Oct 30, 20235 min read

What's New? Catch up on the Last Two Months with Our Exciting E-News

We have been very busy since Camp Salesian ended. We've caught up with many activities and projects, and started the new school year. In this e-newsletter, you'll find out about some of the key events we've had over the last two months, as well as the needs and future activities of our youth center. We hope you enjoy being part of our family.

We need 3 computers for our Youth Center!

Over the weekend, we held our first all-team members meeting for the 2023-2024 year. During the meeting, we discussed the needs of our children and received training on how to improve our customer service using the Salesian preventive system. We also learned that we need three computers to help our children with their homework. If you would like to help us by donating these computers, please let us know.

Thank you Just Right Painting!

We believe in miracles, and this one was a big gift from God to our community, especially during Hispanic Heritage Month. One day, we received an email from Just Right Painting, informing us that they had chosen our youth center to receive a gift. The gift was to paint the entire exterior. We met with the CEO, Jonathan Rodriguez, who explained that he wanted to beautify the neighborhood and appreciated the work we do at the Youth Center. As a Hispanic descendant, he wanted to celebrate this month by giving back to the community. Thanks to this interaction, the youth center was painted, and the community was beautified. We are grateful to Just Right Painting for their love and support for our mission.

News from the We Care Program

Parents' Pizza Night

This school year, we started something fun called Parents' Pizza Night! The idea behind it was to help staff stay connected with parents, ensure they had all the necessary information, and keep them informed of any changes at the club. By doing so, we were able to establish good communication with our families while enjoying some delicious pizza.

Kindness event!

The West San Gabriel Valley Boys and Girls Club recently invited us to be part of their Kindness is Free backpack drive. During the event, our students learned tools to better understand the importance of being kind and saw first-hand how small acts of kindness can go a long way. Each student received a backpack they could personalize, and each backpack was filled with school supplies. We thank the WSGV Boys and Girls Club for letting us be part of this wonderful experience of kindness!

Youth from Taiwan visited our Youth Center

We would like to extend a special thank you to our visitors from St. Bridget's Parish, who recently brought a group of youth visiting from Taiwan to our Youth Center. During their visit, the youth had the opportunity to ask our students what they liked about the Youth Center, and in return, they kindly gifted us some delicious donuts. We are grateful for their visit and the opportunity to connect with youth from different parts of the world.

College Trip to San Francisco

Our Teen Club members recently went on a college trip to the San Francisco area! During the trip, we visited six universities, which included Stanford, Berkeley, and UC Santa Cruz, to name a few. Our students enjoyed the opportunity to tour colleges they were considering attending and came back feeling excited to apply to universities! If you would like to see the whole report, please click in the link below.

News from SHOUT

Teaching young people how to drive!

In this photo, we see our Drivers Ed instructor, Ms. Lolo, who volunteers every year to help us provide free Drivers Ed to our students.

This is the first session of Drivers Ed for the year, where students are learning the correct and incorrect way to hold the steering wheel.

Suicide Awareness Day!

We observed Suicide Awareness Day during lunch, demonstrating our support by setting up a booth with SHOUT gear and fun games for students to enjoy. At the event, we also took the opportunity to collect student surveys. To make this process engaging, we designed creative ways to promote the surveys and provided enjoyable incentives for students who completed them.

Random news from our Youth Center

Volunteers can make a difference!

Renee Boulware is a young professional who volunteers at the Salesian Family Youth Center. She has a passion for the arts, and once a month in her free time, she generously dedicates her time to teach art to our children. Thanks to Renee, our children are introduced to the world of art and enjoy learning various techniques. Thank you Renee for your service!

Dinner with our priests!

At our 2022 Gala, the Boys and Girls Club of West Valley won an auction item, which was a dinner with the Salesian Community. This month, we were blessed to have this dinner and spend quality time together. JR, the CEO of the Boyr and Girls Club of West Valley, brought his entire team to enjoy this amazing dinner. We would like to extend our gratitude to the Salesian Community and JR for their continued support!

Salesian Film Festival hosted at the SFYC

The DBGYFF (Don Bosco Global Youth Film Festival) is a world-class platform dedicated to showcasing and amplifying the creative voices of young filmmakers between the ages of 14 and 25. Spanning across nearly 136 countries, this festival provides an opportunity for these talented individuals to share their innovative ideas and stories through short films. With a theme centered around "Love builds Peace and Solidarity." This year, the Salesian Family Youth Center hosted the festival. Through its global reach and recognition, DBGYFF empowers youth to make a significant impact on the world through the art of filmmaking. If you want to know more about the event click here.

Water Project!

The Salesian Family Youth Center initiated the Water Education Project, sponsored by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, to educate children and youth about water conservation. The project aimed to enhance participants' knowledge of water's significance, promote creative expression about water conservation through designing logos and artwork, and engage the community through social media platforms like Instagram. Participants successfully gained knowledge, showcased their creativity, and raised awareness about water conservation.

Join our 2024 Gala!

You're invited to our 2024 Gala at the CastAway in Burbank! Join us for an unforgettable night filled with entertainment and exciting activities. It's a time to have fun and, most importantly, to make a difference in the lives of the children in our community. We're actively seeking action items and your support, so please consider purchasing a table. For more information, feel free to reach out to Jc Montenegro. Save the Date - Feb, 24th 2023. For more information click here.