Family Service Association of Redlands reviews year's work, installs board members

Apr. 5—Family Service Association of Redlands recently installed new board members and reviewed the past year's work in a virtual meeting.

State Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, who represents the 23rd District, installed board members at the Feb. 22 meeting, and special guests included representatives from the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and the Rippleworks Foundation, supporters and grant makers of the agency.

New board members are Pam Allen, director of emergency services at Redlands Community Hospital; Pamela Allen Coleman, senior associate director of enrollment at the University of Redlands'School of Business and Society; Barbara Rozema, event planner and Realtor; Joseph Shaw, Realtor; Terry Vines, business owner and dentist; and Tyler Waner, financial adviser.

Incoming officers are Lori Hatfield, board president; Gary Fagan, personnel vice president; Matt Miller, resource development vice president; Diane Remy, treasurer; and Christina Rivera, secretary.

At the meeting, Kyra Stewart, Family Service Association's executive director, reported that the agency assisted more families in 2021 than in the previous year, with the number growing from 1,861 in 2020 to 2,147 in 2021.

"Families who never needed support before were registering for services in 2020 and 2021," Stewart said in a news release.

"The reasons vary. School closures, increased need for child care and the accrual of costs, caregiving and job loss related to COVID-19 are all factors in our growth in numbers," Stewart said.

In 2021, Family Service provided 127 months of rent payment for 105 families, with 35 of those families homeless at the point of contact, according to the news release.

Because of a shortage of shelter in the area, homeless families receive motel vouchers in partnership with Family Service, 2-1-1, the local police and the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department'sHope Team. More than 500 vouchers were issued in 2021, and families facing eviction also received emergency move-in deposits, with the assistance of government and private funders, according to the news release.

Family Service continued its holiday programs in 2021, with the Adopt-a-Family program, led by Rod and Lori Shelffo, helping more than 200 families in need.

The agency also relaunched its breakfast program during the last quarter of 2021, serving more than 4,000 meals at its campus at 612 Lawton St.

Volunteers help run the breakfast program and assist in other ways, and the agency's 538 volunteers contributed more than 6,000 hours of service, according to the news release.

Jill Prendergast, the agency's fund development manager, discussed the agency's fundraising events, including the annual Redlands Hunger Walk, which is planned this year for June 4, and the Dinner in the Grove, planned for Sept. 24.

Family Service Association of Redlands, founded in 1898 by Alfred Smiley, is a nonprofit organization serving families in need in Redlands and the surrounding area. It is supported mainly by private donations, mailing campaigns and fundraising events.

For information, go to redlandsfamilyservice.org or call 909-793-2673.

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