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United Way in Redding now services Chico, too

Chico Enterprise Recorder
April 21, 2011
By Laurie Kavenaugh - Style Editor

The United Way. A familiar name, but now just a little farther reaching than in years past.

At the end of December 2010, the Chico United Way office closed its doors after some 25 years operating in Butte and Glenn counties through its donor campaigns and fundraising events.

Now the staff at the Redding office has added Butte and Glenn counties to its service territory.

Program launched to identify, house 25 most-costly homeless people

North County Times
April 20, 2011
By Gary Warth

Aaron McBride talks about his five years on the street and how fortunate he feels now with a home during a press conference Wednesday at the United Way in San Diego.

A coalition of San Diego County programs and agencies has launched a program to house the 25 homeless people who are the most costly users of area services, a move that organizers say could save hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Program To Help Chronically Homeless Making Progress

KGTV-TV10 (CNN, San Diego)
April 20, 2011

Project 25 Also Aims To Reduce Taxpayer Burden

A program designed to help those chronically homeless and reduce the taxpayer burden at the same time is making progress.

Project 25 is a public-private partnership that has targeted 25 of the chronically homeless that use the most public resources for the past four months.

click here to go to KGTV website for video

Merced County receives $1.4M for Building Healthy Communities initiative

Merced Sun Star
April 20, 2011
By Yesenia Amaro

Agencies in Merced County received $1.4 million in grants from The California Endowment as part of its Building Healthy Communities initiative. The grant will be used to assist projects designed to improve quality of life.

After months of planning, officials have begun to implement the initiative, which will feature most of its work in southwest and east Merced County.

CA Endowment's nonprofit awards $1.4 million in local grants

Merced Sun Star
April 19, 2011
By Sun-Star Staff

The California Endowment said it made the first round of grants — $1.4 million — as part of the 10-year Building Healthy Communities initiative.

The Boys & Girls Club of Merced received a grant, and Tony Slaton, executive director, said: "This is a great opportunity for Merced as it relates to youth and youth development. With this grant money, we can look at what the real needs of our community are and how to adequately serve those needs."

United Way of Merced received a grant to fund the Building Healthy Communities Hub Collaborative.

Illegal immigrants hoping to ease into legality by paying taxes

Woodland Daily Democrat
April 19, 2011
By Matt O'brien / MediaNews Group

Isaias Aguilar filed his income tax returns for the first time this year and took a financial hit for it. He owed $579 to the Internal Revenue Service for some of the work he did last year, including as a part-time taekwondo instructor.

The 29-year-old Mexican immigrant is not authorized to live and work in the United States, but he is one of millions of illegal immigrants known to use an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, or ITIN, to file their taxes because they do not have Social Security numbers.

See Spot Run

Eureka Times Standard
April 19, 2011
By Bonnie Sullivan Finley / For the Times-Standard

”Dick and Jane play. Puff and Spot play, too. See Spot run.” Sound familiar? Most of today's boomers and seniors learned to read with McGuffey primers and Dick, Jane, Sally, Spot and Puff. They shared in the lives of these characters and in the process successfully acquired lifetime reading skills.

Although the characters and texts have changed, the reading process still incorporates sounds, blends and chunks to decode and learn words, sentences and paragraphs. Learning to read, though, begins in kindergarten rather than in first grade as was the case in the 1950s.

United Way of Tulare County hires director

Visalia Times-Delta
April 15, 2011

The United Way of Tulare County announced that Darlene Mayfield has been named the new director of resource and development.

Mayfield, who began her new job March 14, was most recently with the DMI Agency and previously was with the Visalia Chamber of Commerce.

Health officials: Whooping cough vaccinations required for grades 7-12

Los Angeles Daily Breeze
April 15, 2011
By Melissa Evans Staff Writer

In the midst of a statewide whooping cough epidemic, public health officials Thursday reminded parents that vaccinations against the disease are now required for students in grades seven through 12.

Incoming students in the 2011-12 academic year must show proof of the pertussis booster by July 1.

"Avoid the back-to-school rush, and make sure your children are protected right away," Jonathan Fielding, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, said in a statement.

Relax on 'tax day'; it's delayed

Fresno Bee
April 14, 2011
By Bethany Clough

For all the complaining this time of year, most Americans actually think the taxes they pay are fair. Rushing to get your taxes filed by April 15? Relax, you've got a few days to procrastinate. The deadline to file state and federal taxes is delayed three days this year, until Monday, April 18.

You can thank Abraham Lincoln for the reprieve. The tax deadline is delayed due to Emancipation Day, the day on which Lincoln freed slaves in Washington D.C. in 1862.

Orange County slow to implement homelessness plan

Voice Of OC
April 13, 2011
By Tracy Wood

Orange County has enacted an ambitious plan to end homeless in just a decade.

But it's taken four years just to get organized. And officials still haven't even recruited an executive director to run the effort.

The county is required to come up with a plan to end homelessness or risk losing U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds that totaled $111 million in the 13 years between 1996 and 2009.

Calexico School Board OKs Damage Repair At Jefferson School

Imperial Valley Weekly
April 13, 2011

United Way of Imperial County is partnering with the Imperial Valley Food Bank to hold a ham drive to help feed the needy in Imperial County this Easter. To assist in the ham drive, United Way of Imperial County received a $5,000 grant from the Sempra Energy Foundation “Helping Others in Need Campaign”. Sempra Energy is the parent company of Southern California Gas Company and San Diego Gas & Electric. Both have offices that serve the Imperial Valley.

A-TCAA teams up with United Way to launch Star Readers Project

Amador Ledger Dispatch
April 13, 2011

As regional graduation rates continue to decline, Amador-Tuolumne Community Action Agency, United Way California Capital Region and other partners have launched United Way's STAR Readers Project to ensure third-graders are reading at grade level, a key indicator for high school graduation.

The project was announced with Mayor Kevin Johnson's Third Grade Reading Campaign at a press conference March 22.

YLS Launches Jump$tart Financial Literacy Effort

Ventura County Star
April 6, 2011
By Pedro Chavez

This month the Young Leaders Society, a program of the United Way of Ventura County launched Jump$tart, a local financial responsibility and literacy effort.

Jump$tart includes the usage of two highly effective national financial literacy programs: America's Promise Alliance "Saving our Future", and "Hands on Banking" developed by Wells Fargo.

Dixon Family Services offers free help with tax returns

Contra Costa Times
March 25, 2011

For the sixth year, Dixon Family Services has been offering free help to families and individuals with filing their taxes since February.

Those who made $49,000 or less in 2010 can call and make an appointment with volunteers who have been trained by the IRS. If appointment slots have all been filled, you may be referred to another Free Tax site in Solano County.

You may also be eligible for a cash refund in the Earned Income Tax Credit.

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