In January of 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced his famous “war on poverty,” vowing in his State of the Union address “not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it.”
Santa Cruz, CA, February 18, 2020 - In January of 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced his famous “war on poverty,” vowing in his State of the Union address “not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it.”
More than half a century later, the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, Inc., (CAB) continues that battle, operating six programs that assist close to 10,000 low-income people with emergency, sustaining/self-sufficiency services.
For 55 years — through ever-changing political and social landscapes — CAB has fought for a thriving, equitable and diverse community, free from poverty and injustice.
“We have the second highest poverty rate in California (to Los Angeles County) when you factor in cost of living,” said CAB Executive Director Maria Elena De La Garza, who notes that more than three quarters of CAB’s clients have family incomes less than 100 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
To mark its 55 years working on the front lines fighting poverty, CAB will hold an event on Friday, Oct. 30 at the ISTW Portuguese Community Center in Watsonville. The theme of the evening is “Honoring Our Past, Igniting The Future!”
“For us, celebrating 55 years is a milestone,” said De La Garza. “It’s about honoring decades of work, but knowing that our job is not done, and igniting our passion for the future because there’s so much more to do.”
De La Garza said she would “love to work ourselves out of a job,” but that there still remains “a gap or disconnect or lack of knowledge about how people are impacted by poverty, what their assets are and what their needs are.”
There are multiple reasons for this “gap,” according to De La Garza, including political rhetoric, misinformation, miscommunication, and mistrust of systems in place.
This makes CAB’s mission even more significant, with more than 40 employees and nearly 600 volunteers working with the community on solutions to eliminate poverty and create social change through advocacy and essential services.
CAB’s board of directors come from diverse segments of the community, with low-income advocates, public sector representatives and individuals from the private sector as well.
“We stand at an interesting place, between grassroots activists and systems, and that’s a great place to be,” she said. “We get to engage with the community and hear from them and create a pathway to support change and strengthen systems to support low-income people.”
To stay abreast of the poverty situation in the county, every two years CAB conducts a needs assessment to guide its multi-year Community Action Plan. This helps capture a truer and deeper understanding of poverty in the community, leading to targeted action on many fronts.
“Over 55 years, the community has trusted us, the clients have trusted us, the families have trusted us, and our partners, too,” said De La Garza. “We can’t do this work alone, in a vacuum. There has to be trust in the work we do, and the value of the relationships we hold.”
For more information, visit www.cabinc.org or call (831) 763-2147, ext. 294.
Contact:
Marci Bracco Cain
Chatterbox PR
Salinas, CA 93901
(831) 747-7455
http://www.cabinc.org
Santa Cruz, CA, February 18, 2020 - In January of 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced his famous “war on poverty,” vowing in his State of the Union address “not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it.”
More than half a century later, the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, Inc., (CAB) continues that battle, operating six programs that assist close to 10,000 low-income people with emergency, sustaining/self-sufficiency services.
For 55 years — through ever-changing political and social landscapes — CAB has fought for a thriving, equitable and diverse community, free from poverty and injustice.
“We have the second highest poverty rate in California (to Los Angeles County) when you factor in cost of living,” said CAB Executive Director Maria Elena De La Garza, who notes that more than three quarters of CAB’s clients have family incomes less than 100 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
To mark its 55 years working on the front lines fighting poverty, CAB will hold an event on Friday, Oct. 30 at the ISTW Portuguese Community Center in Watsonville. The theme of the evening is “Honoring Our Past, Igniting The Future!”
“For us, celebrating 55 years is a milestone,” said De La Garza. “It’s about honoring decades of work, but knowing that our job is not done, and igniting our passion for the future because there’s so much more to do.”
De La Garza said she would “love to work ourselves out of a job,” but that there still remains “a gap or disconnect or lack of knowledge about how people are impacted by poverty, what their assets are and what their needs are.”
There are multiple reasons for this “gap,” according to De La Garza, including political rhetoric, misinformation, miscommunication, and mistrust of systems in place.
This makes CAB’s mission even more significant, with more than 40 employees and nearly 600 volunteers working with the community on solutions to eliminate poverty and create social change through advocacy and essential services.
CAB’s board of directors come from diverse segments of the community, with low-income advocates, public sector representatives and individuals from the private sector as well.
“We stand at an interesting place, between grassroots activists and systems, and that’s a great place to be,” she said. “We get to engage with the community and hear from them and create a pathway to support change and strengthen systems to support low-income people.”
To stay abreast of the poverty situation in the county, every two years CAB conducts a needs assessment to guide its multi-year Community Action Plan. This helps capture a truer and deeper understanding of poverty in the community, leading to targeted action on many fronts.
“Over 55 years, the community has trusted us, the clients have trusted us, the families have trusted us, and our partners, too,” said De La Garza. “We can’t do this work alone, in a vacuum. There has to be trust in the work we do, and the value of the relationships we hold.”
For more information, visit www.cabinc.org or call (831) 763-2147, ext. 294.
Contact:
Marci Bracco Cain
Chatterbox PR
Salinas, CA 93901
(831) 747-7455
http://www.cabinc.org
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