My journey has been difficult, but it’s made me who I am today. I want to share a little bit of that with you in the next few minutes. To begin, I’d like to share a little about my childhood. I grew up in a family with five brothers and three sisters. I was the […]
Living History Featuring Becca Arce and Beverly Tate
Growing Up in South LA in the 1960’s By: Rebecca Arce, El Nido Alumni and Scholarship Recipient I had the honor to meet Beverly Tate, professor, and author, through El Nido’s Living History project, where youth interview seniors to get a cultural and inter-generational exchange of ideas. Beverly, like myself, had to navigate young adulthood […]
South LA Youth Find Role Models, Build Job Skills at Tech Academy
About El Nido’s Tech Academy “El Nido is like a second family, if you don’t have anybody to talk to, you can always go there for resources, people and mentors that can help you”– Kennedy, Tech Academy youth El Nido is a mentorship opportunity to help out youth in my city that don’t get much […]
Teen gets academic help from El Nido, encourages others to seek help too
“El Nido is a lifeline. The staff and volunteers of El Nido have a sincere concern and love for their clients and they have a vested interest in their lives” Regina P. has devoted her life to giving back to her community. She has worked for a southern California city for more than three decades […]
El Nido Awards 34 Scholarships at Luncheon Event
We are very proud of our 34 young adults from Compton, Pacoima and South LA who received college scholarships for the 2019-2020 year. Two of these college scholarship recipients graduated with bachelor’s degrees, and one of our young adults is in his second year Ph.D. program at UC Santa Cruz. Many of these youth grew […]
El Nido programs help family, change a mother’s life for the better
“I just want to thank El Nido for changing my life” Anderne found El Nido Family Centers through her husband, who spotted a sign for El Nido’s Early Head Start program outside her doctor’s office. He signed up their third daughter for the program on the spot. “My life has never been the same since.” […]
El Nido’s 4th Annual Teen & Young Parent Conference: LA Opinión’s guide for teen parents
La Opinión’s Guide for Teenage Parents Young people share their experiences about what it is like to have a baby at an early age, A guide for teenage parents BY: JACQUELINE GARCÍA APRIL 24, 2019 Pablo Alarcón and his wife Dulce Espinoza are parents of two children, one of 4 years and another of 4 months. […]
Teen mom gets help with parenting, earns degree and becomes successful business entrepreneur
“El Nido offers you hope and faith even when you may not be able to have it on your own. I am grateful. I am blessed to be an El Nido alumnus” Xiomara discovered El Nido Family Centers at a critical time in her life. “I was 16 years old, still in high school, and […]
El Nido’s Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Programs
El Nido’s child abuse prevention and treatment programs provide comprehensive, even life-saving services to children and their family members. Our program goals are to reduce the symptoms of child abuse, the incidence of repeat abuse, or to prevent the likelihood of abuse. Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Given the stress families are experiencing, the need […]
Years of abuse and suicidal thoughts brings El Nido to the rescue
“El Nido was an agency that saved my life, by creating a belief in myself and what I can do as a positive force” Diane M. lived the kind of life in which suicide was never far from her mind. A childhood victim of sexual abuse by a grandfather, Diane was also afflicted with schizo-affective disorder, a persistent […]
El Nido program helps teen acquire job skills to become successful business entrepreneur
“The best thing I can do, as Ghandi said, is to be the change you want to see in the world” Joe C. was raised in the San Fernando Valley along with a younger brother and two sisters. Growing up, Joe was not a troubled kid, but he was a graffiti artist, and in high […]
An isolated teen mother learns parenting, earns Master’s degree and gives back to the community
“All of my goals have been accomplished, because as a teen parent El Nido Family Centers taught me how to set goals and boundaries for myself, how to be a great mother, how to apply for a job, and how to give back to my community.” When Zuly was just 13, she found herself living […]
An isolated girl becomes an educator and author
“El Nido saved my life and I think it probably saved my mother’s life too” Dr. Tessa W., a doctor of educational psychology, has spent much of her professional career empowering individuals, and women in particular. The author of four books, Tessa was teaching women how to “lean in” long before Sheryl Sandberg. In addition […]
An at-risk youth finds direction and a bright future with El Nido’s help
“El Nido can change a person’s perspective, creating positive images for a life that feels good” Robert and his younger brother grew up in the Pacoima barrio where drugs were everywhere and gangs were a constant threat. When Robert was thirteen, a friend who was in El Nido Family Centers’ Gang Reduction Youth Development (GRYD) […]
