Nonprofit Organization

Juliana D. Norwood  |   OW Staff Writer
Sep 1 2011

Housing First program changes the game

According to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, we are now experiencing a period when worst-case housing needs are at an all-time high.

While some communities are beginning to see reductions in chronic homelessness, in many others family homelessness is exploding and families with children are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population.

Jun 8 2011

Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation

HOLLYWOOD, Calif.—Los Angeles Lakers all-star guard Kobe Bryant and his wife Vanessa today announced the formation of the Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of youths and families in need.

The foundation will initially focus on youth homeless in Los Angeles, the Bryants said at a news conference at My Friend’s Place, a drop-in center for homeless youth in Hollywood.

Juliana D. Norwood  |   OW Staff Writer
Mar 10 2011

Knowledge is power but awareness is key

Mike Jones is the founder, president and CEO, of the One Miracle Celebration of Life Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting living organ donors and recipients. His mission is to help bring awareness and educate the public on how to give the “gift of life” (i.e. kidney, liver, bone marrow or blood transfusion) and remain healthy in the process.

Juliana D. Norwood  |   OW Staff Writer
Mar 3 2011

Nothing stops a bullet like a job

Homeboy Industries is a nonprofit organization that gives former gang members an opportunity to redirect their lives in a more positive direction. The program was created by Father Gregory Boyle and was originally called “Jobs For a Future” (JFF). The goal was to stay true to their motto “nothing stops a bullet like a job” and give misdirected individuals, who typically could not find a job anywhere else the opportunity, to work in a bakery. Soon after, JFF morphed into Homeboy Industries.

Juliana D. Norwood  |   OW Staff Writer
Oct 7 2010

Program assists foster youth

United Friends of the Children (UFC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to bettering the lives of foster children and to supporting former foster youth in their journey to become successful, independent adults.

The group does this through its programs, advocacy efforts, and direct involvement with youth. Today the organization serves more than 1,500 current and former foster youth.

UFC was founded by Nancy M. Daly in 1979, to respond to the unmet needs of Los Angeles’ most vulnerable and underserved population–foster youth.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.