Ralphs / Food 4 Less Supports Valley Food Bank

April 2012 - Ralphs / Food 4 Less awarded a $17,500 gift to the Valley Food Bank in support of its “Fighting Hunger, Feeding Hope” program. The gift will support operational costs associated with food collection, processing, and distribution, ensuring a continuous delivery of food to numerous pantries throughout theSan Fernando Valley.  Funds were collected through the “Hunger” canister campaign where store customers contributed atLos Angelesarea Ralphs and Food 4 Less stores. 

Livingston Memorial Foundation Helps Men and Women in Recovery

April 2012 - The Livingston Memorial Foundation renewed its partnership with the Ventura County Rescue Mission and Lighthouse for Women & Children, awarding an $8,500 grant to support the mission’s residential drug and alcohol recovery programs. Funding will provide drug testing supplies, transportation to health care agencies, and case management support to help mission residents resolve personal health issues.

Verizon Funds Computer Literacy Program at Ventura County Rescue Mission

April 2012 - The Ventura County Rescue Mission has received a grant from Verizon California’s “Check into Literacy” program. The $11,529 grant award from Verizon will help the mission to provide computer literacy training, GED test preparation, employment preparation, tutoring, and special assistance for its program residents. Thank you, Verizon, for investing in the education of those who come to the mission seeking a second chance to succeed in life.

Swift Memorial Supports Client Health Care

January, 2012 - The Swift Memorial Healthcare Foundation awarded a $5,000 grant this month to the Ventura County Rescue Mission to provide over-the-counter medications, nutritional supplements, and assistance with prescriptions for residents of the mission’s drug and alcohol recovery program. The foundation’s on-going, generous support year over year also demonstrates the importance of developing personal habits that lead to improved long-term health.

NEARLY 1 IN 6 AMERICANS IN POVERTY, CENSUS SAYS
September 2011 - WASHINGTON (AP) — The ranks of the nation's poor have swelled to a record 46.2 million — nearly 1 in 6 Americans — as the prolonged pain of the recession leaves millions still struggling and out of work. And the number without health insurance has reached 49.9 million, the most in over two decades.

The figures are in a Census Bureau report, released Tuesday, that offers a somber snapshot of the economic well-being of U.S. households for last year when joblessness hovered above 9 percent for a second year. The rate is still 9.1 percent at the start of an election year that's sure to focus on the economy and President Barack Obama's stewardship of it.

The overall poverty rate climbed to 15.1 percent, from 14.3 percent the previous year, and the rate from 2007-2010 rose faster than for any similar period since the early 1980s when a crippling energy crisis amid government cutbacks contributed to inflation, spiraling interest rates and unemployment. For last year, the official poverty level was an annual income of $22,314 for a family of four. Measured by total numbers, the 46 million now living in poverty are the most on record dating back to when the census began to track in 1959. The 15.1 percent tied the level of 1993 and was the highest since 1983.  Read the entire article...

MEADOWLARK SERVICE LEAGUE GIVES GENEROUSLY TO THE MISSION
The Meadowlark Service League renewed its partnership with the mission this year with a generous $13,000 grant. Funding will help the mission to make several improvements to the mission and Lighthouse facilities and to support its meals outreach program to the community.