County foundation awards $87,000 in grants

The Ventura County Community Foundation's Destino: The Hispanic Legacy Fund awarded eight grants totaling $87,000 to programs serving the county's Latino community.

The grants were awarded to programs which focus on "family strengthening," the growing obesity epidemic, sexually transmitted diseases and access to higher education.

Now in its 11th year, Destino is an endowed grantmaking fund which addresses the economic, educational, physical, emotional, social, artistic and personal growth of Latinos in Ventura County.

The following programs received Destino grants for 2007:

+El Concilio del Condado de Ventura- $14,500 for the Breakthrough Youth for Success Program, which educates youth about issues such as teen pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, youth violence and academic success.

+Future Leaders of America- $15,000 for the Latino Youth and Family Leadership and Educational Enrichment program, reaching out and educating families about higher education, healthy living and community involvement.

+Higgy Foundation- $5,000 to implement a pilot session of the Healthy Family Program in the Fillmore, Piru and Rancho Sepse areas.

+Mixteco/Indígena Community Organizing Project- $15,000 to support the Breaking the Silence: HIV/AIDS in the Mixtec Community project, providing HIV/AIDS/STD education, outreach and increased access to services to the Mixtec community.

+Parents of Murdered Children, Ventura County- $10,000 to organize the Ventura County Grief Conference and to assist Ventura local Latino families who have suffered the murder of a child to participate in the 2007 National Parents of Murdered Children Conference.

+Segue Career Guidance Program Inc. - $10,000 to expand the Segue Program into the Oxnard area, working to empower, inspire and motivate high school students about future career options.

+Ventura County AIDS Partnership- $7,500 to leverage matching funds for the Ventura County AIDS Partnership's 2008 Grant Pool, funding HIV/AIDS prevention and education program in the local community.

+Westminster Free Clinic- $3,317 for Nuestra Familia: An Obesity Prevention and Diabetes Management Program, providing Latino parents and children who are overweight, diabetic and/or at risk for these conditions with a variety of medical and health services.

The grants will be awarded at a Grants Reception Thurs., April 19 at The Derby Club at Seaside Park in Ventura. For reservations, call Gina Gomez at (805) 9880196, ext. 126, or email ggomez@vccf.org by Mon., April 9

For more information about the fund, call Hoa Tran, program officer, at (805) 988-0196, ext. 121.