SHIELDS wishes Mona Howard a Happy Retirement!

Mona Howard, 82, retired on June 1, 2011 from her position as a  Drug and Alcohol and Domestic Violence Counselor at SHIELDS’ Place of Family Program. Mona, born and raised in Los Angeles California, has a husband, 2 children, 7 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren. After a bad car accident, she decided to go back to school at the age of 55 to get a degree as a Drug and Alcohol Counselor at Abram Friedman Occupational Center and Cerritos College.

Prior to working at SHIELDS, Mona worked at Charles Drew University’s Place of Family from 1989 until 2008 when SHIELDS acquired the program. Mona is 82 years young and attributes her longevity to her mother who lived to the age of 97, to her co-workers who kept her young, and to her self-described resilient nature, “I’m like Teflon…I even survived Cancer”.

In her retirement Mona is looking forward to spending more time with her family and maybe volunteering with a hotline to continue her passion of helping Latina women that have experienced Domestic Violence. Her advice to those of us that have many more years working in the fields of social work is to “always be compassionate to one another and not judge”.  SHIELDS for Families would like to thank Mona for her many years of service and dedication to individuals and families throughout Los Angeles and we wish you Good Luck in your retirement!

SAMHSA's 24-Hour Toll-Free Treatment Referral Helpline

One of the most important goals of SAMHSA is to ensure that Americans can find treatment for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Issues in their local area. 

Psychology Today Apologizes For It's Hateful Post About Black Women

The efforts of you and more than 75,000 other ColorOfChange members paid off.¹ Psychology Today has now agreed to remove controversial author Satoshi Kanazawa, the author of a deeply offensive article regarding Black women, from its website, and they have implemented new policies to prevent inflammatory content in the future.

It wasn’t easy or a foregone conclusion. After staying silent for almost two weeks, Psychology Today on Friday issued an apology, but they refused to say how they would prevent such a situation from happening again. Then hundreds of ColorOfChange members started calling the magazine by phone, along with additional pressure on Facebook and Twitter demanding a clearer response — at which point Psychology Today came correct and did the right thing.

While there still remains the larger problem of Black women and girls having to face dehumanizing and damaging messages, this is an important victory. We've not only drawn a line with Psychology Today — we've sent a powerful message to other media outlets that serving as a platform for racist and dehumanizing content is unacceptable and will result in pushback and consequences.

For more info: http://colorofchange.org/press/releases/2011/5/37/

Thanks and Peace,
Rashad, James, Gabriel, William, Dani, Matt, Natasha, and the rest of the ColorOfchange.org team

References:

1. "Psychology Today Agrees to remove Controversial Author Satoshi Kanazawa from Website; Implements New Policies to Prevent Inflammatory Content," ColorOfChange.org Press Release, 6-1-2011
http://act.colorofchange.org/go/846?akid=2008.549087.Lq5JN5&t=3

A Day of Dialogue on the Root Causes of Problems in Our Community

AVALON-CARVER COMMUNITY CENTER, ASK-PIDP-PREVENTION INITIATIVE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT (A SHIELDS FOR FAMILIES COLLABORATIVE) AND AVALON CARVER PREVENTION PROGRAM
PRESENTS

A DAY OF DIALOGUE ON
“Root Causes of Problems in Our Community”
June 3, 2011  10am – 12:00pm

DAY OF DIALOGUE HISTORY:  In October 1995, in the aftermath of the criminal trial of O.J. Simpson and the Million Man March, community leaders were called together by a member of the Los Angeles City Council, Eighth District Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas. Racial tension was high in Los Angeles and throughout the country. As a result a group of twenty-five community leaders determined that a Day of Dialogue on Race Relations would help bring members of the Los Angeles Community to safe forums where the challenging issue of race relations could be effectively and constructively discussed. The discussion sessions or dialogues were to be in small groups and would have facilitators trained and deployed by the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Dispute Resolution Program, which used a model of dialogue developed by the Study Circles Resource Center. The October 24, 1995 Days of Dialogue on Race Relations was a spectacular success.

The concept grew to include Days of Dialogue on Affirmative Action, on Violence in Our Communities, Building Stronger Neighborhoods in our Community and now includes 911 and Terrorist Attacks. Eventually other cities and communities began to adopt the model of “Days of Dialogue”.

What we expect to accomplish through this event is not intended as a “one time deal”, which gets your attention and then fades away. On the contrary, the purpose is to help lay the groundwork for the ongoing cooperation that is needed to solve difficult problems that exist in our local communities. We encourage your participation in the Dialogue. It should prove to be a rewarding experience.

Dialogue brings people together who might not otherwise sit down to have a conversation about important community issues.

Sharron Eason
PIDP Program Navigator

Thyra Cushenberry, Program Coordinator
Avalon Carver Community Prevention

SHIELDS receives grant from US Dept of Labor

ETA News Release: [06/01/2011]
Contact Name: Joshua Lamont or David Roberts
Phone Number: (202) 693-4661 or x5945
Release Number: 11-0836-NAT

US Department of Labor announces $11.7 million in grants to support, help ensure success of adult offenders returning to work

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced grants of $1,170,000 each to 10 organizations to provide training, employment and support services to adult former inmates returning to their communities after serving time in justice facilities.

"The grants announced today are an investment not just in the futures of former inmates, but also in the communities and families to which they are returning," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.

The purpose of these grants is to provide an employment-centered approach to reintegration. Assistance to be provided includes job training and employment preparation, mentoring and connections to support services such as housing, substance abuse programs and mental health treatment. These grants represent the fourth generation of the Reintegration of Ex-Offenders-Adult program, which previously was called the Prisoner Re-entry Initiative and first funded in 2005.

Each year, approximately 650,000 inmates are released from state and federal prisons, and return to their communities and families. Without assistance to make a successful transition, the majority of former offenders return to criminal activity. In order to successfully reintegrate into their communities, it is essential that these individuals have the skills and support necessary to compete for and obtain jobs.

For more information on the range of Department of Labor employment and training programs, visit http://www.doleta.gov.

Editor's note: A breakdown of the grantees follows this news release.

Organization Name	Location	Award Amount
Catholic Charities of Kansas City	Kansas City, Mo.	$1,170,000
Connection Training Services	Philadelphia, Pa.	$1,170,000
Cornerstone Assistance Network	Fort Worth, Texas	$1,170,000
The Dannon Project	Birmingham, Ala.	$1,170,000
Las Vegas Urban League	Las Vegas, Nev.	$1,170,000
National Urban League	New York, N.Y.	$1,170,000
OIC of Broward County Inc.	Fort Lauderdale, Fla.	$1,170,000
SHIELDS for Families	Los Angeles, Calif.	$1,170,000
SE Works Inc.	Portland, Ore.	$1,170,000
Span Inc.	Boston, Mass.	$1,170,000
Total Funding		$11,700,000

Best Start Community Meetings

First 5 LA, a funding organization whose revenues come from cigarette and tobacco taxes has begun its community-driven effort, Best Start, in four regions throughout South Los Angeles. Best Start brings together community residents and leaders — including parents, nonprofits, local business owners, faith-based organizations and other neighbors — to create a plan for how best to serve the children and families living in Compton, East Compton, Watts-Willowbrook, West Athens and Broadway-Manchester.

Best Start has four main goals it focuses on for children, ages 0-5 years old. These include: children are born healthy, children maintain a healthy weight, children are safe from abuse and neglect, and children are ready to enter kindergarten.

As the first step in this effort, Best Start is holding a series of meetings in each South L.A. Best Start community. All members of the community are encouraged to attend these meetings to learn more about Best Start, and get involved in helping to shape a positive future for children and families. Food, childcare and interpretation services will be provided. Transportation will be available upon request. If you missed the first meeting, don’t fret…come to meeting #2!

Watts-Willowbrook
All meetings will be held at:
Charles Drew University – Keck Auditorium
1721 E. 120th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90059

Meeting: Wednesday, June 1, 2011 10a .m. - 12:00 p.m. http://wattsjune1.eventbrite.com
Or RSVP to: Aimee Loya Owens, Program Officer
ALoya@first5la.org, 213-482- 7560

Broadway-Manchester
All meetings will be held at:
Christian’s Community Center
8725 South Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 9003
Meeting #2: Thursday, April 28, 2011 1pm-3 pm http://bmapril28.eventbrite.com/
Or RSVP to: Marvin Espinoza, Senior Program Officer
MEspinoza@first5la.org, 213-482-7527

SHIELDS for Families Day at Chili's

SHIELDS for Families would like to say a special THANKS to everyone who participated in the Chilis fundraiser last Thursday, May 26, 2011! Your participation helped to raise money for our programs and we appreciate your support!

Thanks to our Heros/SherosTherapists for having supervision at Chilis to help raise funds for the youth!
 
YOU can help  raise money for SHIELDS programs next time! SHIELDS will be hosting a restaurant fundraiser once a month so stay tuned for more info on how you can get involved and spread the word!