Community Solutions Wins $115,000 Grant to Serve Preteens

PALO ALTO – The Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health has awarded $115,000, over two years, to Community Solutions to re-establish an after-school program for preteens who live in the Lilly Gardens housing project in Gilroy.

Community Solutions, a human services agency that has served south Santa Clara County since 1972, will use the funds for a program in which 55 children will participate in arts and sports activities, receive homework assistance, work on computers and socialize.

“The program was supported by the state’s Juvenile Crime Prevention Program until its funding was cut from the state budget this summer,” said Lisa DeSilva, director of community and resource development at Community Solutions.

The grant also will help to launch a new parent education program that will provide support, skills and resources for overburdened parents of preteens, including those in the after-school program. Two-hour classes will be offered in English and Spanish over five weeks. Class topics include growth and development, discipline and boundaries, anger management and conflict resolution, and the risks of alcohol and drugs.

“This grant will enable us to reopen the after-school program in mid-January,” said DeSilva. “The support from the foundation is even more significant as we face impending cuts from the county and state due to the economic downturn. It is a true holiday gift to the community.”

The grant is one of 17 awards announced Dec. 18 by Stephen Peeps, foundation president and CEO.

La Fundación Lucile Packard para la Salud Infantil otorga subvenciones en los condados de Santa Clara y San Mateo en dos áreas: proteger a los niños de 0 a 5 años de lesiones, con énfasis en la prevención del abuso y la negligencia infantil; y promover la salud conductual, mental y emocional en los preadolescentes.

The other Santa Clara County grantees and their awards are:

Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Santa Clara County, $75,000 over one year;

Bill Wilson Marriage and Family Counseling Center, $120,000 over three years;

Children’s Health Council, $200,000 over two years;

Community Foundation Silicon Valley (The Mayfair Improvement Initiative), $150,000 over two years;

Fresh Lifelines for Youth, $92,000 over three years; and

YWCA of Santa Clara Valley, $200,000 over two years.

La Fundación Lucile Packard para la Salud Infantil otorga subvenciones comunitarias dos veces al año. Los fondos para este programa, que comenzó en enero de 2000, provienen del fondo de dotación de la fundación. Una subvención de la Fundación de California apoya las iniciativas de la fundación en el desarrollo juvenil y la reducción de conductas de alto riesgo en preadolescentes. Hasta la fecha, 60 agencias han recibido subvenciones de la fundación por un total de 1,4 millones de dólares.

La fundación se estableció como una organización benéfica pública en 1996, cuando el Hospital Infantil Lucile Salter Packard, anteriormente independiente, se incorporó al Centro Médico de la Universidad de Stanford. Su misión es promover, proteger y mantener la salud física, mental, emocional y conductual de los niños. Es totalmente independiente de la Fundación David y Lucile Packard, con sede en Los Altos. Para obtener más información sobre el programa de subvenciones comunitarias de la fundación, llame al (650) 736-0676 o visite el sitio web www.lpfch.org.