Happy House » Good Choices Program

Santa Barbara Boys and Girls Club Completes a Super Year

admin — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:11:02 +0000

Great family, great friends and great neighbors all gathered on the evening of January 26^th 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.

Executive Director Carolyn Brown spoke passionately about the dedication of her Board, sponsors and staff and turned over the microphone to talented youth to hand out awards for volunteering, mentoring, standing out as a youth of the year, participating as an athelete of the year as well as awards for the ten children who completed the Good Choices Program.

SB B&G Club Program Director & Good Choices Class Instructor, Calvin Mass, joined his class on stage and invited Nancy Cartwright, along with members of her Happy House team, to hand out the graduation certificates that confirm completion of the program.

“Make Life GOOD, Make Good CHOICES,” the ecstatic children called out in unison.

This graduating class is one of several who have completed the program over the last two years and Carolyn announced that the program will soon be expanded to include training of teens to deliver the program to the younger members.

Nancy was so impressed with the club, the staff and, most of all, the kids. “You rock, man!” she called out with that “special voice.”

Happy House Attends Heritage Weekend

admin — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 21:17:19 +0000

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.

Nancy was there and chatted with some local community members, including several volunteers from the LAPD Cadet program. She autographed a couple booklets each and let the young men know that their own program is very much aligned with the Good Choices program. Upon finding that out, one of the Cadets asked for a couple more booklets to give to his brothers and sisters.

That is the beauty of the program. It is meant to be “passed forward” and on and on.

They walked away, with their booklets and big smiles on their faces.

Good Choices—Good Citizens

admin — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 23:08:50 +0000

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

admin — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 23:31:56 +0000

The Sun Comes Out on Children’s Day

admin — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 03:54:29 +0000

Saturday November 20^th 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.

But Mister Sun showed his face around 11:30 to a standing ovation from the frigid crowd and it wasn’t long before the families started flooding in! From Noon on there was a steady stream of happy kids, parents and grandparents enjoying all the free balloons, games and resources and joining in on the music and dance.

Happy House® hosted the Good Choices Arts and Crafts tent again this year and it filled up quickly. Hundreds of hats, friendship bracelets, necklaces and other goodies were created and worn throughout the fair. We added a Giant Thank You Card – measuring nearly 100 Feet in length and 4 feet high – where folks signed their names, offered thanks to the LAPD and the city and drew some phenomenal artwork. This giant scroll will be presented to the city and the precincts as a thank you for their efforts on the day.

We also hosted our Happy House Good Choices ™ booth where we conducted a raffle and handed out The Way to Happiness® and How to Make Good Choices booklets and we introduced kids to the Movies with a Message™ Contest.

Click on any image above to see a larger version.

Nancy joined us and signed autographs for Bart fans and gave the dozens of frigid Happy House volunteers a real big smile.

Thank goodness the sun came out!

Teens Benefit from “The Club”

admin — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 19:53:10 +0000

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.

Executive Director, Kasey Earnest, greeted us along with Development Director Jenn Lacaillade and Nancy’s long-time friend/associate on The Simpsons, Mike Scully. Mike’s daughters are alums of the center and he has continued to support its mission to keep teens in Malibu engaged in meaningful and safe after- school activities and programs.

The music was bumping out of speakers, playing a mix of upbeat tunes and the place filled up in the blink of an eye once school was out. We were “incognito” for awhile, getting the official tour of the tutoring/computer room, the lobby and organic kitchen, the two big activity rooms and the extraordinary outdoor activities area.

Now in its 10^th year, the B&G Club is providing a truly stellar service to these kids. The Happy House Good Choices team introduced Kasey, Jenn and Mike to the Good choices Program and they are going to take a look at how they might fit it into their character-building programs.

As we were departing, Kathie arranged for a brief trip to the tutoring room where Nancy dropped the curtain and revealed she was Bart, Nelson, Ralph and the rest. The kids really loved it once they got over the shock of meeting the voice of Bart.

Go to www.malibuyouth.org to find out more about this extraordinary facility.

Santa Barbara Will be the Next Happy House Chapter

admin — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:04:55 +0000

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

admin — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 03:56:57 +0000

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

admin — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:30:54 +0000

Friday August 20^th 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.

The four week program started with a week at the San Fernando Elementary School and ended with three weeks of “field trips” to the Anson Ford Theatre in Hollywood, CA. This remarkable venue was ideal for Carol Loweree, Happy House Good Choices Director, to impart the 21 chapters of the “How to Make Good Choices ™,” booklet. Based on The Way to Happiness ®, which has over 90 million copied in circulation, the Good Choices program helps kids learn basic common sense values so they can make their own good choices.

“There is enough discipline and danger in their lives,” Mrs. Loweree said. “We don’t tell them what to do. We simply show them that there is a choice and they can make it.”

The Good Choices program was taught in a “round robin” with Freshi Filmworx. Freshi, the largest company teaching film techniques to children nationwide, specializes in teaching kids basic film making and video game design techniques. The students were split into three groups based on age and each hour every morning they would go from one to the other, first learning Good Choices and then on to game design or filmmaking.

Each child created their own video game either solo or with a team and the entire group created six short movies. These movies, all based on the chapters of the Good Choices Booklet, can be entered in the Movies with a Message contest sponsored by Good Choices and held during the International Family Film Festival in March of 2011.

Nancy Cartwright, founder of Happy House, had the great fun of visiting the students and presenting certificates of completion and some signed goodies. “These kids are incredible,” said Nancy. “They have such great manners, are so creative and I can really see how much this means to them.”

For more information on the Good Choices Program go to www.goodchoicesprogram.org and to find out about the Movies With a Message Contest go to www.movieswithamessage.org.

Project GRAD and the First Happy House Good Choices Award

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 22:36:56 +0000

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.

Every year, Project GRAD honors the academic accomplishments of a new class of college-bound scholars. This year, one of the honorees was connected to us in a strange way. Myriam Martinez approached Nancy at the event and told her that Leo Martinez, Nancy’s gardener, was her father. She was the youngest of four children and Leo had encouraged all of his kids to go through the program and they had all succeeded.

Nancy decided this was worthy of recognition and awarded Leo the first ever Happy House Good Choices Award. She presented Leo with the award, with his family in attendance, at her home in Northridge. He was recognized for his “extreme dedication as a father in applying the precepts ‘Help Children’ and ‘Set a Good Example’.”

Great job Leo! You are truly an example in your home and your community.