.
Hesperia, CA 92345
Every year, on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving people take the time to kick off the holiday season by giving back to their community on Giving Tuesday. Keep your donations local! Bring a new unwrapped toy to donate to the children in our programs. Taco Tuesday is a fun way to give back while hanging out, having some drinks, and eating some delicious tacos!
We are so excited and proud of the 16 new Domestic Violence Advocates that our community has after our latest 40 hour training! Congratulations for your determination and hard work completing this training. We will be hosting our next training, Spanish Domestic Violence 40-Hour Training, in late February of 2023.
C Street Staff has so much to be thankful for and we would like to share it:
Magali: I am thankful for my kids, my job and my house; for everything!
Diana: I am thankful for having a roof over my head, food to eat; I’m thankful that we are here to help all the clients that we help.
Ahea: I am thankful for my house, my daughter, my family and for all of my co-workers/friends/family!
Cristina: I am thankful for my kids and grandkids and for my good health.
Jobi: I am thankful for my family, my kids, my friends and to be a part of a great team that changes lives daily.
We have a new program that is not only for our participants, but it is also open to the community. It is called Financial Empowerment and Credit Coaching Workshop. In this 10-week course we will discuss how to make a budget, and start saving, improve and build credit, income, and becoming debt free, and lastly homeownership. At the end of the course, you will receive a certificate of completion. We have recently just partnered with Bank of America to be able to assist participants with obtaining bank accounts, and we are working on obtaining partnership with a credit union as well. If you are interested please email nalisha@familyassist.org for the high desert, or anny@familyassist.org for San Bernardino.
Thank you to everyone that joined us last month for our Break the Silence to End Domestic Violence Walk. We appreciate all of the support from the community that are bringing awareness to help end domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs help leaving an abuser please share the 24/7 hotline number 760-949-4357
The Open Door we would like to wish everyone Happy Holidays!!! We have a lot going on this coming year. We are getting turkeys together for Thanksgiving and making holiday baskets for Christmas.
Open Door has an Amazon wish list, for our participants and their children. iIf you would like to donate, please feel free to use the link or you can contact bernadette@familyassist.com.
Amazon Wish List– Opens in a new window.
The Open Door would also like to welcome two new staff, Anny Delance, our new Financial Empowerment Advocate and Patricia Taylor, our new Housing Navigator. They will both be working out of the East Highland Avenue office. Please contact them if you have a participant in need of services. Patriciat@familyassist.org and Anny@familyassist.org
Last year I wrote about Ari, one of our parole re-entry housing participants. She did well in our program and graduated late last year when she moved with her 1 year old Zari, and 3 year old Niy’ari. Ari had the goal of moving into her own apartment in Bakersfield and then be reunited with her 6 year old son Xamari, who was in the custody of the Nevada CPS.
We were able to help Ari, with the rental assistance program while she found a stable income and employment. In addition to the rental assistance, Next Step was able to assist Ari with a new bed for her and one of her children, as well as a washer, and a dryer.
We asked Ari how the Next Step Re-entry Program has affected her life, she said, “You guys gave me a fresh start, an opportunity to get the ball rolling again. Once I was out of prison, I didn’t know what to do and I was headed down the wrong way again. Getting into the program, got me back on track and gave me direction.” Since graduating the program, and due in big part to her improved situation and outlook, Ari was granted custody of her 6 year old son Xamari. She added that “The support you gave me when I graduated the program helped me to get my son back.”
These days Ari is working for an app-based company called Beagle, which supports podcasts. Ari is the host of a podcast show on the Beagle in which she discusses several topics ranging from God, health, relationships, self-love, self-care, coping skills, and female empowerment. Ari recently took part in a writing contest, in which she submitted a rough draft for a teen werewolf novel and has been offered a writing internship.
“Things are going wonderful for me, I’m so happy!”
Open Arms is excited to celebrate Veterans Day with a BBQ for all to come and enjoy on November 11at 1pm. We will have food, games, and music to help celebrate and honor our veterans.
We are preparing for a Thanksgiving dinner for our drop-in center clients to enjoy on Wednesday November 24th. We will be accepting any food donations to help us give our clients the best possible meal.
Our Street Outreach team will be attending a resource fair held by Mojave River Academy in Fontana on November 10th. We look forwarding to sharing our resources and knowledge with the community. During the month of November, we will be focusing on mental health positivity during our Saturday groups. Please come and join us for Art Therapy every Saturday at 12pm, to promote mental health awareness.
The Select Committee on Youth Homelessness in San Bernardino County met to listen to the voices of those working to tackle youth homelessness in the region. Good insights and thoughtful discussion took place where it emphasized the importance of taking preventative action against this issue and providing the resources needed. Our Executive Director, Darryl Evey and youth from our YAB committee joined in for this important discussion with Assemblymember James C. Ramos, Assemblymember Thurston Smith and Majority Leader Eloise Gomez Reyes.
UPDATED COVID-19 BOOSTER NOW AVAILABLE FOR CHILDREN 5+
The updated, more protective booster is now available for everyone ages 5 and up who has completed their initial vaccine series. Even more of our family members can now be protected with this booster, keeping them safer from the worst outcomes of COVID-19 such as hospitalization, long COVID, and death.
The updated booster was created to strengthen protection against the original coronavirus strain, while also targeting the newer, dominant variants that spread so widely this past summer.
The updated booster is an important tool for everyone ages 5 and up to take if it has been two months after their last vaccine dose, regardless of the type of dose received (primary series, additional doses or booster doses). It’s here in time for the fall and winter months when we’ve come to expect a rise in COVID-19 cases. Getting your family boosted now will make the coming holiday gatherings safer for all.
Californians can go to COVID19.ca.gov for more information on COVID-19 and the latest public health guidelines. Visit MyTurn.ca.gov or call 833-422-4255 to find a vaccine or booster near you.
We are currently hiring full and part-time for many open positions.
Click here to see all of the open positions at Family Assistance Program:
If you are interested in applying for any of our open positions, email your resume to hr@familyassist.org
If you want to help the most at-risk members of your community, you can donate to Family Assistance Program:
Donate– Opens in a new window.
If you are interested in donating items or anything other than a monetary donation you can email angela@familyassist.org
Family Assistance Program envisions a community where each person has a loving, nurturing home life. We provide the tools necessary to create healthy interpersonal relationships, economic empowerment, and stable housing.
15075 7th Street, Victorville, CA 92395
Main Office: (760) 843-0701
Toll Free: (866) 770-7867
