Read the rest of this entry »
Great family, great friends and great neighbors all gathered on the evening of January 26th to enjoy great food and celebrate another year of great kids at the Santa Barbara Boys and Girls Club, one of the longest running and most successful after-school sites in the country.
Good Choices Program Archive
Happy House Attends Heritage Weekend
The North Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, along with the Kiwanis Club joint sponsored Heritage Weekend at Northridge Park. There was a full blown carnival, games, cheerleaders, fireworks and much more. Happy House had a booth where they handed out booklets and talked to guests about the Good Choices Program.
Read the rest of this entry »
Good Choices—Good Citizens
If good citizens make good choices and good choices make good citizens then the Santa Barbara Boys and Girls Club is creating the best citizens of all.
What an incredible night! The Happy House Good Choices team was invited to attend the annual awards night put on by Executive Director Carolyn Brown and her team of superlative staff and extraordinary volunteers. We filled a table and felt more than honored to be a small part of what was clearly a very big acknowledgement for the staff, Board, volunteers, coaches and kids that make this club such a resounding success.
It all kicked off with music and more music. There were many highlights in this evening which included professional quality recitals capped with a positive message rap by Christian “C Rush” Pearson that brought the house down. This guy is pro quality! The Board was honored for their service as well as the Alumni Association, many of the program directors, the athletic coaches, the new Women’s Auxiliary and the capper was the ribbon cutting of the new Pat Van Every Teen Center.
This new center is a fantastic place for teens. I want to be a kid all over again. Check out these amenities: brand new computers, satellite access on the giant flat screen, places to hang out and, most importantly, mentorship and leadership programs lead by Tyler Forshey, a gentle giant who is dedicated to these kids.
Richard Nunnelee—who introduced our organization to Carolyn Brown last year—and Happy House were honored to receive awards for our Good Choices Program. We look forward to many more nights around the table with the Santa Barbara Boys and Girls Club.
Our hats are off to the team of committed leaders. You Rock!
Happy House Picks a Winner
Congratulations to Edwin from Reseda, California who was selected from hundreds of entries as the basket winner at Children’s Day 2010. Edwin is pictured below with his children. We hope you all enjoy the basket full of great Simpsons goodies. Happy Holidays!
The Sun Comes Out on Children’s Day
Saturday November 20th was the “rain or shine” day set aside to bring families together in Woodley Park in the San Fernando Valley to have fun and find out what resources are out there to help kids.
It was more rain than shine to start the day and with the cool air and ankle deep mud it appeared that we wouldn’t have much of a crowd to enjoy the hundreds of booths, rides and entertainment.
Read the rest of this entry »
Teens Benefit from “The Club”
Nancy, along with co-ED Peter Kjenaas and Happy House administrative executive Kathie Heard, drove out to Malibu to visit the Boys and Girls Club on the campus of Malibu High.
This B&G Club is like no other. It is, first of all, a “teen” center, so it is specifically designed to cater to the needs of teenagers. This alone is unique in the nation, but what truly makes it stand out is that the layout and design of the center are perfect for teens with a playful style around a courtyard featuring active outdoor activities.
Read the rest of this entry »
Santa Barbara Will be the Next Happy House Chapter
The Good Choices Program was delivered in two of the Santa Barbara Boys & Girls Clubs on Monday July 13th. In all, 52 children were put through the program. A graduation event was held at the Santa Barbara Boys & Girls Club for all 52 children on Wednesday 12 August, with Nancy presenting them with their certificates. More than 140 people were in attendance to watch these amazing children graduate.
The feedback from the Director of the Boys & Girls Club was extremely favorable and she’s very interested in participating further in the Good Choices program. They are well on their way to becoming the third chapter of Happy House. The Director was also given a special recognition certificate by Nancy along with a bouquet of flowers. Of the event, she said, “I read through the book and loved it. This is the exact thing that we wanted to present to the kids. The kids really do need a good moral compass. This program is so hands on and this is why I participated in every class because I really wanted to learn how it works and how it’s delivered.
“It’s so fun to see how the kids interacted and they’re so excited, and I love that. Today when we passed out the papers and asked the kids what they got out of the program, some of the responses were beautiful. Throughout the week we talk about what they’ve learned during the program and I get kids that come up to me and tell me how one of the kids is bullying another kid and feel he should be stopped. So they really remember the lessons and talk about it throughout the week. That’s why I know it’s working.”
We look forward to many more graduations like this in Santa Barbara.
Happy House Hits Thousand Oaks, CA
Happy House is proud to announce the formation of its second chapter in Thousand Oaks, CA. The first delivery of the Good Choices program was done at the Los Cerritos Boys & Girls Club of Thousand Oaks. The delivery of the program started on Friday June 25th for an hour in the morning and continued each Friday until August 6th.
Twenty-two children graduated the program and were presented with their certificates by Nancy Cartwright, during a graduation event on August 11th. Over 80 people were present to watch these children graduate and all of the students and attendees were surprised with autographed Bart Simpson book marks.
The children were very excited about meeting Nancy and having completed the program. The Director of the Boys & Girls Club expressed her appreciation for the work that was done with these children and has expressed her interested in having the program continue during the school year.
The Director was given a special recognition certificate by Nancy along with a bouquet of flowers. She was quoted saying, “I have seen the children really excited about the program and actually use the chart that shows them the degree of Good and Bad choices they can make. I plan to post that chart and use it during the school year. Our kids are amazing and have been very excited about the classes. The kids are really good but they have stepped up even more on helping each other out. We have a severely autistic child here and several of the kids that have been part of the Good Choices class have taken it on to really get to know her and make sure where she’s where she’s supposed to be, etc. The kids love the program and have been really excited attending the classes every Friday.”
Welcome to the Happy House family to all new members of the Thousand Oaks Chapter.
The Children of Migrant Workers Learn Good Choices
Friday August 20th was graduation day for seventy some children ranging in age from 9 – 18 who completed the Happy House Good Choices Program through Migrant Workers Education run by the Los Angeles Unified School District. Their families and teachers joined them in celebrating this remarkable achievement.
Read the rest of this entry »
Project GRAD and the First Happy House Good Choices Award
Nancy helped give out awards on Saturday, June 19th, at the 8th Annual Scholarship Celebration for Project GRAD, supported by friends Anne Archer and Marisol Nichols and run by CEO of Project GRAD Ford Roosevelt.
Read the rest of this entry »
