“The children at Upward Bound House are like any other children- they need backpacks and school supplies to be successful in the coming school year.” John Nogawaski, the president of CBS Televison Distribution cited his common sense in the contribution to education and success. With the balloons floating and the music drifting through the air, the whole scene at Upward Bound House was looking up.
Monday evening Aug. 20 saw the third annual back-to-school celebration at UBH, and Director of Advancement Jaclyn Lantz was looking pretty pleased. “We have 60 backpacks filled with school supplies, and they are all going to school with our kids. Everyone is going to be taken care of.”
The courtyard was filled with appreciative mothers, happy kids and a lot of very talkative fans.
The donation from CBS Television Distribution had Executive Director David Snow feeling alliterative.”We have CBS, Have dinner from CPK; all these C’s helping us get the kids to school.” But he stopped himself, saying “We don’t want the kids getting C’s – We want some A students, and I know they can do it.”
Council member Meaghan Sahli-Wells was there, offering “This non-profit fills a valuable, and unfortunately, ever increasing need for family housing. Upward Bound has had a tremendous success rate helping families transition into stable housing.”
A smiling young woman named Tierra was holding her young son, only 15 months old. Asking about her experiences living at Upward Bound, she responded “It’s been amazing. There’s a real sense of community here, and people make sure you are getting what you need. It’s so much better than the other shelter we came from, I can’t even compare it.”
UBH is not just a successful shelter – it was a finalist for the 2012 Organization of the Year Award from the Los Angeles Business Journal.
Those backpacks are filled with more than pencils and folders; they also contain hope, an essential element in anyone’s success.
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