Page 22 - Rana Sampson Issue (1)

A lot of the children have had pretty tough, no, very tough lives” ketball, running, and football. We have a cheerleading squad, girl
The San Diego Center for Children builds skills and resilience in scouts, pet therapy, and we just started a gardening program so
children and teens whose trauma, abuse or mental health chal- the children can grow food and learn about healthy eating. We try
lenges are delaying their success in the community and in school. to give them as much of a fun, activity-filled and therapeutic child-
Through this center services are provided all across the county. hood as possible.” To this end, the Center has managed to even
There are programs in San Ysidro, Vista, Lemon Grove, La Mesa provide a prom for the students thanks to the generous donations
and at their main campus in Kearney Mesa. On their site in Kear- of volunteers throughout the county.
ney Mesa they have a K-12 accredited school for children with As the oldest accredited children’s charity in San Diego, they have
special circumstances. Often these children have been abused or been helping children since 1887, and its 125th year of service
had some sort of trauma or mental health issue. They also have a begins in 2012. The concept of the Center is to help the children
foster care agency to help place children in need. Their residential to manage their problems now when they are young so they don’t
program houses 75 children who live on their main campus. “Each go through life suffering and ending up choosing the wrong path.
child has a therapist, goes to school, participates in their music “We try to help the children handle their problems now before their
and arts programs, and has recreational therapy including lots of problems become more magnified and less manageable.”
fun childhood activities. We have six teams; including softball, bas- Current needs for the Center include corporate sponsorship for
fundraising events, donation of items for up-
coming silent auctions, and funding for special
programs. “We have volunteers who sponsor
a child and provide holiday and birthday pres-
ents for them each year.” Adds Rana, “I don’t
know what we would do without these generous
volunteers.” These children are not requesting
items like iPads or cell phones but are thrilled
to receive a new pair of shoes or jeans. The
Center receives government funding for some
of their programs, but the extras that help allow
these children to actually experience a some-
what normal childhood are not covered by these
resources. The Center has been able to provide
Easter, Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanza, and
Halloween celebrations each year (with dona-
tions). “Everything that you would want for your
child to have a good childhood we want these
children to have too. Not excessive, but they
need to have a childhood. A childhood keeps us
human and connected to other people. Every
person needs some innocence about them and
22 some of the children who come here have only
horrendous experiences by which to remember
their childhood. We do all we can to change
that.” The Center has three major fundraising
events each year including their Annual Dinner
Gala held at the US Grant on May 12, 2011, a
golf tournament (in early March), and a Walk for
Kids in November. (If you would like more infor-
mation about the San Diego Center for Children
or would like to donate please visit their site at
www.centerforchildren.org.)
With the background and experiences Rana has
had throughout her life she has always managed
to give back to those who need her help. Rana
and Jerry have taught daughters Lisa and Jamie
to do the same. Both girls have been front and
center lending a hand volunteering at Center
events for mom and aiding their father during
campaigns and charitable functions.
Her dedication to a life of service to her com-
munity while giving back at every opportunity is
a true testament to what it means to be “the first
Lady” of San Diego; but she is so much more
than that. She is unpretentious and kind, always
looking for new ways to help the most vulner-
able members of society, the children of San
Diego. Working with Rana over the years to help
support her charity has been a pleasure and let
me say from all of us at San Diego Woman - we
thank you.

March/April 2011