MEDIA ALERT
WHAT: “Spark in the Park” Community Celebration of Financial Empowerment for Dozens of Anaheim Families
WHO: 100 families celebrating the achievement of financial and housing stability; dignitaries including State Senator Josh Newman, Anaheim Mayor Pro Tem James Vanderbilt, Anaheim Elementary School District Board Member DR Heywood and Magnolia School District Executive Director of Student Services Bill Bailey; Orange County United Way volunteers.
WHEN: Saturday, May 13, 2017; 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. (ceremony from 11 – 11:30 a.m.)
WHERE: La Palma Park, 1151 N. La Palma Pkwy in Anaheim
WHY: Last month, 55 clients graduated from the United Way’s SparkPoint financial empowerment center located at Salk Elementary School in Anaheim. Along the way, these families worked hard to reach their personal goals to pay off debt, increase their assets, manage their credit and find stable housing. Collectively, this group paid off $51,500 in debt and saved $25,660.
22 of these families moved from homeless or housing insecure situations and into secure, stable housing, including a single mother who had been living on the streets with her four children when she was referred to the program. Today, she and her kids are in their own apartment. The tax assistance she received allowed her to earn a tax refund, which she was able to deposit into her savings account and for the first time save for a rainy day.
United Way’s SparkPoint OC initiative was created to help low-income families gain the financial education they need to become more financially stable. Offered free of charge to all participants, financial services include resume building, job search and interview skills, one-on-one legal services, personal financing, banking basics, home buying workshops and earned income tax credit information, among others.
For more information about SparkPoint OC, please visit https://www.unitedwayoc.org/changing-lives/income/sparkpoint-oc/
NEWS CONTACTS:
Katherine Ransom, Vice President, Marketing and Communications
Orange County United Way 949.263.6176, katheriner@unitedwayoc.org
Michael Suydam
21Strat 949.981.5008, mike@21strat.com
ABOUT ORANGE COUNTY UNITED WAY:
Since 1924, Orange County United Way has been working to improve lives and strengthen our community by mobilizing the caring power of Orange County, by focusing on the building blocks for a good quality of life: Education, Income, Health and Housing. By investing in Orange County’s children, families and individuals, we help them create pathways to self-sufficient futures through education and training. In short, we help people help themselves. Through our 10-year community-wide action plan “FACE 2024” (an acronym for Fund, Advocate, Collaborate, Educate), United Way is mobilizing local businesses, community organizations, governmental agencies and individuals to make a long-term measurable difference in the lives of local individuals and families. To learn more or to join our movement, visit www.unitedwayoc.org.
