Message from CLC’s Executive Director, Leslie Starr Heimov 

 

Thank you for taking a few moments to read this inaugural issue of CLC’s newsletter and for giving us the opportunity to introduce the Children’s Law Center of Los Angeles (CLC) to you, your family and friends!

When CLC was founded in 1990, six attorneys were hired to represent children alleged to be victims of abuse and neglect. There was no right to counsel for children  
in dependency hearings, no recognized standards of representation, the practice area was often referred to as kiddie law - viewed as simplistic and unsophisticated and there were few if any legal service providers dedicated solely to representing children. 

Things have changed quite a bit since 1990 – both for the practice area and for CLC.

Today CLC is the second largest children’s law office in the country, and the sole provider of legal representation to close to 100% of Los Angeles County’s 24,000 abused and neglected foster children.

The dedicated lawyers at CLC appear in court every day with their young clients at their side. It is here that life-changing decisions are made regarding where a child will live, whether they will reunify with their parents, and how much contact they will have with their siblings.

Our in-house education, mental health, substance abuse, and crossover experts provide support and technical assistance ensuring that each child’s unique needs are identified and crucial services are provided. Our social work investigators spend their days (and sometimes nights and weekends) visiting with clients in relative caregiver homes, foster homes, group homes, juvenile halls and hospitals

– ensuring safety, assessing the child’s progress, linking families with services, facilitating healthy family relationships and helping older youth prepare for independence.

What happens in our court system – dependency court – and what our attorneys do is highly specialized and, but for the headline grabbing tragedies, not generally in the public eye. Yet the decisions made in our courtrooms every day shape not only a child’s future but our community and our society’s future as well.

We appreciate your taking the time to learn more about the important role that CLC plays in the lives of the 24,000 children we serve. For more information, please visit our website, www.clcla.org, or to contact us directly please call 323.980.1500. Our doors are always open for in-person meetings, presentations, and courthouse tours.

Together we can truly make a difference in the lives of abused and neglected children.

– Leslie

CLC Receives Prestigious American Bar Association Hodson Award for Public Service!

Each year the ABA Government and Public Sector Lawyer’s Division Hodson Award recognizes extraordinary service by a government or public sector law office. Named in honor of the distinguished public service career of the late Major General Kenneth J. Hodson, a former Judge Advocate General of the U.S. Army, this year’s honoree was CLC! A huge thank you goes out to CLC Supervisor Brenda Dabney for nominating us, to all of CLC’s dedicated staff and their predecessors for always fighting the good fight, and to the ABA for recognizing the value of our work.

Kenneth D. Gray, Chair of the ABA’s Government and Public Lawyers Division, said that “The [ABA] Awards Committee received many worthy nominations this year; however, [CLC’s] office best exemplified the spirit of the award. The dedication of [CLC’s] staff is truly an inspiration. We thank you for providing an outstanding example of public service.”

The Hodson Award was presented to CLC Executive Director Leslie Starr Heimov during the American Bar Association’s Annual Meeting in Chicago at the Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division’s Award Reception on July 31, 2009. In accepting the award on CLC’s behalf, Ms. Heimov stated that “By honoring CLC, you are also honoring the children and families we serve. We thank you for acknowledging our work and for the critical services you all provide each and every day in your work as government and public sector lawyers.”

Congratulations to CLC!

“Fostering Connections to Success Act” Offers Exciting Opportunity to Better Assist Youth Transitioning Out of Foster Care

In October 2008, the United States Congress passed the most comprehensive – and exciting - piece of foster care legislation in more than a decade. The “Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act” (Public Law 110-351) was signed by President Bush, and in 2009, became law. Among other things, this legislation will make far-reaching changes in the way that teens in foster care transition out of the system by allowing jurisdiction to be extended until age 21, and by fundamentally changing the way that the transitional period prior to aging-out is structured.

California is currently seeking to take advantage of this opportunity for large-scale change with regard to the nearly 5,000 foster youth who age-out of foster care each year, as well as for those who are planning for this upcoming transition. While we already know – and evidence from other states clearly demonstrates - that providing an option for foster care until age 21 can dramatically improve outcomes for foster youth not ready to be completely on their own at age 18, we did not have the mechanism to fundamentally change the way that transitioning out of foster care works, until now.

Assembly Member Jim Beall, Jr. and Speaker Karen Bass, with the input of several advocacy organizations including Children’s Law Center (CLC), have been working to craft AB 12, a bill to ensure that California opts into this incredible opportunity, providing tremendous improvements for transitional-age foster youth in LA County and across the state. Current discussions include creating a new placement category called “Supervised Independent Living Setting” that would allow foster youth to reside in college dorms or in shared apartments and still receive support, financial and otherwise; allowing youth between 18 and 21 whose cases have already closed to reinstate jurisdiction; and providing stepped-down levels of social worker and Court oversight. For more information on AB 12, visit www.leginfo.ca.gov.

CLC is also participating in the implementation of provisions of the federal legislation regarding finding relatives at the outset of the case and keeping siblings together while in foster care.

CLC Staff Spotlight: Karen Ceballos Creates ‘DECOR’ Nonprofit to Furnish Homes of Youth and Families in Need!

Inspired by the work done at CLC every day to improve the lives of foster children in need, this June, CLC Secretary Karen Ceballos decided to start a new nonprofit dedicated to furnishing and creating ‘make-overs’ in the homes of both foster and non-foster families in need by way of donated furniture and accessories.

This July, DECOR furnished and decorated a CLC client’s two bedroom apartment in Lancaster, CA. After CLC attorney Debra Bernard and CLC Social Work Investigator Mary Schmidl recognized how badly in need this particular family was (the family of six, a single mother and her five children, had just reunified and moved into the apartment and did not have any furniture), they reached out to colleagues to assist with locating donated furniture. Karen Ceballos had just launched DECOR a week prior, and immediately took this family under her wing. In addition to DECOR founder Karen Ceballos and CLC staff on the case, CLC Secretary and Special Projects Coordinator for DECOR, Cynthia Lopez, and volunteers Alan Ceballos, Victoria Marquez, and Oscar Plata worked together to give the family a place they can truly call ‘home.’

“CLC has opened my eyes to see the need of positive influence in this world. If I can change it by contributing an encouraging atmosphere to the first and last thing children see everyday, then there is hope for their future,” said Ceballos. DECOR is excited to continue to help foster and non-foster needy families and most importantly, make a difference one room at a time.

Before Karen Ceballos After

Viva La Art! and Philanthro Productions Host Successful Art Show to Benefit CLC Clients

On Saturday, July 25, Viva La Art!, in partnership with Philanthro Productions, hosted a benefit party and silent art auction at The Wokcano Summer Lounge, with 100 percent of proceeds benefitting the Children’s Law Center of Los Angeles (CLC).

Viva La Art and Philanthro Productions expressed their commitment to not only raise funds to support CLC’s programs, but also to increase community awareness of the needs of abused and neglected foster children. “CLC truly recognizes the potential and talent in each child and works tirelessly to provide the means and opportunities for them to succeed… we wanted this benefit event to support their efforts in positively impacting our future generation,” said Jennifer Lee, Director of Viva La Art.

With over 350 people in attendance, patrons gathered in the art room to view and bid on over 30 pieces of artwork generously donated by 26 renowned artists. Attendees hoping to take home a piece of artwork rushed to offer their bids in the final minutes of the auction. With 100 percent of auction proceeds benefiting CLC, auction winners proudly clamored in excitement as they picked up their artwork.

"CLC is extremely appreciative of the hard work that went into this spectacular event. We are particularly grateful to Viva LA Art!, Philanthro Productions, and the amazingly talented artists who came together to support the needs of children in foster care, said CLC Executive Director Leslie Heimov. “The generosity of all in attendance was a true testament to what our community can accomplish. On behalf of our young clients, CLC thanks everyone involved for what turned out to be a truly successful --and enjoyable -- evening!"

For more event information and photos, please visit www.vivalaart.org.

“Do One Nice Thing”…

Debbie Tenzer, the founder of www.DoOneNiceThing.com and a longtimesupporter of CLC’s work, has just released her first book. Debbie's website was founded on a very simple principle - if everyone were to do just one nice thing,the world would be a better place. Since the founding of her website, Debbiehas been featured on radio shows, in numerous magazines (including Reader’sDigest) and is currently on tour to promote her book.

A huge thank you to Debbie for her ongoing support of CLC and of foster youth!We encourage you all to ‘do one nice thing’ by supporting Debbie’s work.

Adopt a Family for the Holidays!

If you would like to “adopt” a foster child who may not otherwise receive holiday gifts, we would be grateful for your help! Shop for a specific child or family, donate items to be distributed to families, or make a monetary donation to the project.

To donate NOW, visit www.clcla.org.

For more information, e-mail salcidop@clcla.org .

CLC extends our heartfelt appreciation to those who have supported our mission through their generous donation of time, talent and treasure:
Grant-funding

The California Endowment ·The Pew Foundation · The Soref Foundation

$10,000 and above

The Mustard Seed Fund · Philanthro Productions · Viva La Art

$5,000 and above

Sarah and Dale Oliver

$1,000 and above

Blair Carty &The Adams Legacy Foundation · David Estep · Google · Hansel Phelps Construction Company · ING · John Moll · Jane Palileo-Parisi · Val Valle

$500 and above

Heidi Aspaturian · Nancy Aspaturian and Laurie Aronoff · Dennis and Princess Baltimore Bank of the West · The Hacker Family Foundation · Leslie Heimov and Jeff Parisse · Rodney and Sharon Henderson · Nancy Platt Jacoby · Drs. Neal and Francine Kaufman · Joel and Sharon Krischer · Edward P. Lazarus and Amanda D. Moose · Imelda Pante · Thomas and Ann Pfister ·Hushmand and Mashid Sohaili

$100 and above

Sharon Appel · William and Susan Burns · Commerce Casino · James Donnelly · Barbara Duey · Fell Capital Management · Lark Galloway–Gilliam & Community Health Councils, Inc. · Lindsey Head · Susan Hubeny · Jo Kaplan · Hon. Leon S. Kaplan, Retired · Cecilia Kim · Marc Leftwich · Steven and Deborah LeRoy · Tiffany Lovett · Gladys Maldonado · Joseph Mandel · Stephen R. Mick and Christine M. Torre · Eric Mooney and Cristina Rivera · The Charles S. Mott Foundation · Thomas Nishii, Esq. · Grant Norris &Platinum Capital · John Ott · Patricia Phillips &Phillips, Jessner LLP · Brad Presner and Kiesha Ramey-Presner · Frank Reddick III and Julie M. Kaufer · David P. Simonds · Bryan Tarn

Pro-Bono Services and In-Kind Support

Charles Aghoian · Akin, Gump, LLP · Debra Bernard · Carol Biondi · Brighton Retailers · William and Danielle Combs & WTCIII, Inc.· Deb Cromer · Craig DeSilva · Disability Rights – California · Darlene Gartrell and Family · Stephanie Ginzburg · KC S West · Sandy King · Joel Krischer · Latham and Watkins · Haelyn Lee · MyStuffBags Foundation · Molly Nealson · Office Depot · O’Melveny and Myers · Paul, Hastings, Janofsky and Walker LLP · Barbara Rapp Insurance Services · Merrill Spicker · Kari Spitz &The Sofi Clothing Company · Debbie Tenzer & DoOneNiceThing.com · Wokcano Restaurant

Donations are for the period from July 1, 2007 to present. We apologize for any errors or omissions. If we have inadvertently omitted your name please contact Princess V.F. Ramey at (323) 980-7744.

Monterey Park, CA 91754-2178 Phone: 323.980.1700 Fax: 323.980.1708 www.clcla.org

To learn more about how to support The Children’s Law Center, please visit our website at www.clcla.org.