Yolo Crisis Nursery Campaign Reaches $75,000
(Friends of Yolo Crisis Nursery Press Release)
The Friends of the Yolo Crisis Nursery hit a milestone in their fundraising campaign this week, tallying $75,000 toward the $100,000 they’re seeking to keep the nursery’s doors open past June 30.
“People love the nursery and want to see it continue serving Yolo County families,” said Heidy Kellison, president of the all-volunteer Friends group. “Raising this amount of money in such a short period of time is a strong endorsement.”
Since 2001, the nursery has offered respite care to children 5 and under during times of extreme family turmoil; its mission is to prevent child abuse and neglect.
Besides fundraising, two other key components of saving the nursery are moving forward as well, Kellison said. First, the Friends have identified an agency that’s a good fit for taking over the nursery’s operations. Kellison has submitted a formal request to the agency to consider succeeding EMQ FamiliesFirst, which announced in March that it intends to close the nursery June 30.
“We’re still in early stages, but I’m optimistic the nursery’s reputation and community support bring a lot to the table.” Kellison said.
Second, EMQ FamiliesFirst’s executive board has indicated a willingness to continue managing the nursery during a transition period provided the Friends’ raise $100,000 and other emergency grant funds come through, Kellison said. She anticipates EMQ FamiliesFirst’s full board will approve the plan when all funding is secure.
“We’re grateful that EMQ FamiliesFirst is seriously considering our proposal,” she said. “The pieces are starting to fall into place to save the nursery.”
In other good news for the Friends, a state Senate Budget subcommittee agreed this week to hear testimony May 19 on Sen. Lois Wolk’s proposal to provide $2.4 million over two years to help support the Yolo Crisis Nursery as well as two Sacramento-area crisis nurseries. During the two years, researchers would study the impact crisis nurseries have on reducing child abuse and neglect and consequential costs.
Fundraising remains key to the nursery’s continued operation, Kellison said. The Friends are appealing to community groups, local churches and individuals to join the “One Child – One Day” campaign. Individual donors are asked to consider a tax-deductible gift of $50, the cost of providing care to one child for one day at the Yolo Crisis Nursery. All amounts are welcome.
There are two ways to make a tax-deductible donation:
Online at https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/friendsofycn;
By mail: Make checks payable to Yolo County Children’s Alliance with “Yolo Crisis Nursery” in the notation and address c/o Heidy Kellison, 1532 Rialto Lane, Davis, CA 95618.
Finally, Sudwerks Brewing Co. is hosting a fundraising event from 4-8 p.m. May 29 at its Dock Store behind the restaurant. Proceeds of pint sales will go to the nursery.
More information is available on the Friends’ new website at www.friendsofycn.org or by calling Kellison at (530) 386-2647.
Free Showing Of The Laramie Project On Friday, May 23
(City of Davis Press Release)
The Davis Phoenix Coalition, in partnership with the City of Davis Human Relations Commission, will hold a free public screening of The Laramie Project at the Veterans Memorial Center Theatre at 203 E. Fourteenth Street (Corner of 14th & B Streets) on Friday, May 23. Doors will open at 5:30pm, with the film starting at 6:00pm.
An award-winning film selected as the opening night premiere at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival and adapted from a play by the same name, The Laramie Project is the story of a community re-examining itself in the wake of the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay student at the University of Wyoming. Based on more than 400 hours of interviews with the town’s citizens, the film adaptation relies on a combination of transcripts and news footage to create a portrait of a town forced to confront itself in the aftermath of this tragic event. “We tried to tell the story of the town of Laramie, as opposed to telling the story of Matthew Shepard,” explains writer and director Moises Kaufman.
The purpose of this screening is to raise awareness around issues of discrimination and hate experienced across marginalized groups within the city of Davis, like the LGBTQ community. We invite the public to share stories of challenge and hope at a prescreening reception, where we will remember our own town’s incidents of hate. It is our hope that members of the audience for this screening will be challenged to begin a public dialogue on ways that our community might begin to address these issues within our own hometown.
Reception: 5:30-6pm
Film: 6pm
Light refreshments will be served.
For more information: Gloria Partida, davisphoenixco@gmail.com
Kelly Stachowicz, kstachowicz@cityofdavis.org
Affordable Housing Workshops to be Hosted by the Social Services Commission
(City of Davis Press Release)
Beginning on Monday, May 19, 2014 at 7:00pm, the City of Davis Social Services Commission will hold the first in a series of four community workshops to discuss the city’s affordable housing program and recommend options going forward. The public is encouraged to attend these workshops to join the discussion with the Commission and local community stakeholder panelists. Monday’s workshop will be held at the New Harmony Community Room, at 3030 Cowell Boulevard in South Davis, and will focus on a historical look at the affordable housing program. Panelists will include Lisa Baker of Yolo County Housing, Rachel Iskow of Mutual Housing California, Ben Pearl of Solar Community Housing Association, and Luke Watkins of Neighborhood Partners, LLC.
Future workshops will be held on June 9th, June 23rd, and July 21st to discuss the following topics: Housing Production and Constraints, Inventory and Planning of Affordable Housing Resources, and Conclusions and Recommendations. Future workshop details will be publicized prior to each meeting and will be posted on the city’s website at www.cityofdavis.org.
For more information on these workshops, please contact the City Manager’s Office at (530) 757-5602, or check the website at www.cityofdavis.org. For more information about the city’s existing affordable housing program, please call (530) 757-5623 or email fairhousing@cityofdavis.org.