Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, Inc.

A Quarterly Newsletter from Catholic Charities - August 2002

Sonia Beltran, recipient of a Crystal Star Award for her participation in the Mother/Fatheread program, instructs a child at El Santo Nino Community Center how to operate a computer.

Reading Program Brings Mothers and Their Children Together

After 14 years studying and working in the field of Child Development, Catholic Charities’ employee Sonia Beltran is convinced that when families read together and talk about what they read, family ties are strengthened and children become better learners.

Because of this belief, Ms. Beltran leads a group of mothers and children in a reading group. Each week, a book is read and discussed by the parents and their children. The weekly meeting allows for parent/child interaction and mutual sharing. Sometimes children draw their own pictures for a book or they may choose to look at pictures and make up their own story.

Parents and the children often relate to characters and the main themes and important issues presented in the books. Ms. Beltran has developed the program at Catholic Charities’ El Santo Nino Community Center in English and Spanish. Many primarily Spanish-speaking parents are learning English through this method and become better able to assist their children to read in school.

Sonia Beltran was awarded the Crystal Star in February 2002 for being the Motheread Storysharer of the Year 2001. The award was presented to her at the California Council for the Humanities Conference at UCLA for having read more books to and with families than anyone else involved in the Motheread/Fatheread program during 2001. The parents, children, administration and staff of Our Lady of the Angel’s Region – Metro Area are very thankful for Ms. Beltran’s commitment to service.

El Santo Nino is located at 601 East 23rd Street., Los Angeles, CA. Telephone: 213-748-5246. Visit Catholic Charities’ website, www.CatholicCharitiesLA.org, for a complete list of programs and services offered at El Santo Nino.

Mr. Loc Nguyen answers questions regarding a range of refugee health issues each week on KALI Radio 106 FM.

Catholic Charities’ Immigration and Refugee Services Offers Radio and T.V. Outreach

In response to the need to offer comprehensive health education to newly arriving refugees and to those who have come to the United States within the last year, Catholic Charities’ Immigration and Refugee Services has added a health prevention case management component to existing services. The Preventative Health Outreach Program provides clients with referrals for their assessment physicals; helps with applications for Medi-Cal, Healthy Families or private insurance; arranges for language-specific care and transportation to medical appointments when necessary; and dedicates staff to maintain case files and do follow-ups throughout the first year.

Health education is a main component of the Preventative Health Outreach Program. Activities include production of radio and television programming regarding early detection and diagnosis of health conditions, increased awareness and education regarding preventative and alternative health services. Materials are provided in Armenian, Chinese, Spanish and Vietnamese. For more information about the Preventative Health Outreach Program, contact Mr. Loc Nguyen, Quality Assurance Director, Immigration and Refugee Services at 213-251-3489.