Current Programs
Kids Club
The club is a platform for developing mentoring relationships and connecting with families in the neighborhood. Many kids are picked up at their respective schools and kids invite their friends. We strive to create a fun, safe environment that includes organized group games, songs, Bible stories, memory verses, and sharing dinner together. Strengthening spiritual lives and building relationships are our goal.
Fun planned activities for children
We engage kids in carefully planned activities and outings throughout the year. Our goal is to expose children who rarely leave their neighborhood to experiences they might otherwise never have in order to broaden their education.
Mentoring program
We offer an intentional mentoring program that matches up resourced mentors with children and families. We seek to walk alongside kids and families for the long haul, from elementary school through adolescence. As a part of our mentoring efforts we teach skills that these kids can later do on their own, including computer skills and a wide variety of athletic activities that get the children and families out exercising and into better health.
Educational support for kids
We strongly emphasize education, and tutors are available every Thursday for children involved in the program. We strengthen the tutoring element by maintaining communication with teachers and staff members. We’ve become part of the school culture in our part of the city and have a sense of what is going on there.
Family/ community events
An integral part of supporting families is attending family celebrations – BBQ’s, birthday parties, quienceñeras, church events, weddings, funerals, etc. We participate directly as volunteers and supporters of the Annual Posada, a culturally relevant Christmas block party in our neighborhood attended by hundreds of people. It’s a time of food, fellowship and an opportunity for kids to shine for their families.
Summer day camp (1 week)
The day camp includes games, crafts, songs, bible teaching, as well as an educational component. It’s a week to celebrate the kids in the neighborhood and is the highlight of the year for many of them.
Connecting kids in our program with opportunities in the community
We have become very well established in the community – we know kids and families and we know organizations like Westmont College, Young Life, YMCA and many other after school programs. One of our goals is to connect kids to opportunities like camps, activities and scholarship resources offered by various organizations in the community.
Family support
We also act as a resource for local families. We connect families to needed resources and assistance such as counseling services, church programs, legal assistance, etc.
Raise Awareness
Along with serving the neighborhood we have been given the opportunity and responsibility to raise awareness in greater Santa Barbara of the desperate needs and situations of those living in poverty. We have stories, experiences, and needs and challenges to share with the wider Santa Barbara community. In that way we act as advocates for our neighbors.
