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Multi Generational Impact: The Mejia Family's Story

yanet • December 25, 2023

Multi Generational Impact: The Mijia Family's Story

As 2023 comes to a close, Templo Calvario Community Development Corporation (TCCDC) wishes you and your family a joyous holiday season and a very Happy New Year. As we have for the last 20 years, we remain hopeful and committed to achieving our vision of Transforming Lives, Transforming Communities. We recognize and believe that this vision will only become a reality if we support our theory of change, Families Building a Legacy. As we look not only to next year but to the next 20 years, TCCDC has faith that you, as a member of our community, will continue to join us in uplifting other members of our community not just for today, but for tomorrow as well. 



The generational impact of our holistic programming can be seen in so many of our families and your gift today will affect the lives of our clients for many years to come. Children enrolled in our Edward B. Cole Sr. Academy public charter school and Empowered Scholars afterschool program are provided social, emotional, cognitive, and academic education that helps them thrive. Teens who participate in our Banking on Our Youth (BOY) program learn financial literacy and entrepreneurship skills that promote economic mobility. And when parents participate in our Legado Academy (which uniquely combines parent training and financial education to combat the root causes of poverty), the entire family’s development and economic future can change. 



One of these families is the Mejia Rodriguez Family. Their journey with TCCDC began over 10 years ago when Maria joined our parenting and financial education classes, now called Legado Academy. Through these classes, Maria learned skills that not only empowered her to become a dedicated volunteer and community leader, but to support her son Alexis’ educational journey who was 9 years old at the time. Later, Alexis participated in BOY where he credits TCCDC for shaping his abilities to network, advocate for himself, and manage his finances. In fact, Alexis leveraged these skills and helped his parents establish legal U.S. residency, a true testament to his resilience and determination as well as his commitment to family and community. Today, Maria continues to volunteer at TCCDC and Alexis is a Harvard graduate! One day, Alexis aspires to become a judge to help increase Latino representation in the justice system. Maria shared, “we would like to take advantage of the opportunity to thank everyone at TCCDC for being part of our son’s academic success. We, as a family, know that this recognition is in great part due to the support we have given Alexis as parents. Our success as parents is due to the help we were given on how to prepare to be better parents through the parenting training classes. Not only did we receive training, but have always received moral support and economic assistance, especially during the pandemic.” 



Our families demonstrate incredible dedication to improving their personal, educational, and economic futures. Together, with your support, we can continue to walk alongside these families in their journeys. Please visit our website to learn more about our work, how to volunteer, and how to make a tax-deductible donation to support our efforts to help our community thrive. 

Empowering Lives Dinner 2023

By yanet • November 21, 2023
Empowering Lives Dinner 2023 Recap

Ending The Year With Success

December 28, 2022
2023 is quickly approaching, and before we talk about goals for next year, at Templo Calvario Community Development Corporation (TCCDC) we want to reflect on the big and small successes of 2022 because we know none of it would have been possible without supporters like you. The true success of our programs and services is not in the number of people we serve, but in the impact we have on each individual who walks through our doors. There are so many stories to share, and we are pleased to tell you Diana G.’s story. Diana recently completed our Santa Ana Parent Project (SAPP), a highly effective peer-to-peer educational program designed to help parents raise healthy, highly capable, and responsible children. TCCDC was proud to relaunch SAPP this year with additional curriculum and in new sites in Santa Ana Unified School District to meet the growing needs of our community. To say that SAPP transformed Diana’s life would be an understatement because not only is Diana’s life changed forever, but her children’s lives are as well. Diana is a mother of three, and two of her children currently attend TCCDC’s Edward B. Cole Sr. Academy (EBC) and TCCDC’s Empowered Scholars Afterschool Program. Diana grew up in Santa Ana and unfortunately, lost a brother with whom she was very close to gang violence. When Diana’s youngest child turned one, Diana decided that she wanted to turn her life around not just for herself, but for her children. She started by stepping away from her group of friends who were a negative influence on her life, going back to school to earn her GED, and getting involved in her children’s lives at school. During one of the SAPP Family Fun nights at EBC, TCCDC’s Family Program Coordinator met Diana and encouraged her to sign up for the next session of SAPP. Since Nicole started SAPP, she showed incredible dedication. She didn’t miss a single class, and frequently volunteered to share her story and experiences with the rest of the group. Diana expressed that before SAPP, she was not even aware that there was another way to parent her children. “I am grateful to TCCDC because I was given the opportunity to be part of a wonderful class where I could grow and learn to be a better parent and learn from other parents and their experiences. Thank you for all the support and wonderful things we were taught in this class. We bonded and shared many things. Thank you for all this beautiful experience and the new family.” We are in awe of the progress that Diana made in such a short time, and we are excited to continue supporting her and her family. Diana expressed an interest in continuing her education and our Family Program Coordinator is assisting her with registering for classes at Santa Ana College. In addition, Diana will be participating in our next SAPP Parent Leader training where she will continue to share her story as she helps other families like hers change their lives. We are grateful to supporters like you who helped make stories like this possible. Connect with us to learn more about our work and how to volunteer and/or make a donation to support our core programs. Thank you, Rev. Lee de León President & CEO

The Heart of Volunteerism

December 22, 2022
Being of service to others is at the heart of what we do every day at Templo Calvario Community Development Corporation (TCCDC) and we could not do it without the network of supporters who play a critical role in supporting and sustaining our programs. As we work to advance our vision of Transforming Lives, Transforming Communities we are incredibly grateful for the dedication and support of our volunteers who play a critical role in creating meaningful change for those we serve, whether they serve as Banking on Our Youth (BOY) mentors and instructors, Edward B. Cole Sr. Academy and Empowered Scholars Afterschool Program volunteers, Seguro Financial instructors, or generous donors of the organization. One of these volunteers is Randy B., who has dedicated four years to mentoring students in our BOY program, a highly effective financial literacy and entrepreneurship program that provides high school juniors and seniors in Santa Ana a long-term solution to the systemic challenges of poverty, equity, and economic mobility. Having tutored and mentored within the Santa Ana community for nearly 20 years, Randy was first introduced to TCCDC by a friend and immediately impressed by TCCDC’s holistic approach to educating and empowering families in his community. Randy shared, “I believe in education and TCCDC is providing many different education opportunities for the residents of Santa Ana to be able to achieve their potential.” As a BOY mentor, Randy shares his experiences as a Santa Ana native, business and marketing student, and sales and marketing manager. Randy tries his best to be a servant leader to help others succeed and he does this by helping TCCDC create a safe place for the highly motivated and talented BOY participants to see what is possible beyond high school and college. When asked what piece of advice he would give to others looking to volunteer in their community, Randy shared, “show up and stay positive even if it seems like it isn’t making a difference. It doesn’t always work or go smoothly, but that is ok. We may never know if we made a difference, it is worth the effort.” BOY program director, Michael, shared, “clearly, Randy’s techniques work well considering his groups of students have earned scholarships the past two years. Although there is not one picture of the perfect mentor, Randy sets the example of the mentor that I hope to be to students.” We invite you to join Randy and our incredible team of volunteers and supporters as we work to empower and educate residents of Santa Ana and help make generational, transformational impact in our community. Connect with us to learn more about our work and how to volunteer and/or make a donation to support our core programs. Thank you, Rev. Lee de León President & CEO 
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