IN THIS ISSUE

2 4 3 HELPING MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN

REBUILD THEIR LIVES AND END HOMELESSNESS

Dear Friends,

HOUSING + EMPLOYMENT + LIFE SKILLS 825 E. ORANGE GROVE BLVD. PASADENA, CA 91104 WWW.UNIONSTATIONHS.ORG (626) 240-4550

NEWS + WINTER + 2012CONNECT ONLINE:

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In Their Own Words

In 1989, a man name Samuel and his mom came through our shelter. Samuel was a dignified, middle-aged man who resembled Lloyd Bridges. He had been a successful car salesman in Glendale, but according to him, he had an alcohol problem and was drinking his way into homelessness. He and his mom came to Union Station Homeless Services for help. I helped him get his mom into a retirement home, and Samuel went through a recovery program and changed his life forever. This year, I received the best birthday gift ever. Samuel called me the day before my birthday to thank me for all the help I had given him. He wanted me to know that he now has 23 years of sobriety. He never fails to call each year and thank this organization for all the help we gave him. I thought you all would like to know - that’s what keeps me working here. I’m so grateful to have this job.

- Joyce Miles, Director, Family Center

13 years ago I lost my life; family, job, home, car - everything. With the help of Union Station Homeless Services I have regained my life and my self-respect. I

was helped with emergency shelter, clothing, food, counseling, and finding a job. I am presently employed with a career that I will one day be able to retire from. I can’t thank Union Station enough for all the time and effort they put into help saving my life.

- David, Union Station alumnus

For more client success stories, visit www.unionstationhs.org.

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Thank you for Giving a Good Meal! On Thanksgiving and Christmas, volunteers from across the Southland celebrated the holidays by sharing their abundance and volunteering at Union Station Homeless Services’ Dinners-in-the-Park. Called the “Biggest Potluck in the Nation” by the LA times, these incredible community events bring together thousands of volunteers every Thanksgiving and Christmas Day to serve holiday meals in Pasadena’s Central Park.

We’d like to thank our 4,000 volunteers who gave their time and energy to make Dinners-in-the-Park a reality. With their help, Union Station served 7,000 warm, delicious holiday meals on Thanksgiving and Christmas to those in need who may otherwise have gone hungry. Meal recipients included homeless and low-income adults and families, senior citizens, and those who are alone at the holi-days or unable to afford a holiday meal. More than 300 turkeys and 300 hams were donated and cooked by our community volunteers. More than 550 cars dropped off side dishes, in addition to dinner rolls and pies!

“I was struck by the number of people who took the time to participate,” one volun-teer told us. “I was overwhelmed - it was hard to see children and their parents in line to receive a meal I have always taken for granted.”

We’d like to extend our very special thanks to our Event Chair, Rick Wiechmann, along with the Dinners-in-the-Park committees, who planned and led these incredible events. Thank you to Mayor Bill Bogaard, Pasadena Housing Direc-tor Bill Huang, Councilmember Victor Gordo, Senator Carol Liu, Matthew Lillard (The De-scendants, Scooby Doo), Ray Charles Jr., Omar Miller & Friends, and Disney VoluntEARS, who attended the event, along with Goldstar, SoCal Gas Co., Sempra Energy Foundation, Community Bank, Wells Fargo, Paul Hastings Law Firm, and Congresswoman Judy Chu, and, whose donations of goods and dollars helped make this event possible.

Visit www.unionstationhs.org/Community_Meal_Programs.html to learn more about our Community Meals Programs, which feed people in need every day of the year.

David, USHS alumnus

Receiving a Thanksgiving meal at Dinner-in-the-Park

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Matthew Lillard and his daughter serving meals

Bill Goldmann and Senator Carol Liu

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Corporate and Community Partners are part of the solution!

During the holidays, local businesses, community groups, families and individuals go above and beyond to help donate and serve food, gather toys or make holiday donations to Union Station Homeless Services. We’d like to give special thanks to the following businesses and community groups who warmed our hearts with their generosity this holiday season:

24 Hour Fitness n All Saints Church n Art Center College of Design n Avanti Cafe n Blair High School Culinary School n Bungalow Heaven n California Pizza Kitchen n Cal Phil n Caltech Y n Chandler Girl Scouts n Church of the Latter Day Saints n The Coffee Gallery Backstage n Community Bank n Disney VoluntEARS n Dog Haus n Dolphin Rentals n Ernst and Young n Firefighters Spark of Love n First Jon n First Tee Golf Students n The “Fork in the Road” Gang n Goldstar n Grifols Biological n Heart of Compassion n Individual Group n Jay Packer Photography n

JPL n Kings Row n Lauren Lewis PR n Le Cordon Bleu Culinary School n Liquid Entertainment n LoopNet n Marines Toys for Tots Foundation n Mayfield Middle School n M-Local Mediterranean n Morongo Band of Mission Indians n Noor n Operation Gobble Gobble n Pasadena Bar Association n Pasadena Police Department Explorers Post #19 n Paul Hastings Law Firm n Polytechnic Girl Scouts n Pretzel King LLC / Linda Read n Read Communications n Raymond Storage n Shamus Budget Rentals n Shelter Partnership n SoCal Honda Dealers n SoCal Gas Company n Sempra Energy Foundation n Southern California Edison n StarMakers Costumes n Teles Properties n Unified Grocers n Universal Studios Hollywood n Valley Food Bank n Wells Fargo Bank We are grateful for the outpouring of support from the community and look forward to speaking to you about your partnership with Union Station Homeless Services. To find out how your business can become a part of the solution, call (626) 240-4558 today.

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Ernst & Young

SoCal Honda Dealers

Pasadena Bar Association

Community Bank Universal Studios

We’d like to extend a warm welcome to an incredible addition to our Union Station team, LaViva Primm, our new Director of Sources. LaViva comes to Union Station with extensive experience working in career development and homeless services. Under her leadership, some exciting changes are taking place in the Sources Career Devel-opment Program!

In October, Sources introduced a new and improved curriculum from WorkNet, a nationally recognized job-training tool designed to serve people with significant employment barriers. “This new curriculum, aptly called Fast Track, opened to rave reviews from clients!” LaViva says. “It streamlines the comprehensive career development material and incorporates current labor market information and research.”

In addition to new course materials, Sources was recently assessed by the Department of Rehabili-tation (DOR), and has been approved to provide Employment Services as a DOR vendor!

We’ve had a lot to celebrate at Sources lately, but one candidate’s story comes to mind as an example of how Sources can help people transform their lives. When we first met James, he told our staff that at 54 years old, he had spent nearly half his life in prison. “I would like to get a job, but with my record, I just don’t see how I can,” he said. Though he had an incredibly hard time overcoming his fears and his employment barriers, our Sources staff helped James develop networking skills, newfound hope and confidence. In October, James found a job and is on track to a new and better life!

Sources Gets a New Director and a New Direction

LaViva, Director of Sources

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A Place to Call Home A Gala Benefiting Union Station Homeless Services

SAVE THE DATE

MAY 12, 2012

California ClubLos Angeles

Call (626) 240-4557 for event details or ticket information.

An Evening for the Station Gets Glamorous with Sheila EOn Saturday, October 22, more than 300 guests enjoyed an incredible night of Latin Jazz at An Evening for the Station, a concert benefitting Union Station Homeless Services. The event raised more than $90,000 to help homeless men, women and children rebuild their lives and end their cycle of home-lessness.

Hosted at Noor’s Sophia Ballroom, the concert featured world famous percussionist Sheila E (Prince, Ringo Starr), the E Family, and Emmy Award-winning actor and entertainer Hector Elizondo (Chicago Hope, Last Man Standing). The E Family’s new album Now & Forever was available for purchase, with a portion of proceeds benefitting Union Station Homeless Services.

Before the concert, the cocktail hour buzzed with hundreds of Union Station supporters, who enjoyed appetizers, bid on raffle items, and donated to further Union Station’s mission and programs. When a formerly homeless couple took center stage, guests were truly reminded why they were at the event. The couple, who met while living at Union Station’s Adult Center more than 15 years ago, credits the organization with saving their lives. They shared their struggles on the streets, and the success they found when Union Station helped them rebuild their lives. Today they have a beautiful daughter, are accomplished in their careers, and own a home. They are proud that they can give back to their com-munity and to Union Station, which supported them in their time of need.

To learn more about the event, visit http://www.unionstationhs.org/an_evening_for_the_station.html.

From Left: Councilman Chris and Melanie Holden, Marvin Gross, Hector Elizondo, Sheila E, Peter M. Escovedo, Juan Escovedo, Pete Escovedo, and Tracey Kardash.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Arnold Siegel, ChairRandy A. Shulman, Vice ChairTerry Krupczak, TreasurerElizabeth Trussell, SecretaryMichael DannekerJoel EdstromJill A. Fosselman Maxine HarrisJames HartJohn HornLinda Jahnke Nicole KlyczekDiana Peterson-MoreElliot A. Sainer Bradley D. Schwartz Vickie Taylor Charles Thuss Gregory R. VanniLyla L. White

EXECUTIVE STAFFRabbi Marvin M. Gross, CEOCynthia Foster, COOGregg von Fempe, Director of Programs Tracey Kardash, Director of Development Sandy Potter, Director of Volunteer and Community Programs

NEWSLETTERDana BeanHillary Evans Tracey Kardash

825 E. Orange Grove Blvd. Pasadena, CA 91104

www.unionstationhs.org(626) 240 -4550

HELPING MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN

REBUILD THEIR LIVES AND END HOMELESSNESS

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