January 31, 2012

LOS ANGELES (Jan. 31, 2012)—The Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles (The Foundation) today announced it has awarded a total of $200,000 to 11 Los Angeles community-based organizations for programs in two major areas: easing the transition of Iraq-Afghanistan war veterans back into society and promoting financial literacy for women, youth and immigrants.

Foundation President and Chief Executive Officer Marvin I. Schotland commented, “With tens of thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans returning home, The Foundation believed it was vitally important to focus several of our General Community Grants on alleviating the difficulties so many of these dedicated soldiers face in reintegrating into society, including finding employment and reestablishing relationships with their spouses and children.  Another focal point, and one just as timely, is our support of financial literacy programs for homeless teens, immigrants and others who have been increasingly challenged during the economic downturn.”

Easing Transitions for Soldiers and Families

Adopt-A-College, a program of The Soldiers Project, received a grant of $20,000 to assist some 500 war veterans returning to higher education at six community colleges by providing counseling and connections to support groups.  The Soldiers Project is staffed by independent volunteer mental health professionals who provide free counseling and support to military service members and their families.

"We are thrilled to have received this generous grant from the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles in support of our Adopt-A-College program,” said Dr. Judith Broder, founder and director of The Soldiers Project. “With these funds we will be able to provide needed psychological support to the many returning veterans and their loved ones who are attending our local colleges. They have served for us and we are here to help them come ‘all the way home.’”

The Military Families Programs, operated by ZERO TO THREE, an organization that promotes health for infants and toddlers, also received a $20,000 grant to train 45 professionals to deal with the stress and impact of parental military deployment and parents’ reintegration into society upon very young children.  Working with UCLA’s Veterans Family Resilience Center, the program will also train parents and caregivers in strategies to strengthen families with young children.

Military Family Programs Director Dorinda Silver Williams said, “ZERO TO THREE is extremely pleased to have the opportunity to share our information and resources with early childhood professionals working on behalf of military and veteran families in the Los Angeles area. The project funded by the Jewish Community Foundation will promote long-term community capacity to foster resilience in young children in these families.  We hope that this program will serve as a pilot for similar efforts around the nation.”

Teaching Financial Literacy and Life Skills

Listos (We’re Ready), a program of Centro Latino for Literacy, was awarded a $20,000 grant to teach important, practical financial skills in Spanish to 100 adults with basic literacy.  Topics will include opening and maintaining bank accounts, preparing monthly budgets, math skills, credit and credit cards.

Centro Latino President and CEO Mari Riddle said, “These funds will support our Listos functional literacy program that teaches budgeting, the importance of saving, and basic banking essentials to newly literate adults, most of whom have never had a bank account.  Students like Antonio Cotiy will learn how to open an account and manage a budget.” 

“After Antonio completed the program, he said, ‘The financial education helped me create and monitor my budget and I am aware of what I make and spend each month. I have a much better understanding of the importance of savings and how to go about this.’”

Moving Forward, a program of Girls & Gangs, received a $20,000 grant to teach life skills to girls in South and East Los Angeles after their release from incarceration.  The program helps young women develop life skills for healthy decision-making, independence and self-sufficiency.  Program components include creative arts, anger management, job readiness and financial literacy, reproductive health education and parenting education for guardians. 

“The Jewish Community Foundation’s support will greatly impact the lives of over 300 girls in Los Angeles, ages 12 to 18, who are often ignored and forgotten,” said Girls & Gangs Executive Director and CEO Dawn Brown.  “Twenty percent of our girls are pregnant or parenting, 40 percent are victims of sex trafficking, 45 percent are involved in foster care, and 100 percent have been involved in the juvenile justice system or impacted by gang life and poverty.  It is crucial that they acquire skills that will help them to break the cycle of abuse and poverty in their lives, and for future generations.”

Additional Grant Recipients

Other General Community Grant recipients include:

• Boys and Girls Club of Burbank & Greater East Valley (The Club), Money Matters, $15,000  -- The Club helps young people realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens.  Money Matters provides more than 250 youngsters with basic money management skills and more than 80 young people with job training to explore job opportunities and help them become financially self-sufficient.
• California Council on Economic Education (CCEE), MoneyWise Teen, $15,000 -- CCEE provides training and standards-based curriculum in economics for California teachers to help them educate students about the value of human capital, how markets work and how students fit into the global economy.  MoneyWise Teen will train over 80 L.A. Unified School District teachers who reach more than 12,000 students in how to teach money management and other skills to help students make responsible financial decisions.
• Jovenes, Inc., Financial Literacy Workshops, $10,000 --  Jovenes provides opportunities for disenfranchised youth and their families to become active and integrated members of the community.  The workshops offer financial education to 90 homeless young people, ages 18-24, so they can manage their finances to maintain independent living, develop healthy decision-making skills and obtain permanent housing.    
• New Directions, Inc., Operation Welcome Home (OWH), $20,000 — The agency offers comprehensive services for homeless male and female veterans in all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.  With this grant, OWH will offer case management, legal aid, job training and referrals, family reunification, mental health therapy and housing assistance to 50 veterans of war in Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from depression, substance abuse and other mental health issues.
• New Economics for Women, Smart Consumer program, $20,000 – The organization provides financial education to over 250 Latino women to improve their economic security and help them build assets over the long term.   Twenty six-hour workshops based upon the FDIC Money Smart curriculum will be conducted in English and Spanish to help participants track expenses, manage budgets, read credit reports, repair bad credit and understand credit card solicitations and loan offers.
• Operation Gratitude, Wounded Warrior Care Package, $20,000 -- The agency seeks to lift morale by sending care packages to U.S. Military deployed overseas, to their children at home and to wounded servicemen and women recuperating in transition units. Volunteers will assemble care packages for over 1,500 injured veterans each year at the National Guard Armory in Van Nuys.
• United States Veterans Initiative (U.S. VETS), Outside the Wire, $20,000 --  U.S. VETS facilitates successful transition of military veterans and families by providing housing, counseling, career development and comprehensive support.  Outside the Wire will serve 20 veterans at community colleges and 100 service members at the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos with counseling and support for service members and their families suffering from mental health issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. 

About The Foundation

Established in 1954, the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles is the largest manager of charitable assets and the leader in planned-giving solutions for Greater Los Angeles Jewish philanthropists.  The Foundation currently manages assets of $732 million (unaudited as of Dec. 31, 2011) and ranks among the 11 largest Los Angeles foundations.  In 2010, The Foundation and its more than 1,000 donors distributed $54 million in grants to hundreds of organizations with programs that span the range of philanthropic giving.  For more information, visit www.jewishfoundationla.org.