Programs | Services

All the programs and services offered by the St. Helena Family Center focus on building the strengths of individuals and families in our community.  Our activities provide “cradle-to-grave” support and are tailored to the specific needs of our service area population.

Our services are encompassed in three main programs: Healthy Family Dynamics, Building Strong Communities, and Service Connections.

Healthy Family Dynamics

PARENTS
• Classes & Workshops
• Individual Development
Accounts (IDA)
• Kinship
• Guided Referrals
• Hand by Hand Counseling
— Support Groups
— Individual
— Family

YOUTH (12 to 18)
• CLARO
• Mariposa
• Money Smart for Teens
• Mentoring Program
• Guided Referrals
• Hand by Hand Counseling
— Support Groups
— Individual
— Family

CHILDREN (0 to 12)
• Preschool Applications
• Active Minds
• Raising a Reader
• Guided Referrals
• Hand by Hand Counseling
— Support Groups
— Individual
— Family
Service Connections

Guided referrals to
partner agencies.
Building Strong Communities

• Día de los Muertos Celebration
• Public Events
• PG&E CARE
(California Alternate Rates for Energy)
• Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
(VITA)
• Walk-in Payments
• Crisis Support
• Community Outreach
• Emergency Fund

Counseling

We offer individual and group counseling through a variety of programs:

Bridges is a partnership of Napa County agencies that share a common mission of serving individuals and families in need.  Family Service of Napa Valley is the lead agency and provides mental health services to the following community partners: Community Health Clinic Olé, Cope Family Center, Calistoga Family Center, American Canyon Family Resource Center, St. Helena Family Resource Center, Parent-Child Advocacy Network and NEWS.   As a countywide, coordinated system of mental health care and referrals for individuals and families in the participating agencies, Bridges meets a long-existing and growing demand for counseling that addresses the psychosocial needs of our clients.

Private therapists counseling. In addition to Bridges we currently work closely with therapists that provide individual and group counseling, with a special emphasis on students and women.

CLARO

CLARO, short for Challenging Latinos to Acquire Resources and Opportunities, is a program designed by “Nuestra Esperanza”. It is designed to help young Latino males learn about their culture, stay out of trouble, gain life skills, and move on to college. Soccer is a big component of the program, as it teaches kids about teamwork and gives them a sense of pride.

“It is important to promote unity among Latino youth (and) to bring families together” says Claudio Fuentes, the first program’s coordinator in St. Helena.

Mariposa

Mariposa is an extracurricular program geared towards middle school and high school Latina girls. It is designed to offer them a positive environment full of activities and time to share among themselves to reduce their risk of becoming involved in non healthy matters. Mariposa helps them cope better with unstable situations and helps them integrate both cultures that they are living on (Latino culture at home and American culture at school), and be proud and thrive in both.

In 2007 statics showed that 24.6% of Teen girls were pregnant the Napa County and out of this 80% were Latinas. The Mariposa program is part of a Teen pregnancy prevention program from the Napa County office of Education which offers to create positive outlook towards their identity  that Latina girls face today.

Kinship

Kinship care exists to keep children safely within their extended families when their birth parents are unable to care for them. Napa County Kinship Collaborative provides help to families who are providing kinship care through a variety of supportive services. The program is funded by the State of California Department of Social Services and is offered in collaboration with Napa County, Lilliput Children’s Services and local Family Resources Centers including us. The program at the St. Helena Family Center includes individual counseling, assistance with basic needs, advocacy, and family activities.

Rafael Valdez, one of the program previous participants says: “I have worked hard to gain the love of my nephews, at the beginning they were afraid of me, now they all want to follow me around. I have a hard time financially supporting the house operations, the help received from the St. Helena Family Resource Center has been very helpful.”

Family Economic Success

We offer three services around Family Economic Success: Money Smart, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Individual Development Accounts (IDA). All of these components are part of the United Way sponsored program entitled “Earn It! Keep It! $ave It!” designed to assist low-income families reach beyond the poverty level and work toward attaining financial self-sufficiency.

Financial Management Courses
Money Smart includes  six-week courses  available in both English and Spanish that covers the basics of banking including managing accounts, budgeting, and loans.  Classes in St. Helena have been taught by staff from Wells Fargo, WestAmerica Bank and Maestre Home Loans at the St. Helena Family Center. Courses have been given at our and at Work Connection facilities.

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)
VITA’s goal is to assist low-income families claim the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The EITC is the largest federal assistance program for low-income working families allowing them to increase their financial stability.  The VITA program offers free tax preparation to those with an annual income of less than $52,000 annually. The program is possible thanks to the enthusiastic and detailed participation of volunteers and St. Helena Family Center staff. The clients we have reached at the Center have steadily increased every year. In 2006 (2005 tax returns) we completed returns for 66 individuals with a total return of $75,830.00 in federal refunds.   In 2007 (2006 tax return) 82 clients received a total of $105,710 in federal refunds. In 2008 (2007 tax return) 110 clients totaling $123,973 in federal refunds. In 2009 (2008 tax return) 79 clients totalling  $130,050 in federal refunds. In 2010 (2009 tax returns)  111 clients totalling $ 179,195 in federal refunds.

Individual Development Accounts (IDA)
IDA is a savings program matched 2:1 per participant by the County. A maximum of $6000 can be saved over the three-year time period.   The participants attend an eight hour orientation/financial management class which focus on budgeting and realistic goals for saving. IDA savers are required to select a tract dedicating their savings towards pursuing an education, starting a business, or buying a home.  Our staff had worked closely with IDA recipients ensuring that they are depositing their savings each month and assisting them with questions.

Preschool Applications

Thanks to the generous support of individual donors and the E. Richard Jones Family Foundation, and the 5 private preschools at St. Helena we are able to offer scholarships to attend part time preschool programs to children of low income families that live in St. Helena. For the 2010-2011 school year, eligible children  must be 4 years old by Dec 1, 2010. Our Family Service Coordinator meets with the eligible families, fills an application and conducts an interview to determine need and best fit. The participating preschools are: Discoveryland, St. Helena Montessori, St. Helena Cooperative Nursery School, Sun and Stars Montessori School, and Wee Care. We also work in coordination with Early Headstart to support the parent and children development from 0 to 3 years old.

Active Minds

Active Minds is a weekly, hour-long experience for preschool age children that is full of art and sensory activities, cooperative play, circle time and more. The program focuses on early literacy and socialization for school readiness. Parents participate in Active Minds with their children, so they can acquire skills and learn activities they can use at home to assist their children’s early learning on an on-going basis. Community Resources for Children operates this excellent program at the St. Helena Family Center every Tuesday from 10:00 am to 11:00 am with funding provided by First 5 Napa County. To check availability, call the Center at (707) 963-1919. Active Minds 2010 Flyer-Folleto

Raising a Reader

Regular early reading between parents and children is a simple activity with profound, lifelong effects. Whether or not a family has a culture of reading in the early years can be the difference between a child on the path to strong academic achievement and a child whose early deficiencies will more than likely increase over time. Since 1985, the National Commission on Reading has noted that the “single most significant factor influencing a child’s early educational success is an introduction to books and being read to at home prior to beginning school.” This is why the St. Helena Family Center provides “Raising a Reader,” a book bag program for parents with children aged 0-5 that promotes reading aloud in the home. Children take home new books weekly and their parents and caregivers receive information and guidance on how best to support their children’s early literacy skill development. We work with Child Start, Inc. in Napa, which manages the Raising a Reader program countywide, and are fortunate to have funding from First 5 Napa County to bring this wonderful program to St. Helena families.

foot
St. Helena Family Center
1440 Spring St. St. Helena, CA 94574
info@sthelenafamilycenter.org office (707) 963-1919 fax (707) 963-2153