Getting it together

Help available

The following Family Resource Centers offer a variety of programs and opportunities for volunteer work. To contact the centers:

Alicia Davisson meant to retire three years ago from Catholic Charities. But then she heard about plans to build a facility for families in Henderson and couldn't pass up the opportunity to be involved.

Instead of kicking back, Davisson became director of the Henderson Allied Community Advocates Family Resource Center, which opened in 1996.

There are 41 Family Resource Centers in Nevada, with 19 in Southern Nevada. The centers bring community resources together in one place and have a common goal: to give families a chance after hard times and to be a convenient source of information and help.

"We have some of our own programs, but if we can't help, we get others to help," Davisson said.

Families using any of the centers can apply for aid from the Nevada State Welfare Division, Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Nevada Check-Up, Medicaid, Family to Family Connection, and Early Intervention Services.

"We try to make it easy for people to get the help they need," Davisson said.

Each center is part of the statewide network but each center also has individual programs to meet the needs of the community it serves.

Neighborhood councils meet monthly to assess those needs and recommend programs and services, according to Ann Taylor, Henderson Neighborhood Council president.

The council also raises funds for the programs, Taylor said. For example, the Henderson council is planning a sock hop in April to help families that don't meet the criteria for state and county aid programs.

Fifteen people serve on Henderson's council but volunteers are needed on that and all councils, Taylor said.

Family Resource Centers got their start when the 1995 Legislature allocated funds. State funding has continued, including $1.1 million in fiscal-year 1998-99. More than $1.5 million in cash, resources and service donations were also made to the centers that year.

In 1998-99, 19,737 new families were served by the centers and 47,242 referrals were made to other programs.

Kimberly Carbajal, 22, says she doesn't know where she would be without the help of the Henderson center. Two years ago the center put her into transitional housing and helped her find a job and reliable day care for her three children, now ages 7, 5 and 3.

"I don't know where I would be," Carbajal said. "Before I went to the resource center I was just living here and there. (It) helped me get on my feet and give my kids a stable home."

This month the Henderson center is kicking off a program called "Wee Step Up" to help kindergarten children having a hard time adjusting socially to school.

Twice each week the children will spend three hours with counselors at the center learning how to deal with problems such as separation anxiety, Davisson said. Programs for fifth and eighth graders are in the works to help them adapt to middle and high school.

The center runs a small day-care center where children 6 months to 10 years old can be dropped off for three hours at a time while parents go to job interviews. The center also provides professional clothes to help parents make the right impressions at those interviews.

Two computers at the Henderson center are linked to Nevada Job Link computers so that when a person comes to the office seeking employment help it's readily available, Davisson said.

Two transitional houses, which are owned by St. Rose Dominican Hospital, give families the opportunity to find a job, save money and find suitable housing on their own. The average length of stay is 12 to 18 months, Davisson said.

"They are always full. We could use 10 or 15 more transitional houses," she said.

There is also a three-month rental assistance program funded by city of Henderson grants.

"We've helped 85 people in the past two years (with rental assistance). Eighty percent of those bettered their situation," Davisson said.

Every Tuesday the Women's Development Center sets up shop at the center to help with employment and housing problems. Also once each week the Pro Bono Project is available to offer free legal advice.

Safehouse, a shelter for victims of domestic violence, has provided three counselors to assist the center's clients. One specializes in drug and alcohol problems and the others specialize in domestic violence.

Davisson's goal for the Henderson center is to help families better the quality of their lives and to make the help they need readily available. There are many programs available at the center, from a small food bank to a home visit program for home-bound seniors.

Family Resource Centers are community programs, and community help and coopreation are always needed, Davisson said.

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