Firehouse Community Development Corporation

Firehouse Needs Your Help.

Firehouse Community Development Corporation intervenes with students who society considers "at-risk." At risk for what? At the risk of gun violence. At the risk of criminal activity. At the risk of suicide. At the risk of being in gangs. At the risk of not ever finishing school and going to college. At the risk of dying brutally at a young age. At the risk of being incarcerated. At the risk of never being a healthy contributor to society.

 

 

These young students are overlooked, forgotten, and passed over, all from low-income neighborhoods with no hope. Time is running out for them, and they need your help. We need your help. Our funding has depleted, and we need an immediate capital infusion minimum of $50,000 to keep our good work going. We need time to seek more considerable grant funding from our cities, counties, and foundations. We are working on it, but it takes time. With these kids, time is not on their side. Please help us keep our doors open to them. These kids enter our program with four or more "F's." The Firehouse is the school program where we start to change their lives and give these lost kids a fighting chance for a great life. You have heard the saying, "It takes a village." We are that village, and we ask you to join us in this fight to be proactive in saving their future and life. Help us change their narrative. Let's keep the doors of hope open for them.

 

 

What are the Los Banos school district students saying about the Firehouse program?

 

14-year-old Latino female student. "I've been in the program for this year. What I like about the program is that it helped me be more open and social. It helped me with motivation to do my work; the program helps me a lot with that."

 

13-year-old Latino female student. "I've been in the Firehouse program for two years. What I like about the Firehouse program is all the talks we have, and the way Firehouse has helped me is improve my grades."

 

13-year-old Latino female student. "I've been in the Firehouse program for five or six months. I like the lessons Firehouse teaches me. It really opened my eye-balls (as she sweetly smiles). It has taught me a lot of life lessons and changed my perspective on a lot of things."

 

 

Mercury News Press Links

Story: Community groups city work to keep a lid on San Jose gang violence

"When Lara is not dealing with a crisis, he and his team are working daily with students at various high schools, hardened gang members at youth centers, and teens and young adults fresh out of jail or juvenile hall. A former gang member, Lara constantly preaches the importance of education and transformation." (Mercury News, 2010).

 

San Jose program helps Andrew Hill students go from fs to passing grades (Read story).

Sophomore, Jeanette Guerra, 16, talks about the Firehouse Program at Andrew Hill High School in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, May 11, 2015. The program helps "at-risk" students at the school who have recorded four or more failing grades on their report cards to learn life skills to empower and transform their lives. (Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group)

 

Sophomore, Fernando Roldan, 15, listens to instructor Israel Lara, during a class session of the Firehouse Program at Andrew Hill High School in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, May 11, 2015. The program helps "at-risk" students at the school who have recorded four or more failing grades on their report cards to learn life skills to empower and transform their lives. (Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group)

 

Israel Lara, left, teaches a session of the Firehouse Program at Andrew Hill High School in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, May 11, 2015. At right is Andrew Bedolla, 16, and Angel Cruz, 16. Both students are juniors at Andrew Hill High School. The Firehouse Program helps "at risk" students at the school who have recorded four or more failing grades on their report cards to learn life skills to empower and transform their lives. (Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group)

 

Andrew Bedolla, 16, Angel Cruz, 16, and Daniel Sanchez, 16, left to right, attend a session of the Firehouse Program at Andrew Hill High School in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, May 11, 2015. The program helps "at-risk" students at the school who have recorded four or more failing grades on their report cards to learn life skills to empower and transform their lives. All three students are juniors at Andrew Hill High School. (Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group) https://www.mercurynews.com/2015/05/12/san-jose-program-helps-andrew-hill-students-go-from-fs-to-passing-grades/

 

 

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DrSonny Lara | Facebook

 

Firehouse Community Development Corporation

 

Firehouse Results.

Students that have gone through our program have graduated high school. Many of our Firehouse students have gone on to college. We have worked with at-risk kids for over 20 years; their children are now on their way to college. We want to keep making that difference. For each student we save, one less student is incarcerated, has no gun violence, and is not addicted to drugs or other criminal activity. Firehouse is the game-changer for these students who choose to participate in the program and do the work.

 

Many of our team members are graduates of the Firehouse program. Today, these former students are homeowners, have families, and are successful societal contributors. We have had to lay them off due to a lack of funding. Others have become entrepreneurs, and the list goes on and on. Please help support our efforts to continue the Firehouse program.

 

How will the funds be used?

Every dollar donated will help us continue to work with at-risk youth failing out of the California junior high and high school system in San Jose and Los Banos school districts. We work tirelessly to help the students to change the negative direction of their lives and give them hope for a future.

 

 

Who and Where We Are? About Us .

Executive Director Pastor Sonny and Linda Lara are the founders of the Firehouse Community Development Corporation. Firehouse headquarters is in the heart of Silicon Valley in San Jose, California. We work with students in Northern California school districts, San Jose and Los Banos junior high and high school students that are getting four or more "F's." Learn more about our work on our website, 
https://www.the-firehouse.org 
5655 Silver Creek Valley Road #517, San Jose, Ca 95138.