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Dear Friends,
Thank you so much for your participation and support of our 23rd annual Jazz at Palms Court. This year's event was so much fun and we thank you all for your attendance.
Now that Jazz has passed, we are beginning to prepare for the holidays! VCH will be hosting a Thanksgiving Lunch for our Shelter + Care tenants, and a toy and gift card drive for our tenant holiday parties in December. Please join us in providing warm and happy holidays to those in need.
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Thanksgiving Lunch- Nov 23
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The Holidays are quickly approaching! Help us provide a hearty
 Thanksgiving feast for our very special tenants. The Luncheon will provide over 40 of our Shelter + Care tenants with a traditional Thanksgiving meal, raffle prizes, and fun and games on Monday, November 23rd.
We are seeking donations to help us buy and prepare all the Thanksgiving fixings! Click the button below to contribute.
If you would like to volunteer or provide food, please contact Erika Lee by email or at (310)573-8406.
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Jazz at Palms Court Recap
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On September 20th, we hosted our 23rd annual fundraiser, Jazz at Palms Court. Over 220 attendees joined us to enjoy live music by the Iliana Rose Cuban Jazz Band and a savory buffet brunch catered by Off The Wall Catering. Senator Ben Allen and Councilman Mike Bonin attended and spoke, showing their support and encouraging VCH to continue advocacy efforts. The fun-filled event raised over $100,000 exceeding last year's proceeds!
Thanks again to all sponsors, donors, attendees, volunteers, and supporters! We could not do it without you! We look forward to Jazz in 2016!
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Nancy Rubin, of Hems of Hope, sewed custom flannel pajama pants for the boys and little dresses with matching headbands for the girls of our Westminster Transitional Living Center. The children were able to model their new outfits at a TLC birthday celebration along with new their new Halloween costumes. We graciously thank Nancy for her heartfelt work!
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 Several free flu shot clinics are available on the Westside through the LA County Department of Public Health between Oct 22nd and Nov 12th. This flyer lists the times, dates and locations of the clinics with contact information. |
Even though it still feels like summer, autumn is underway in our Study Lounge Program! The program at Washington Courts continues to be a success, fully enrolled with 35 students.
We are also excited to announce a new location for our second site at Broadway Elementary! We just wrapped up our third week there and already have 23 students enrolled. We are hoping to be fully enrolled in the next week or two. The UCLA TEACH interns bring their tutoring skills and enrichment module to each site and continue to make this program successful. We look forward to what the rest of the school year brings!
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Register for the United Way Home Walk
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 We're participating in the United Way HomeWalk to end veteran homelessness. Register and walk with us on Saturday, November 21st. Join Venice Community Housing's team here! Join the team "Venice Community Housing" and use the Promo Code: HPARTNER15 for free registration. Please feel free to invite any friends or family who may be interested! For questions, please contact Team Captain, Erika Lee by email or at (310)573-8406. |
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Young Professionals Board Happy Hour
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VCH's Young Professional's Board is hosting a happy hour at La Cabana on Tuesday, October 27th from 6-8pm. What better way to learn more about VCH and the YPB than over margaritas and chips and salsa?!
If you are under 40 and would like to learn more about joining, please contact Development Manager, Erika Lee at elee@vchcorp.org or by phone at (310)573-8406. |
Welcome the YouthBuild Class of 2016
Over the summer, the Venice YouthBuild Program continued recruiting for its upcoming program year. In September, YouthBuild began its Cycle 14 cohort for the 2015-2016 program year.
The Venice YouthBuild Program is now in its eighteenth year of operation and continues to build upon the successes and experiences of previous years. Last year's graduation was a huge success taking place at Santa Monica College where 88% of the class graduated from the program. Of these graduates, all have spent the summer enrolling in college or searching for and securing jobs, and many doing both. Some alumni were hired on as recruiters for the program or doing energy efficiency work through our partnership with LADWP and EnerPath, Inc. Many alumni have also continued to stay engaged with the program and volunteer to prep for the coming year and assist the new students transitioning into the program.
This year we strengthened our partnership with the JVS Marina Del Rey WorkSource and co-enrolled our 2015-2016 class, which will provide more job resources and support for students and the program overall. We are excited to get underway with the new program year and will again partner with various partners as well as new ones: Dreyfuss Construction to continue building affordable housing for seniors; UCLA LOSH for workplace safety & CPR/First Aid training; LAANE on the RePower LA campaign; all Advisory Board partners; SELVA International for landscaping projects; and Community Healing Gardens to name a few.
The Venice YouthBuild Program is always open to more of the community engaging and volunteering with the program, so if you're interested, now is a great time so please contact us.
To get involved with Venice YouthBuild, please contact Program Director, Rick Solis Jr. at rsolis@vchcorp.org.
Venice YouthBuild is a comprehensive program providing education, job training, and leadership development to 25 youth ages 18-24 each year to help them transition into successful adults.
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Photographer Mentors YouthBuild Graduate, Marco Vivar
When Venice photographer, Jack Prichett, found out that YouthBuild alumnus Marco Vivar was interested in photography, he proposed an on-the-job tutelage. Marco was unable to take a Santa Monica College course in photography without a single lens reflex camera. Jack, in need of an assistant for various photo shoots in his studio or on site, had a camera he no longer used and was encouraged by Marco's enthusiasm for photography. A deal was struck! Great photos and art are in the works and both sides are happy!
While a YouthBuild student earlier this year, Marco was elected President of the California Student Alumni Council, a very high honor. Rick Solis, YouthBuild Director, says Marco will be giving back by volunteering and working with VCH on youth leadership issues.
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| | Photographer Jack Prichett and Marco Vivar preparing for studio photo shoot. |
Volunteers Make Jazz Work! There are countless tasks to be done to prepare for VCH's Jazz at Palms Court fundraiser. One of the most time-consuming, yet artistic and satisfying jobs is arranging numerous gift baskets for the auction. Volunteers, like Deborah LaShever in the photo below, enjoy placing wine bottles, placemats, table decorations and countless other donated items into baskets decorated with ribbons, bows, streamers, balloons. Deborah says: "It's really fun; I love doing it." VCH appreciates the numerous contributions made by many volunteers for Jazz.
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| | Volunteers Laurie Pincus and Deborah LaShever wrapping silent auction baskets. |
If you're interested in volunteering, learn more about our volunteer opportunities by clicking
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MISSION STATEMENT The mission of
Venice Community Housing is to reduce homelessness, maximize affordable housing, empower residents, provide social services, and advocate for public policy that protects and strengthens the economic, racial and cultural diversity of Venice and other neighborhoods on the Westside of Los Angeles.
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Support Our Donation Center Open the 3rd Friday of every month Our Donation Center is open to all low-income and homeless individuals for "Shop Day" every third Friday of the month. Please consider donating your gently used clothing, small household items, personal hygiene, and cleaning products to those in need.
Upcoming Shop Days: November 20 December 18
Please bring donations to our office located at 720 Rose Avenue in Venice, Mon - Fri 10am-2pm. |
A LA Times article announced that a new study by the Economic Roundtable that found 13,000 people fall into homelessness every month in LA County.
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VCH welcomes our Resident Services Intern, Michelle Lee. Michelle is currently a candidate for her Master of Social Work at UCLA. She is a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana- Champagne with a degree in Psychology.
Michelle started at VCH in September and has been acting as a Case Manager, connecting social services and community resources for our clients and conducting home visits. Her favorite part of working at VCH so far has been visiting her clients at our Horizon building and working so close to the beach!
When not at VCH, Michelle enjoys baking, golf, trying new restaurants, and enjoying the beach. Her favorite movie is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. She has been snorkeling in Puerto Rico and one day hopes to ride a hot air balloon.
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Wish List
From linens to laptops, Venice Community Housing is always seeking donations for our residents and programs. Please visit our online wish list to see if you can meet any of our current needs!
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 VCH always supports shopping local, however it isn't always possible.
To include us in your amazon purchases, simply go to http://smile.amazon.com/ and add Venice Community Housing Corporation as your charity of choice!
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