On September 30, 2020 David and Margaret’s Compass Point Drop-in Center for Transitional Age Youth hosted it’s first Preview Day and Resource Fair. It was a successful event with about 54 guests attending the Zoom presentation. Guests attended from The Department of Children and Family Services, Pomona Unified School District, Union Station Homeless Services, Walden Family Services, LACOE, Hathaway Sycamores, Hillsides, Bridges Inc., NAMI Pomona Valley, University of LA Verne, and many others.
During the presentation Compass Point staff shared a video tour of the space which included an interview with Alex, a Transitional Age Youth (TAY), who shared how the center is already supporting him. The video also demonstrated some of the many services and opportunities Compass Point will offer. The 1-hour event highlighted all the hard work that has gone into making the center a warm, welcoming and supportive space for Transitional Age Youth in our community. The presentation also highlighted how many community organizations and businesses are coming together to support Transitional Age Youth providing the resources and guidance they need as they move into adulthood.
After the Drop-In Center overview the presentation transitioned to the resource fair component. This virtual (for now) resource fair is a quarterly event that targets specific areas of wellness. The aspects of wellness that are covered during the year are physical, psychological, social, and intellectual. Focusing on social wellness for this quarter there were presentations from the San Gabriel Valley LGBTQ Center, SHARE, Tri-City, Sol Flower, Citrus College, and Mt. SAC community college. Each organization was able to present the social wellness opportunities that they offer. It was an informational time, geared specifically to the Transitional Aged Youth to show them not only what resources are available to them, but also how to access them.
A special thanks to all those who participated in providing feedback throughout this process to make Compass Point Drop-In Center the welcoming and supportive place it is for Transitional Age Youth in our community. The participation of so many passionate stakeholders ensured the success of the Compass Point Preview Day and Resource Fair.
The caring David & Margaret Compass Point Staff, including our dedicated VISTA volunteers, have worked hard to create a space that is responsive to the needs of TAY and the greater community. We wanted to take a moment to acknowledge all of their hard work - Thank you! Additionally, we would like to thank the David & Margaret Board of Directors for their vision and commitment which enabled this project to come to fruition. And of course, none of this would be possible without a generous grant from the Margie & Robert E. Petersen Foundation which funded the build out of the space and continues to support some staffing.
If you would like to learn more about the COMPASS Point Drop-In Center you can watch the preview video here, and you can learn more about it’s creation and services on our website.
