Friends of A Bridge for Kids, I’d like to start off by saying thanks to everyone for your continued support of A Bridge for Kids. April was a record month for us as we awarded over $25,000 in sponsorships to 20 teenagers throughout San Diego County.   You can read about many of the emotional award presentations in this month’s newsletter. If you have any doubts that your donation to your favorite non-profit is really “making a difference”, I think your concerns will be answered as you read this portion of one of the many thank you notes we … [Read more...]

In today’s world, college preparation does not start in the 11th grade.  For today's Seniors to get into their "dream school", it is important to have strong grades in both the 9th and 10th grades to build a strong overall GPA that can be reported on a college application. With this in mind, A Bridge For Kids is introducing a new pilot Tutoring Program specifically targeting those 8th– 10th grade teens who have both a financial need and a demonstrated academic potential to earn good grades but have not been able to reach this potential due to … [Read more...]

 A Bridge for Kids is excited to announce our Teens Helping Teens Leadership Contest designed to inspire young leaders to explore philanthropy. We have received many requests from teens inquiring about volunteer opportunities within our organization. These requests have prompted us to create this program, which challenges teens to design creative ways to raise funds and awareness within the community and support A Bridge For Kids’ mission of helping low income and at-risk teenagers achieve their academic, athletic or artistic dreams!   A … [Read more...]

Dear Friends of A Bridge for Kids, Walt Disney once said of change: “We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths...paths to new successes.”   This month “change” is the operative word at A Bridge for Kids as we move forward down a path that is lit primarily by the ideas of our teens.  Today we are announcing four new initiatives that will compliment our ongoing sponsorship program. 1)   Annual College campus tours- We have two campus tours planned for … [Read more...]

As the gifts came in one by one you could feel the excitement in the air! A Bridge for Kids and a team of volunteers collected gifts that are sure to bring a smile to the faces of 536 Foster Care kids this holiday season.  We counted 4 bikes, a shiny red guitar, several skateboards, baseball bats, Size 10 Cheeta- print Van shoes, and a Barbie pet doctor kit. Even though there is a $50 suggested gift amount, many LJCDS students teamed up with their Advisory groups and collected money to make some of these extra special wishes came true! … [Read more...]

A Bridge for Kids hosted it’s first ever Casino Night at the La Jolla Country Club on Saturday night, October 12th. Over 150 guests gambled the night away for a great cause, raising over $110,000 for at risk teens. It was a party-like atmosphere from start to finish with Las Vegas style atmosphere at all of the black jack, craps or roulette tables. A Bridge for Kids teens were the real winners as guests placed their bets for charity. Dee Van Horne wins big on the roulette wheel The live auction, which was packed with vacation … [Read more...]

Virginia Reyes, from The Preuss School, UCSD, won the second annual A Bridge for Kids essay contest. In doing so she also collected first prize, a $2,000 sponsorship from A Bridge for Kids. Virginia’s essay beat out over 450 submissions from 12 schools throughout San Diego County and was judged the winner by a panel of six judges. Virginia with her family after winning this years essay contest Virginia, who is a senior and hopes to attend Stanford next year, said she would be buying an Ipod Touch or tablet with a portion of her … [Read more...]

Hi Everyone, This is our final Newsletter for 2013, our first full year as an organization, and what a year it has been!  Over the past year, A Bridge for Kids has evolved from an “idea” to a meaningful organization in the community, helping numerous teenagers achieve their dreams.  Through the generosity of almost 200 donors, our teens have been able to apply to their dream colleges, enhance their ability to complete school work with their own computers, buy sports equipment, participate in school activities, and look forward to being able … [Read more...]

A few weeks ago we met with an impressive 16 year old from Escondido Charter High School who had recently been through a difficult period in his life. His father lost his job last spring and moved away from the family soon thereafter; and his mom who had previously turned to drugs and alcohol, died earlier this year of an overdose. As a result, this teenager has been homeless off and on for the past nine months with no source of income or guidance. Even with these hardships, and without a reliable place to call home, he was still able to … [Read more...]