overview

“Is it possible to eliminate poverty?”

Pasadena is famous for its Rose Bowl and Rose Parade. Viewed through these rose-tinted lenses, the city seems a picture of suburban affluence.

But there is another Pasadena located in the marginalized, low-income neighborhoods just north of the 210 Freeway. Here, in the communities of Northwest Pasadena and Altadena, struggling African American and Latino families experience the city through a prism of poverty.

What does that look like from their perspective? It’s tough to find work (more than 12% of adults are unemployed), staying in school is a tremendous struggle for many high school students (32% drop out before the 12th grade), and the lure and threat of gang life hover over the streets.

Add in pervasive drug and alcohol use, incarcerated family members, high numbers of foster care children and increasing homelessness, and you can imagine the challenges faced by this community. This is even more troubling when you realize that this area is home to 75% of Pasadena’s children. The future of our city.

We might not be able to eliminate these challenges entirely, but we owe it to our children to give it our best efforts and make improvements where we can.

“Where do you start?”

What would you do to help children and families escape the devastating cycle of poverty? First of all, you start with what you have: committed volunteers, elected officials, school district officials, faith-based groups, police, and nonprofit organizations. By bringing people together who are committed to making a difference, you build an effective structure for improving lives and creating change.

That’s exactly what we’ve been doing. Flintridge has been involved in Northwest Pasadena and Altadena since 1985, helping our neighbors determine what changes need to take place, and helping them marshal the resources necessary to get the job done. We do that by facilitating community partnerships and nonprofit coalitions that tackle our community’s most pressing challenges: low-achieving schools, gangs and neighborhood safety issues, and limited access to vital services such as medical, dental and mental health care. These challenges are the deep-rooted obstacles that limit our children’s opportunities to succeed.

“What can we accomplish?”

Simply put: almost anything. At John Muir High School, our Mustangs on the Move Program enables more than 30% of each year’s senior class to graduate from high school. Our Apprenticeship Preparation Program helps ex-offenders and former gang members get their lives back on track, with decent-paying jobs and education. And our Mustangs Mentoring Program helps young people stay in school and out of gangs. This is just the start.

Click on the links here or at the top of the page to learn more about our Community Services and Community Partnerships in Northwest Pasadena and Altadena, and how you can join us as as well.

Photo: Norma Caloca