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Dec 3 2013
“The purpose of man is in action, not thought.” – Thomas Carlyle Standing on the threshold between 2013 and 2014, I can’t help but find myself in a reflective mood. The Sheriff’s Youth Foundation was able to accomplish so much over the past year. In 2013, we added several new members to our board of directors, each of them bringing to the table their own unique passions for the youth we serve. I believe David Bergstein, Kia Jam, Richard Malchar, Read more →
Nov 27 2013
The Sheriff’s Youth Foundation’s 999 for Kids program celebrated a great year of fundraising, with nearly $100,000 raised for the program that helps medically vulnerable, at-risk children throughout Los Angeles County. The program held its 28th annual ice cream social to honor Sheriff’s Department staff and volunteers, hosted by the Special Victims Bureau on Aug. 28 at the Quiet Cannon event center in Montebello, said Sheriff’s Cmdr. Warren R. Asmus, who oversees the program. Fundraising efforts this year included chili Read more →
Nov 6 2013
The next time disaster strikes, some of the people who respond and help their communities cope may be teenagers who’ve received disaster response training through their local Youth Activities League center. “It started here in Val Verde just because we’re so isolated, we have to be self-sufficient,” said Deputy Brian Rooney, supervisor of the Santa Clarita Valley YAL at Val Verde Park. “We should be doing this everywhere — it should be a national program.” The new program is the Read more →
Nov 1 2013
Kids at the Compton Youth Activities League center got a firsthand look at what it means to be a professional skateboarder – not to mention some encouragement to believe in their dreams – when nationally sponsored skater Preston Pollard visited the center in September. Pollard was invited to speak to the kids after meeting Sheriff’s Youth Foundation board member Richard Malchar and Rebecca Deleo. A native of Anchorage, Alaska, Pollard has been skateboarding since he was 7 and has been Read more →
Oct 18 2013
Remember the first time you saw the Milky Way? The first time you cooked breakfast over a campfire? Or, the first time you hiked in the mountains, paddled a kayak and saw a bald eagle dive into an alpine lake and snatch a fish from the water? The kids who went camping this summer with the Youth Activities League do. “I’ve been doing this for a few years now, and if anybody was ever to ask me what was my Read more →
Oct 15 2013
It’s something every kid wants, yet many never have: A bike to call one’s own. But thanks to the Sheriff’s Youth Foundation, the Bicycle Education And Registration (BEAR) program is available to kids at Youth Activities League centers throughout the county — and so are those coveted bikes. “I love this program,” said Sgt. Phyllis Antuna of Central Property and Evidence. “It’s a win-win-win, because we get bikes all the time in Central Property and Evidence, and instead of them Read more →
Oct 11 2013
It was several years ago when businessman Ken Wiseman and Deputy Brian Rooney started discussing how challenging it can be not only for at-risk kids to prepare for the workforce, but also to find jobs once they reach adulthood. That conversation sparked an idea that has blossomed into an ongoing youth employment partnership between Valencia-based AMS Fulfillment, where Wiseman serves as CEO, and the Santa Clarita Valley Youth Activities League center, where Rooney is the supervising deputy. “We were talking Read more →
Oct 7 2013
The Sheriff’s Youth Foundation’s 28th annual “Salute to Youth” gala lived up to its name, as more than 630 people filled the ballroom of the Beverly Hilton on Sept. 24 to celebrate the strides made over the past year. From a performance by the Century Youth Activities League center dance team, to a video highlighting this year’s youth honorees, the gala shined a spotlight – literally and figuratively – on the kids the Foundation works with. The evening’s salute to Read more →
Oct 4 2013
When the Sheriff’s Mounted Enforcement Detail passes by the television cameras during the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day, the kids of the Parks Bureau Youth Activities League center at Mona Park will recognize some new friends they’ve made: The deputies and their horses. “The kids got a kick out of knowing these horses will be in the Rose Parade,” said Deputy Karen Velasquez, supervisor of the Parks Bureau Youth Activities League Center, who worked with the MED to arrange Read more →
