LACF Blog

By John Wilson - Executive Director

This past Saturday (9/6/2008) at our volunteer orientation meeting, Dwight Tudor was honored as LACF’s Volunteer of the Year. Dwight has been serving as a tutor with the STARS program for 3 years and has served on the Board of LACF for 1 1/2 years. In that time, Dwight has shown a deep commitment and passion for helping kids in NW Pasadena realize their God-given potential.

Dwight, a member of La Canada Presbyterian Church, also helped LACF and LCPC develop a ministry partnership. As a result, in the last year over 30 people from LCPC have begun volunteering in NW Pasadena through LACF.

Pictured left to right is Bruce Stone (LACF Board Chair), Dwight Tudor and John Wilson. Photo courtesy Outlook Newspaper.

tamera wolf -  leader of RFKC

I’m Tamara, and I just got back from camp. A special thank you for praying for and supporting year three of the Royal Family Kids Camp Aug 24-29. A special shout-out to several folks who either came to camp as counselors, or who helped throw a fabulous birthday carnival last Wednesday for the 29 foster kids who attended camp with booths, prizes and fresh energy. All in all, Mission accomplished - abused and neglected foster children ages 7-12 were treated like royalty for a week, shown God’s powerful love and got the chance to try new things and make lasting positive memories. Our camp verse was Romans 8:38 “Nothing can ever separate me from His love.”

What did I learn at camp this week? I was reminded God has a unique plan for each life (yours included)! It’s easy to miss in the chaos of each day, but there is deep meaning and immense joy in knowing we were created with a special plan and purpose. Are you living that out?

Please pray for the campers as they return to school, and for some, to their difficult home lives in group homes, foster families, or with extended family. Pray that mentoring relationships would be established and that they would cling to the promises they learned at camp.

Campers eagerly volunteer to lead the prayer before meal times. So, I leave you with this simple prayer offered daily from one of our more difficult campers, “Dear Lord, thank you for this day and for this camp. Thank you for all the counselors. I love you all. You guys are great. Amen.”

By John Wilson - Executive Director

Today I was a volunteer for Blair High School’s registration. Blair is one of the four public high schools in Pasadena. It was actually my second day working, but today was especially fun. I was the information counselor and the first of several stops for these 10th graders and their accompanying parent.

I met a ton of extremely quality kids today. They were bright, eager, and excited about learning. Each of the students I met with had college as a goal and seemed to be moving in the right direction. It was a hope-filled day for me. I was encouraged about the future. I am also excited that the kids in our STARS program have students like these as examples.

What’s more, as a part of Blair’s program, these 10th graders are required to complete 35 “service” hours. This is cool enough, but even better, two students indicated they want to work with our kids in STARS for their service! Whooo!!!

Something is going right at Blair. If you want to find out how you can get involved at Blair, visit www.adoptaschoolpasadena.org

By John Wilson - Executive Director

One of the bonuses of summer is that occasionally my family gets to join us on trips. This summer, Betsy, Kiley, Jack and Miles joined us on the Adventure Road Trip to Wyoming. It is so fun to see my kids getting to play like that. They got to ride horses, shoot .22 rifles, shoot bow and arrow, canoe, climb, play in the dirt and even play some pretty serious dodgeball.

The best part for me though is getting to see my kids LOVED by the students on the trip. Stereotypes would cause you to believe that my kids may not be safe or that they will hear and see things that may be harmful to them. But from my experience, this is opposite of the truth. My children were played with, hugged, carried, helped, encouraged, cheered for, supported and loved more by this group of students than any other similar setting I’ve been in. It is humbling to see.

The kids we work with have lots of obstacles that they have to overcome in life. They have a lot working against them. But give them a chance to thrive and you too will be humbled.

Thanks Eddie, David C, Alex, Jacory, Charlie, Victor, David H, Diana, Perla, Grace, Thomas, and the rest of the gang from Wyoming 08 for a great week!

Thoughts about Wyoming from a 14 year old girl

“On the Wyoming trip I experienced something I’ve never felt before.. God spoke to me and told me that he put me where I live right now for a reason. He put me here so I am able to control me, myself, and I and no other. Also on our last chapel at the Glendo Reservoir the wind blew on me and it dawned on me that God told me to keep faith in him and he will embrace me like the wind and protect me from evil.”

Photo taken just before the horse training

We did an activity where we rode horses… Mike, the wrangler, explained to us that riding a horse is like letting God take the reigns of your life… When I heard that fact, I realized that I need to let God take the reigns of my life.

By Curt Gibson - Associate DIrector

This years trip was so full of amazing experiences for our students; horseback riding across the planes of Wyoming, watching a student ride a BMX bike through the trees, or sleeping under the stars and hearing a 15yr old guy say”I’m running out of wishes because there are so many falling stars”.

Then there is the two day drive home.  Half of the students don’t want to go home… they are down right depressed. They ask if they could live in Wyoming or move in with me.  There are a few who can’t wait to get back to there loving family or there friends.  I also hear how they plan on making all of these changes in the way they live there life when they get home.  I know this is when the work begins. This is when the mentors need to step in, this week we will hope to get all the mentors to make a connection and unpack what has happened this summer.  Pray for them this week.

by John Wilson - Executive Director

Summer camp once gave me an education. To this day, I can still do a handstand, spit a watermelon seed for distance, and make inappropriate noises with my armpit. I also learned how to perform a back flip on the diving board and even ride a horse. I learned how close God is to us, and how interested our creator is in the details of my life. I formed friendships made of such strong bonds they have lasted until today. I was largely shaped into the person I have become.

Now I grew up on the tree-lined streets of La Canada Flintridge. If summer camp impacted me so much, can you imagine the impression it makes on a young person from a stressful home who never leaves the inner-city? Encountering God’s creativity while catching tadpoles in the pond or roping steers in a corral is a completely new experience. Learning about love we don’t have to earn or grace more lavish than we can describe can rock the foundations of a young person’s world.

Summer camp is really the opposite of the streets. Campers eat three reliable meals every day. They go swimming, do art, and learn new skills. Far removed from sirens and traffic and lurking figures on the corner, nighttime becomes a chance to learn about constellations and the witness that pours forth from the stars every evening. There is no longer reason to be afraid of the dark.

Consider the opportunity to participate yourself in this vital ministry. Your financial support will allow students from our neighborhood ministries to attend camp nearby at Forest Home or far away at Lone Tree Bible Camp in Wyoming and so much more. It costs approximately $500 per person to go to camp. From my point of view as a former youth pastor, a year’s worth of ministry takes place in a single week of camp.

The students in question are getting an education on the streets every day of their lives. With your partnership, we can offer them a different type of education at summer camp. We can introduce them to Jesus.

by Emily White Hodge, Volunteer & Donor Relations Director

Over the course of the last year, we’ve been in the process of re-visioning. It’s been a time where our staff has gathered around a table to discuss our vision & mission, with the hopes of really figuring out where we’re headed & what we dream about for the young people we serve.

We’ve spent countless hours talking about who we are & what we’re about. We’ve spoken passionately, thrown ideas out on the table & dare I say, we’ve even argued a bit. One of the things we really wrestled through is how to word our mission statement. As we wrestled through the process together, one of the things that was a guiding principle for me was, “Is it good enough for my kid?”

Would I want my daughter to hear the vision and think of herself in that way? Would it be BIG enough to grasp God’s best for her life? Would she feel empowered to do great things? At the end of the day, I think we did her justice. We’re not just giving handouts. We’re not just tutoring for tutoring’s sake. We don’t just go camping with kids to get them out of the city. We are . . .

Unleashing the God-given potential of youth

As a person of faith, a dreamer, a socially minded worker, and a Mom, I am very pleased that we’re in the business of unleashing the God-given potential of young people. My hope is that our dreams will be big enough for all that God has planned for my daughter!

This Year-End Celebration was especially significant as it marked the first year the organization presented two monetary college scholarships to graduating Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) seniors.

Johanna Carmona, a Marshall Fundamental Secondary School graduate who will be attending Sonoma State University in the fall, received a $1,000 Founder’s Award, while Laura Pinedo, a John Muir High School graduate attending Pasadena City College (PCC) in the fall received a $500 Founders Award. Silvia Pimentel, who graduated from Blair International Baccalaureate High School, also received a scholarship from one of many Lake Avenue Community Foundation partners. The Ascending Lights Leadership Network awarded Ms. Pimentel a full scholarship covering tuition and books, with additional funding for transportation and food. In addition, they will provide mentoring and leadership training throughout her time at PCC.

In an essay written by Johanna, she writes, “without the help at STARS, I would have never tried my hardest at school”, attributing her success to the support and encouragement of her tutors and mentor. “I am a step closer to reaching my dreams, and am proud to say I know I will reach them”, writes Laura Pinedo. As a teen mother, Laura, despite many major life challenges, worked extremely hard attending high school, adult school while working part time.

Pictured: Lake Avenue Community Foundation Associate Director Mayra C. Macedo-Nolan, STARS Founder Jill Shook, LACF Board Chair Bruce Stone, Lake Avenue Church Senior Pastor Greg Waybright and LACF Executive Director John Wilson with 2008 Award recipients Laura Pinedo, Silvia Pimentel and Johanna Carmona.

Wow - what does one put in a first blog post?

The first thing that comes to mind is how thankful I am for the partnerships we are enjoying while building our new web site. Knowing I’ll leave out many of our key partnerships, I’ll just focus on those I enjoyed today. The first that comes to mind is the DeVos Initiative. Had a conversation with DeVos staff member, Gerald, about how to bring about city-wide change in Los Angeles, specifically about how faith-based organizations could work together to bring about economic, spiritual and leadership development in our poorest communities.

Spark3, our web developer, has helped us refine our mess of ideas and thoughts into a clear, logical pattern for our web site, and makes it possible for you to be reading this right now.

Third, the Community Clergy Coalition of Pasadena brings such amazing leadership to our city.

Lastly (for now), Urban Youth Workers Institute put on an incredible training event for all of our staff at their annual conference in May. I think it’s amazing that we have so many opportunities to work with such quality organizations! Peace out. - Curt Gibson, Associate Director