The Power of One    |     HOME

Join the Free HEROES mailing list!



Email Marketing by VerticalResponse
Youth

America Works for Kids
4521 Campus Drive, #555
Irvine,CA 92612
Phone: (949) 585-8611

America Works for Kids (formerly SoCalWorks) is a nonprofit, privately funded organization dedicated to preparing foster children from ages 12-17 to become independent, working young men and women in the community. With a focus on "Employment First", America Works for Kids impacts more kids lives with the most important outcome - self-sufficiency and dignity! Locations are in California, New York, and Washington, D.C.

      Civic Entrepreneur: Don Mac Allister



A Place Called Home
2830 South Central Ave.
Los Angeles, CA   90011
(323) 232-7653

A Place Called Home is just that, a home-like environment in the LA inner-city serving over 3,000 youth to help them make a positive change through the arts and other specially designed programs. Dance classes, education, recreation, Mothers Against Violence, and other activities keep minority children out of gangs while also helping to pull families together in a safe and diverse community setting. Financial support is primarily from private donors.

Civic Entrepreneur: Debrah Constance, President
Web Site: www.apch.org


Aviation Scholarship Foundation
P.O. Box 235
Lake Village, IN  46349

The Aviation Scholarship Foundation is dedicated to students from Indiana's and Illinois' poorest communities The Foundation funds private pilot training for low income youth. It has produced some of the nations' youngest private pilots in some of its poorest communities. All current funding is from private donors.

Civic Entrepreneur:
Patrick Carron, President/Founder



Generations of Hope
1530 Fairway Drive
Rantoul, IL   61866
(217) 893-4673

Generations of Hope is a new way of providing a stable, safe, and caring environment for children who are victims of drugs, neglect, and abuse. It is a unique intergenerational community linking foster children with families and senior citizens. Built on a closed military base, Generations of Hope is a neighborhood model for replication around the country. The focus is to help find permanent adoptive homes for foster children and to educate foster and adoptive parents on how to parent children from difficult backgrounds.

Civic Entrepreneur:
Brenda Eheart, Executive Director
Web site: www.generationsofhope.org
E-mail: contact@generationsof hope.org


Harlem Chess Center
HEAF Development Office
200 Madison Avenue
New York, N.Y. 10016
(212) 210-6620

The Harlem Chess Center not only teaches children from all races and backgrounds the game, but organizes pupils into elementary and junior high school teams. One focus of the effort is to help inner-city youth become excited about thinking through problems and realize a constructive new entertainment outlet. Maurice Ashley, the first African-American International Chess Grandmaster has helped lead the youth chess teams to six national championships. In 2001, the chess program served 340 students. Plans are in the making to replicate the program in dozens of locations throughout New York City.

Civic Entrepreneur: Maurice Ashley
Web site: www.heaf.org/



Jobs for a Future
Homeboy Industries
1848 East 1st. St.
Los Angeles, CA  90033
(323) 526-1254

Jobs For A Future is an employment referral center which seeks gainful employment for at-risk youth in Los Angeles. JFF was born in 1988 in the Aliso-Pico Housing developments located in the Boyle Heights community of Los Angeles, California. "Jobs not Jails" became the community's slogan offering at-risk, gang-involved youth, a second chance at life. Currently it has five businesses; Homeboy Bakery, Homeboy Silkscreen, Homeboy Merchandising, Homeboy Production Cleaning Services, and Homeboy Artesania. Many former gang members, both men and women, work together to produce products. Community businesses hire many of the former gang members.

Civic Entrepreneur: Father Greg Boyle, S.J.


Kids in the Middle, Inc.
121 W. Monroe
St. Louis, MO  63122
(314) 909-9922

Since 1978, Kids in the Middle has provided an innovative and comprehensive affordable therapy for children and their families experiencing the trauma of divorce, separation, remarriage and other family transitions. It also provides related educational and support programs to the community. Funding is both private and public.

Civic Entrepreneur: Kim Long
Clinical Director: Lee Street


Matthew House, Inc.
404 E. Park St.
P.O. Box 1285
Champaign, IL  61820

Matthew House reinforces hope, love, honesty, respect, and responsiblity in children who are crying out for help. The organization seeks to empower school-age youths of socio-economically challenging circumstances to reach their highest goals. They receive help to develop personal responsibility and emotional, intellectual, social, and spiritual growth. Through the Godparent home missions aspect, children are given attention, spiritual guidance, and unconditional love to overcome the restraints of their neighborhoods. The result is children with less interest in drugs, crime, welfare dependence, poverty, or teen pregnancies. Funding is from private sources.

Civic Entrepreneur: Tamara Cibis, CEO



Operation Snowball
Springfield, IL
(800) 252-6301

Operation Snowball is a comprehensive community-based alcohol and other drug prevention program which helps youth, families, schools, and communities become empowered to lead drug-free lives. The organization was founded in 1977 in Rockford, IL, with the belief that, "If I have a positive impact on you, you can have a positive impact on someone else," and the effect snowballs. Operation Snowball strives to empower community members to lead healthy lifestyles through five prevention strategies. The organization has chapters in six U.S. states and internationally.

Civic Entrepreneurs: A small group of
Rockford, IL adults and teens.
Web site: www.os-iti.org/


Copyright Power of One Publishing LLC 2008