success stories

Gabe

A recent gang-related shooting left two youth dead and one survivor with multiple gunshot wounds. CIS took immediate action to assist the victims’ families with their crises.

CIS staff engaged family members to provide supportive services including grievance and spiritual counseling, language translation, transportation and also coordinated Victims of Violent Crime assistance. CIS staff provided security at the funerals and helped victims’ families with mortuary affairs.

On the bright side, let’s talk about Gabe, the survivor. Since Gabe’s father was out of work we provided food and are helping the father with job training. To eliminate retaliations and provide a better future for all, CIS worked with the LA Housing Authority and Probation Dept. and successfully relocated the entire family.

Our CIS work is aimed at identifying root causes and helping youth and young adults develop the skills, abilities, relationships and associations necessary to foster self-esteem, persistence, perseverance and positive attitudes.

A change in environment is often key to accomplishing this. CIS enrolled Gabe into the California National Guard’s Grizzly Youth Academy. As part of the US National Guard’s youth intervention program in 16 states, Camp Grizzly in San Louis Obispo is designed to educate young adults through a non-traditional, military-structured learning environment that addresses life, leadership and academic skills while improving self-esteem, pride and confidence.

In six months, Gabe will not go back to the streets but will matriculate to Eagle Rock School in Estes Park Colorado.

CIS has been blessed with a tremendous partnership that provides a unique opportunity for our case managed clients. An initiative of the American Honda Education Corporation, Eagle Rock School is a full scholarship ($45,000 value) high school for students and a low-cost professional development center for adults.

It is located on 650 acres in the mountain community of Estes Park, Colorado in Rocky Mountain National Park at the mouth of the Colorado River. Purposefully small, with a capacity of 96 students, the school is highly selective. It is for students (15 to 17 years old) that are passionate about turning their lives around, have not experienced success in traditional academic programs and did not expect to graduate from high school.

Upon program completion, Gabe will join the twenty-four other CIS clients that since 2004 have participated in the Camp Grizzly and Eagle Rock experience then gone on to safer, positive and constructive lives.

Mia

CIS provided clinical services for this young girl needing a higher level of care beyond typical case management.  At age 13, she has been challenged by family dysfunction which impeded her growth and development process. Also, she is an identified “cutter” also known as self-mutilator. Mia and her family have been receiving counseling services and intensive clinical family intervention. Sessions centered around the strengthening of the family system, through better communication, defining roles of each family member, structure, and respect and the “cutting” has stopped. 

Sherri

A 15 year old female youth and her family were assessed and counseled in the areas of drug & alcohol, teenage pregnancy, IEP testing, and mental health. CIS then linked them to services in the community to continue a higher level of care.  Agencies that collaborated with CIS to best service Sherri and family included the Child and Family Guidance Center, as well as Van Nuys Drug and Alcohol Treatment Center.

Santiago

Santiago is a young man who lives in gang infested area, his parents would hardly ever let him out of the house, and the gang members were always waiting for him to come out so that they can beat him down. Life was frustrating for Santiago. One day one of the CIS Gang Intervention workers came to Santiago’s house for a home visit and invited him to the BII CIS Boxing Academy.

Santiago made every effort to attend the Boxing Academy. He learned the basics of boxing, he learned to respect adults and it was difficult for him since everyone would disrespect him where he lives, but he learned. We would also make sure to check his grades from school. They were low and we would encourage him to bring up his grades, he said,”he would”. And surprisingly Santiago brought up his grades and he kept them up until he graduated from high school, he learned commitment from the continued encouragement we brought to him. He also learned to receive correction from the counseling we began to administer to him, and through everything he learned at the Boxing Academy.

Santiago is now attending Valley Collage at Van Nuys. He’s very happy he passed the intake test to get into college, he’s taking two courses and he’s comfortable with those classes. He’s also looking to continue his education but hasn’t made up his mind where he would attend. Santiago has made us proud of him and his efforts to better himself.

Robert

Robert was a gang member with one of the known gangs in the San Fernando Valley.  He was addicted to drugs, which resulted in dropping out of his education. CIS offered to help him remove tattoos and get a job. His response was an eagerness to follow through.  He immediately admitted himself into a rehabilitation home, the Tarzana Treatment Center where he was able to be clean from drugs, and help him with the hurt that resulted in his life that lead him down that path. He stayed there 6 months and when he came out he was working at a restaurant and graduated from S.E.A. charter school.

Oscar

Oscar was in need of employment. As a condition of his parole he was expected to find employment. Knowing that it would be hard to find him a job considering his parole status and visible tattoos, CIS helped him find a job at Galpin Ford.