header image

[Sign Up Now] to Receive Our FREE Daily SCVTV-SCVNews Digest by E-Mail

Inside
Weather


 
Calendar
Today in
S.C.V. History
May 7
1861 - Andres Pico and partners granted state franchise to build toll road and cut 50-foot-deep cleft through (Newhall) Pass; they failed; Beale later succeeded [story]
Andres Pico


It’s hard to believe that summer is almost at an end. Maria Clemens, our wonderful Director of Programs and Services returns from maternity leave on August 10, and I think I can speak for all our parents and staff: it can’t come too soon. We’ve missed her!

I also became a grandparent for the first time. Meet Olivia and my daughter Trisha! They live in The Netherlands, so it was very special visit we made in July.

Summertime always brings a much needed pause to catch our breath before the busy Fall season. We’ve been interviewing Masters in Social Work interns from CSUN. We are excited to announce this year we will expand our capacity with four interns, including one second year intern. We also hired Digna Yepez, our second year intern from last year. This means we can significantly grow the numbers of parents who receive individual therapy. Almost 80% of new parents joining our program are suffering from either anxiety or depression or both. We’ve had a wait list of women seeking these services. For many, this is the very first step toward becoming self-sustaining. ​

With the increase in case workers we will also expand our work hours. Starting in September we will be open Monday – Friday from 9:00 – 5:00 and we hope to stay open late one night per week to accommodate working single parents. We are still working out the details, so stay tuned.

 

August is also Dancing With Our Stars month. Our wonderful Miriam Robles will dance for Single Mothers Outreach on August 28 at the Performing Arts Center. We bought a block of tickets, so please contact our office (661-288-0117) if you would like to purchase a ticket.

We also have a few ways you can support Miriam by attending special events we’ve planned to help her reach her fundraising goal. You can find more information in the News section.

 

– DaAnne Smith

On July 7, a group of our single parents and their children were treated to a guided nature hike and live animal presentation at Placerita Canyon Nature Center. Our host, Ranger Frank, taught the group about local plants, insects, animals and birds, and also explained the history of the Oak of the Golden Dream. The parents and kids were treated to pizza at the end of the hike. It was a fun and educational morning for everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Come cheer on the boys in blue and support

JCI Santa Clarita and Single Mothers Outreach in their Dancing With Our Stars campaigns!



For just $40 you get a game ticket and entrance into the all you can eat pavilion!

Click on the flyer for more information!

 

 

Join us at the Dancing with our Stars Event

Miriam Robles has worked hard to raise money for Single Mothers Outreach. Please join us in supporting her as she dances her heart out for SMO at the 2015 Dancing with Our Stars event where she will compete against 21 other Santa Clarita nonprofits. 

SMO has an extremely limited supply of great seats available.


Donate Your Car, Boat, RV or Motorcycle

to Support Single Mothers Outreach

Single Mothers Outreach has chosen Cars 4 Causes® to process our vehicle and boat donations. Cars 4 Causes® is America’s 1st vehicle donation organization, so rest assured they have the experience necessary to get the most for our cause.  Your donations will help us  support single mothers and their children.  When you strengthen a family you strengthen the community.  You can contribute to our mission by donating your car or boat today!

Click on the picture for more information.

Gail Cosico started volunteering at Single Mothers Outreach (SMO) in October 2014. She and her family had relocated to Santa Clarita Valley from Minnesota, and she was interested in becoming more active in this community. One of her first impressions of her new city was the vast array of local news sources delivered to homes. The magazines and newspapers were especially helpful to a newcomer. She recognized the spirit of giving by our residents and was very happy to have settled in the SCV.While researching local organizations on the Internet, she found the SMO website and was immediately drawn to the cause.  Being a mom is a critically important job and, even when partnering with a husband, carries immense responsibilities and critical time-management skills.  She was aware of the stress that single parenting can cause having lived through the divorce of her parents.  Her own children were at an independent stage and she decided she wanted to do something to help single parents with their day-to-day struggles. ​She had long been a stay-at-home mom and had lived in several different cities as her family had relocated for her husband’s career.  She had a college education but had not been employed  outside the home in many years.  So, she sat down and drafted a resume and visited the SMO office to explore volunteer opportunities.  She was immediately impressed with the dedication of the staff she met at SMO – a delightful group of strong and caring women who love what they do and who welcomed her help.

She worried at first that her computer skills were not on a par with today’s office workers but she got encouragement and resources at SMO that helped her quickly get up to speed.  She now manages a program called Lynda.com (recently acquired by Linked-In).  Lynda.com is an online education company offering thousands of video courses in software and creative and business skills.  The tutorials are taught by industry experts.  This program is offered free to SMO members to improve their job prospects and build confidence.  It has proven to be very popular and has a waiting list for attendance.  She has witnessed tremendous growth in the moms who have taken advantage of this and other SMO programs.

Gail says she feels good at the end of every day at SMO. She has learned what a generous community we have in the SCV.  She shares “ In all of the cities I have lived and volunteered in, I have never seen the level of generosity I see here.  Whether it’s donations of money, diapers, food or volunteering their time, this community is amazing.”  She strongly encourages single parents to become a member of SMO to “ learn how your life can be transformed.  Even if you are not struggling financially, there is a great opportunity to meet others and learn new ways to improve family life.”

Comment On This Story
COMMENT POLICY: We welcome comments from individuals and businesses. All comments are moderated. Comments are subject to rejection if they are vulgar, combative, or in poor taste.
REAL NAMES ONLY: All posters must use their real individual or business name. This applies equally to Twitter account holders who use a nickname.

No Comments

    Leave a Comment


    SCV NONPROFIT LINKS

    NONPROFIT HEADLINES
    Monday, May 6, 2024
    Mental Health Hookup, in partnership with Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, will conduct the third annual Stop the Stigma community event on May 18, from 10 a.m. to  2 p.m., on the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital campus, located at 23803 McBean Parkway in Valencia.
    Monday, May 6, 2024
    Zonta Club of Santa Clarita Valley will host a free workshop to provide a recap of previous workshops beginning Nov. 18, 2023 through May 18, 2024 and a review of tools learned and how to continue to build on connected relationships.
    Sunday, May 5, 2024
    Dale Donohoe and Kim Kurowski were named the Santa Clarita Valley's top volunteers of the year at the 2024 SCV Man and Woman of the Year dinner celebration held Friday, May 3 at the Hyatt Regency Valencia. The event also honored all of the 17 men and 17 woman nominated for the award.
    Friday, May 3, 2024
    The Santa Clarita Valley Media Collaborative invites the public as well as local creatives, media industry professionals, students, parents, teachers and others to celebrate the next generation of media makers participating in the inaugural NextGen MediaMakers Festival on Saturday, May 18 from 2-5 p.m. at the Canyon Country Community Center.
    Friday, May 3, 2024
    The Friends of Santa Clarita Public Library is hosting a “Spring Bag Sale” event at the Valencia, Canyon Country and Newhall branches of the Santa Clarita Public Library, during normal operating hours from Saturday, May 4 to Sunday, May 12.

    Latest Additions to SCVNews.com
    Members of the California Institute of the Arts community, industry representatives and friends and family journeyed to Los Angeles's Miracle Mile neighborhood to celebrate Character Animation students’ films at the 2024 Character Animation Producers’ Show.
    CalArts 2024 Character Animation Producers’ Show
    Princess Cruises, headquartered in Valencia, has announced it will return to San Juan, Puerto Rico after more than a decade, for a season of Southern Caribbean cruises onboard Grand Princess, from October 2025 through March 2026.
    Princess Cruises Announces Return to San Juan, Puerto Rico
    Join the Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce Wednesday, May 15, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., for the monthly After Hours Mixer, an evening of networking and fun at Chronic Tacos.
    May 15: SCV Chamber After Hours Mixer at Chronic Tacos
    Get ready to level up your small business game. The next Los Angeles Region Small Business Summit will be held Thursday, May 9 and features Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, Los Angeles County Team Department of Economic Opportuntiy, city of Los Angeles and partners at Mission College in Sylmar.
    May 9: Free Small Business Summit at Mission College
    College of the Canyons has captured the 3C2A Southern California Regional Championship, the ninth in program history, after turning its opening round lead into a four-stroke advantage over runner-up Cypress College on Monday, May 6 at Rio Bravo Country Club.
    COC Men’s Golf Wins SoCal Title, Advances to State Championship
    When every second counts, blood products can provide lifesaving care. The American Red Cross asks the public to give blood or platelets during Trauma Awareness Month in May to keep hospitals prepared for all transfusion needs, including emergencies.
    May is Trauma Awareness Month, Blood, Platelet Donors Needed
    The city of Santa Clarita has announced the pickleball courts at Bouquet Canyon Park will be closed on Wednesday, May 8, for necessary maintenance on the windscreens.
    May 8: Bouquet Canyon Park Pickleball Courts Closed for Maintenance
    The California Animal Welfare Association, the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals have announced the inaugural California Adopt-a-Pet Day will take place on Saturday, June 1.
    June 1: Inaugural California Adopt-a-Pet Day
    1861 - Andres Pico and partners granted state franchise to build toll road and cut 50-foot-deep cleft through (Newhall) Pass; they failed; Beale later succeeded [story]
    Andres Pico
    Gilbert, Arizona's Leah Burke has signed her National Letter of Intent to play soccer at The Master's University.
    Lady Mustangs Add Leah Burke to Soccer Roster
    CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa  - The Master's University struggled against a high-energy Georgetown (KY) Tigers squad, losing in straight sets 23-25, 18-25, 20-25 in the championship match of the 2024 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men's Volleyball Championships.
    Mustangs Drop NAIA Championship Game
    College of the Canyons student-athletes Nichole Muro (softball) and Owen Crockett (men's golf) have been named the COC Athletic Department's Women's and Men's Student-Athletes of the Week for the period running April 29 to May 4.
    COC Names Nichole Muro, Owen Crockett Athletes of the Week
    Step into the Heart of 1970s Texas at The MAIN as Front Row Center presents, "Lone Star, Laundry, and Bourbon."
    ‘Lone Star, Laundry, and Bourbon’ Coming to The MAIN
    Warmer weather, longer days and the sound of baseball is officially back!
    Ken Striplin | Santa Clarita Dodger Day Celebrates 45 Years
    Mental Health Hookup, in partnership with Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, will conduct the third annual Stop the Stigma community event on May 18, from 10 a.m. to  2 p.m., on the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital campus, located at 23803 McBean Parkway in Valencia.
    May 18: Stop the Stigma Community Event
    California State University, Northridge is set to open a first of its kind resource center in the CSU system to provide basic needs services such as food, clothing and wellness in a centralized location on campus.
    CSUN Set to Open First of Its Kind Student Resource Center
    The city of Santa Clarita’s Film Office released the list of three productions currently filming in the Santa Clarita Valley for the week of Monday, May 6 - Sunday, May 12.
    Three Productions Filming in Santa Clarita
    In an effort to bolster local businesses, Los Angeles County just launched the Entertainment Business Interruption Fund, a $4.1 million grant program aimed to serve businesses that were impacted by the Hollywood strikes and the pandemic.
    Kathryn Barger | Bolstering Entertainment Businesses
    The city of Santa Clarita is excited to announce the upcoming exhibition, “From the Sweet Flypaper of Life,” featuring the remarkable works of high school students enrolled in the CalArts Community Arts Partnership (CAP) Photography Lab Program.
    City Announces ‘From the Sweet Flypaper of Life’ Exhibit
    Zonta Club of Santa Clarita Valley will host a free workshop to provide a recap of previous workshops beginning Nov. 18, 2023 through May 18, 2024 and a review of tools learned and how to continue to build on connected relationships.
    May 18: Zonta SCV to Recap Previous LifeForward Workshops
    As a City dedicated to inclusivity and community, we aim to create world-class events to bring our residents together.
    Bill Miranda | Free To Be Me Celebrates Inclusivity
    During Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month in May, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department would like to remind drivers to always look twice for motorcycles.
    LASD Highlighting Motorcycle Awareness Month
    1971 - Fort Tejon added to National Register of Historic Places [story]
    Fort Tejon
    Dale Donohoe and Kim Kurowski were named the Santa Clarita Valley's top volunteers of the year at the 2024 SCV Man and Woman of the Year dinner celebration held Friday, May 3 at the Hyatt Regency Valencia. The event also honored all of the 17 men and 17 woman nominated for the award.
    Donohoe, Kurowski Named 2024 SCV Man, Woman of the Year
    SCVNews.com