Success Stories

During quarantine, Heather began experiencing increased physical abuse by her husband, which ultimately led to his arrest at their home. This left Heather caring for her two children, Tyler and Lily, alone for the first time. They all struggled with the emotional strife of experiencing domestic violence, their family being torn apart, and an already ...

Friendly Center’s Family Engagement program offers clients a chance to engage in bonding activities with their family. Though the pandemic has limited the ability to offer the program large scale, staff has successfully adapted these events to safely provide families a bonding experience outside the home. In the Fall 2020, families came to the park ...

In February, we celebrate Black History Month along with Groundhog Day, Chinese New Year, President’s, and Valentine’s Days as well. All these important traditions, honors, education, and celebrations crammed into just 28 days! If you do some online searches, you’ll find this little month also hosts National Tater Tot, Ukulele, and Banana Bread Day.   ...

Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) alumna Avalon Lafosse is no stranger to using her talents to bring more healing and catharsis to her community. While in high school, she created an arts instructional program that continues to grow and provide joy to those who need it most.   At just 12 years old, ...

“I just felt stuck! I was raging mad because there was no way out of my situation and I didn’t know what to do to change things.” – RMFY alumni, Amza describing himself as a teenager.   Have you ever felt this way? Well, this is exactly what Amza was feeling during his 9th grade ...

At Caleb’s 3-year wellness-check-up, his mom mentioned that he’d begun to walk oddly, and his doctor noticed the bones in Caleb’s chest weren’t growing as they should have been. X-rays came back normal, but his pediatrician referred him to Dr. Touran Zadeh, CHOC’s medical director of genetics services. Through a blood sample and testing, she ...

The nonprofit Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California, offers volunteer opportunities for people of all ages, from young children to seniors. In recent years it has enhanced its volunteer programs for teens, allowing middle and high school students to engage in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) learning and explore marine life and ...

David came into Western Youth Services Outreach and Engagement program because he was struggling with distance learning and having trouble following directions. David shared that he felt overwhelmed with school and was a bit depressed due to his father living separate from the family.  David also shared that his relationship with his mom was very ...

Through counseling services provided by Western Youth Services, Rachael was finally able to reconnect with her Mother and tell her how she had been feeling and struggling emotionally especially with the family changes that occurred within the past year.   Rachael shared with her mom that the outbursts and attitude that she showed toward her mom ...

After fleeing an abusive husband, Jill found herself living in her car with her six-year-old son. Jill spent over 6 months seeking shelter opportunities until she found Families Forward. Through working with a housing specialist, Jill was able to immediately locate safe housing. Her Case Manager helped Jill set goals, providing budget training so she ...